vannesa kensington : ` austin , do you smoke after sex ? '
austin powers :
` i do n't know baby , i 've never looked ! '
and so begins our journey into the most anticipated sequel of the summer season .
austin powers 2 , the sequel to the sleeper hit of 1997 , is filled to the brim with uproarious sight gags and lurid toilet jokes that will make you keel over with hilarity .
the mind of mike myers is obviously a very bizarre place .
myers returns as the swinging 60 's spy and his arch - nemesis , the bald headed dr .
evil , who is given much of the spotlight here .
there 's an early scene in which dr .
evil and his son scott ( seth green ) appear on a jerry springer segment entitled
` my dad is evil and wants to take over the world ' , hosted by springer himself .
most of these talk - show gags , spoofing everything from oprah to regis and kathie lee , are no longer as funny as they once were .
happily , this is an exception , especially when a fight breaks out between dr .
evil and the other guests .
( sample dialogue- ` come back here you mother # @%$^ ! !
you want a piece of me ? ' )
the audience was in stitches .
there are many good things about this sequel .
dr .
evil is now assisted by mini - me ( verne troyer ) , a pint - sized clone who is the result of an experiment gone awry .
mini - me is the most perfect new character that any fan could ask for , and troyer does a terrific job of mimicking everything that his big brother does , pinkie and all .
mindy sterling returns as frau farbissina , evil 's loud - mouth assassin sidekick , and here we are treated to a brief romantic liaison between the two in an underground bedroom chamber .
this works surprisingly well
.
afterward , there 's even a meeting at the coffee machine , where their awkwardness is expressed in a scene you would expect in any normal office environment .
oh , yes . . .
the plot .
after a short honeymoon with vanessa kensington ( elizabeth hurley ) that goes disastrously wrong , powers is back on the case to thwart the diabolical plans of dr .
evil .
in the original , the subject of the day was cryogenic freezing that enabled the characters to hop between two time periods .
here , it 's time travel .
dr .
evil has this crazy plan to steal austin 's mojo ( the source of his sexual powers ) , so he jumps through a time portal back into 1969 when powers is still is his freezing chamber .
there , he employs a grotesque 600-pound scottish assassin named fat bastard ( also myers ) to commandeer the mojo , so that our future hero is left completely shagless .
meanwhile , austin is informed of evil 's wrong - doing by basil exposition ( michael york ) , and is supplied with his very own time - traveling device in the form of a volkswagen beetle .
once back in 1969 , powers meets a foxy cia operative named felicity shagwell ( heather graham ) , and learns of dr .
evil 's plans to destroy washington dc with a lazer on the moon .
in one of the many uproarious jabs at star wars , evil calls the moon base a ` death star ' .
if there ever was a movie that knew from the start it was a complete joke , it 's austin powers : the spy who shagged me .
ap2 has many hilarious moments , much more so , than the original austin powers .
but what it does n't have is the confident support system that the first boasted , and the jokes are now more scattershot and hit - and - miss .
while myers has a knack for delivering clever , inspired gags , he sometimes does n't know when to call it quits .
the hilarious scene in the original involving mustafa ( will ferrell ) and his refusal to die is played out here in a disappointing and tired manner .
robert wagner , as dr .
evil 's # 2 man , has only one scene early on in the film , where he lacks all the focus of the character .
one nice surprise is rob lowe , as the young # 2 , who patterns wagner 's voice and movements right down to a tee .
there are more recycled jokes from the predecessor , including kristen johnston as ivana humpalot ( an unfunny rendition of alotta fagina ) .
but myers has clearly put so much dedication into this project , and many bits are side - splittingly funny .
do n't miss an extended visual gag in a tent , where the shadows leave much to the imagination . . .
. of the new characters
, graham does n't leave much of an impression .
her performance is merely okay , and she lacks the gung - ho enthusiasm that made elizabeth hurley so enjoyable before her .
and as for fat bastard . .
.
well , he provides one or two hilarious moments , but all of the obesity jokes and bathroom talk go too far .
but my most severe complaint : mr .
bigglesworth was only in one scene ! !
but , with gritted teeth , i managed to get over that .
this sequel will not leave fans disappointed ; it 's more often than not a laugh riot .
and , i look optimistically to the future , where i foresee more installments to the austin powers collection .
if myers can up the quota of fresh ideas , we should be in store for much more .
( c ) 1999 , jamey hughton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
jamey hughton ( 15 ) has written a weekly column in the starphoenix , saskatoon , sk since november , 1997 .
he was a 1999 writing finalist in the canadian ytv achievement awards .
Output: P