12 replies to this topic

[bryonalston]

Spy Hard and the Austin Powers movies both are clear parodies of Bond films, but which one does a better job?

SPY HARD:
-Title sequence borrows liberally from Thunderball's, only replacing the skinny silhouettes with overweight women. They even brought in Wierd Al Yankovic, the king of song parodies. He uses 'Thunderball' as an inspiration for the song, and uses the end of 'Goldfinger' for a note which is held forever.
-The heroine's name is Barbie Dahl (Bibi Dahl? or the 'Tanya Roberts' complex?)
-Talisa Soto has a cameo

AUSTIN POWERS
-Movies named THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME (The Spy Who Loved Me), GOLDMEMBER (Goldfinger), AUSTINPUSSY (Octopussy)
-Borrowed many plot elements from CR (i.e. the invisible ink on the cards)
-Dr. Evil is almost identical to Pleasance's Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Also Dr. Evil's name sounds like Dr. No.
-Austin Powers' wife was killed shortly after their marriage
-Austin and Ms. Kensington are suspended over a shark pool, like Bond and Solitaire

ETC...

[PrinceKamalKhan]

Between those two, I'd say Austin Powers but Get Smart and Our Man Flint beat 'em both IMHO.

[MillesGloriosus]

I have to agree with Prince Kamal Khan.

Check out the "Our Man Flint" and "In Like Flint." You can tell those actors just had too much fun playing their parts.

Coburn has this look on his face where he looks like he's trying not to laugh his butt off. Kinda like my avatar.

Edited by MillesGloriosus, 19 August 2004 - 03:28 PM.

[Qwerty]

Spy Hard and the Austin Powers movies both are clear parodies of Bond films, but which one does a better job?

SPY HARD:
-Title sequence borrows liberally from Thunderball's, only replacing the skinny silhouettes with overweight women. They even brought in Wierd Al Yankovic, the king of song parodies. He uses 'Thunderball' as an inspiration for the song, and uses the end of 'Goldfinger' for a note which is held forever.
-The heroine's name is Barbie Dahl (Bibi Dahl? or the 'Tanya Roberts' complex?)
-Talisa Soto has a cameo

AUSTIN POWERS
-Movies named THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME (The Spy Who Loved Me), GOLDMEMBER (Goldfinger), AUSTINPUSSY (Octopussy)
-Borrowed many plot elements from CR (i.e. the invisible ink on the cards)
-Dr. Evil is almost identical to Pleasance's Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Also Dr. Evil's name sounds like Dr. No.
-Austin Powers' wife was killed shortly after their marriage
-Austin and Ms. Kensington are suspended over a shark pool, like Bond and Solitaire

ETC...

Austin Powers, although both are films that I don't have a problem with.

[CommanderBond]

I have to agree with Prince Kamal Khan.

Check out the "Our Man Flint" and "In Like Flint." You can tell those actors just had too much fun playing their parts.

Coburn has this look on his face where he looks like he's trying not to laugh his butt off. Kinda like my avatar.

i agree. To me they spoofed it just enough to have an actual story. Not just joke after joke and spoof anfter spoof.

[Qwerty]

I have to agree with Prince Kamal Khan.

Check out the "Our Man Flint" and "In Like Flint." You can tell those actors just had too much fun playing their parts.

They recently had them on DVD, in a set. It was those two, and then I believe another spoof from the same time relatively.

[Von Hammerstein]

Spy Hard was a spoof of action films in general. Austin Powers is a spoof series of the 60's spy films most notably 007. So Austin wins the competition.

As for Flint. The thing that made the Flint films so good was, that no matter how outrageous the storyline went, James Coburn and cast played it straight. They took their spy story seriously and let us do the laughing, rather than making pratfalls and
bathroom jokes. I'm thinking Hollywood doesn't know how to make cerebral comedies or spoofs anymore, aiming for the lowbrow common denominator. Pity.

[Qwerty]

I have to agree with Prince Kamal Khan.

Check out the "Our Man Flint" and "In Like Flint." You can tell those actors just had too much fun playing their parts.

Coburn has this look on his face where he looks like he's trying not to laugh his butt off. Kinda like my avatar.

i agree. To me they spoofed it just enough to have an actual story. Not just joke after joke and spoof anfter spoof.

However, what I am noticing with the Austin Powers series, and mostly with Austin Powers in Goldmember, is that they seem to be running out of ideas and it's just become spoof after spoof after joke, etc.. I think may have gotten all they can out of that series, and the films are funny and good, but overall, I'd say it might be time, if not soon to end that one.

[Blythy]

Austin powers is a great series, and will almost definatley not be continued. Problem is.... Austin powers has very little staying power wit me, I like the films, and I will watch them, but they get boring after watching a few times, unlike other movies (pulp fiction, reservoir dogs, matric, oceans eleven) where I can watch many times and still find it interesting and still pick up on a couple of pieces.

Joke for joke, the AP movies peaked at SWSM, but goldmember had much better belly laughs (How bout no! ya crazy dutch bastard - Are you sure you haven't got a little clone in you? Would you like to? etc) evn if goldmember was a cameo infested film filmed with the quintisenntial hollywood barftastic ending.

from what I remember of spy hard, it was very airplane-esque, with every little thing being a joke (anybody remeber his drink?) especially the background action, although it fell flat on some jokes, unlike airplane which is probably the best spoof - ever.

[Grubozaboyschikov]

To me, the genre of spoof died years ago, the last survivors being LOADED WEAPON and FATAL INSTINCT (this one - a bit questionable). After the Zucker/Abrahams trio ceased making spoofs, the films of this genre have begun repeating themselves, overloaded with f@rt and barf jokes. The last film about Austin Powers is the example. But of the two evils, I

Edited by Grubozaboyschikov, 03 September 2004 - 10:52 AM.

[Qwerty]

Joke for joke, the AP movies peaked at SWSM, but goldmember had much better belly laughs (How bout no! ya crazy dutch bastard - Are you sure you haven't got a little clone in you? Would you like to? etc) evn if goldmember was a cameo infested film filmed with the quintisenntial hollywood barftastic ending.

I agree. I think they kind of did all that they could do with Austin Powers in Goldmember. I'm sure they could find more for another movie, but I doubt it would be the same as the first two.

[Bond Bug]

Spy Hard, Johnny English, Spies Like Us, Flint, Carry-On Spying, I laughed at, but I just don't get Austin Powers; it's not my bag!

[Qwerty]

[quote name='Grubozaboyschikov' date='3 September 2004 - 06:46'] The last film about Austin Powers is the example. But of the two evils, I