Austin Powers : L'Espion qui m'a tirée

The first Austin Powers movie was a shot-in-the-dark comedy Michael Myers pretty much made for himself and a few friends, little imagining the fuss it would spawn. This time, Myers and his alter egos set out to build a middle-brow entertainment franchise. At least they got the money part right.

After spending the first movie adjusting to life in the 1990s, superspy Austin Powers (Myers) is pulled back into his native 1960s to save his mojo from the evil Dr. Evil (Myers), who has stolen it with the help of traitorous Scot Fat Bastard (Myers). Will Austin save his mojo, and not incidentally, the world?

While not as satisfying or clever as the first Powers film, "Spy Who Shagged Me" does make you laugh, especially the first time you see it. Fat Bastard is a terrific new addition to the Powers tribe, a nasty self-worshipping slob who wears a metric ton and has an appetite that is boundless, morally as well as physically.

"Listen up, Sonny Jim, I ate a baby!" FB declares. "Baby: The other, other white meat!"

Also great is Verne Troyer as Dr. Evil's stunted replicant, Mini-Me. Troyer's tiny stature makes for a good initial guilty laugh, but Troyer throws himself into the role with the same kind of abandon and hidden talent Myers employed in the first film. Mini-Me's confrontations with Dr. Evil's biological son Scott (Seth Green) is an entertaining subplot throughout.

Myers himself is a bit of a mix. As Fat Bastard, he is about as funny as he's ever been on screen. As Austin and Dr. Evil, he's a little too much too often. Dr. Evil seems to be after laughs from the MTV Music Awards crowd, mocking rap videos and repeating old gags like telling Scott to be quiet (this time with the catch phrase "Zip it" rather than "Shh...") Austin is a grab bag of catch phrases, interspersed with the occasional double entendre, like when his latest lady, Felicity Shagwell (Heather Graham), notices he activates his apartment lights by clapping his hands.

"When did you get the clapper?" she asks.

"November, 1964, Dutch East Indies, shore leave," he replies.

Graham is beautiful to look at but a bit of a damp noodle otherwise, which goes for much of "The Spy Who Shagged Me." Sure, you have the clever set design, costumes, and music that the original "Austin Powers" had in spades, but the heart of the enterprise is missing here. Austin throws off one after another of his merchandise-ready puns, and it's hard not to enjoy it in fitful bursts. But it doesn't linger like the first film.