Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery is a 1997 American science fiction/action-comedy film and the first film in the Austin Powers series. It was directed by Jay Roach and written by Mike Myers, who also performed the title role. Myers also plays Dr. Evil, Powers' arch-enemy. The film co-stars Elizabeth Hurley as Vanessa Kensington, Robert Wagner as Number 2, Seth Green as Scott Evil, and Michael York as Basil Exposition. Will Ferrell, Mimi Rogers, Carrie Fisher, Tom Arnold, Rob Lowe, Christian Slater, Cheri Oteri, Neil Mullarkey and Burt Bacharach made cameo appearances alongside an uncredited cameo by MADtv star Michael McDonald, among many others.
The film is a parody of the James Bond films (particularly the earlier features in the franchise) as well as other 1960s spy films.
The film, which cost US$16.5 million, opened on May 2, 1997, to positive reviews. It made a modest impact at the box office, grossing US$53 million from its North American release and about US$68 million worldwide. The film later became a hit and cult classic in the home video market and cable television, spawning two sequels, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and Austin Powers in Goldmember, with a fourth film in the works.
Read more about Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery: Plot, Soundtrack, Home Video Releases, Reception
Famous quotes containing the word man:
“If we study nature attentively, alike in its great revolutions and in its minutest works, it is impossible not to admit enchantment—giving the word its fullest meaning. Man can create no force; he can but use the only existing force, which includes all others, namely, Motion—the incomprehensible Breath of the sovereign maker of the universe.”
—Honoré De Balzac (1799–1850)