AUSTIN POWERS:THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME
Rated PG-13
Starring Mike Myers, Heather Graham, Seth Green and... Mike Myers

CineSight Rating **

British playboy-spy Austin Powers (Myers) and his nemesis, Dr. Evil (Myers), are back, baby! THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME picks up where AUSTON POWERS left off - with Austin happily married and Dr. Evil cryogenically frozen inside a Bob's Big Boy, orbiting the earth.

However, Dr. Evil has found a way to ruin Austin's honeymoon permanently, leaving him single once again. To make matters worse, Dr. Evil builds a time machine and returns to the 60's, rendering our hero powerless by stealing his 'mojo'. Without it, Austin is no longer the wild and crazy guy who "put the grrr in swinger, baby". With the help of CIA agent Felicity Shagwell (Graham), Austin goes after the villain to save the world and restore his 'mojo'.

Seth Green returns as Scott, Dr. Evil's son, and many of the original supporting cast are back reprising their roles. There are also a number of cameo appearances from the likes of Burt Bacharach, Elvis Costello, Tim Robbins, Willie Nelson and Woody Harrelson.

I confess, I was really hooked by the freshness of the first movie, and hoped the sequel would take the series further. However, THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME relies much too heavily on its predecessor - recycling all the gags that worked well the first time around. Meanwhile, some of the new material is extremely adolescent in its humor, cashing-in on gross gags similar to last summer's THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY.

All in all, Austin Powers II is something of a mixed bag, baby!