More groovy dialogue, baby!

I’ve been somewhat loath to share this idea with anyone as I’m hoping it is an insight into representations (misrepresentations?) of the 1960s which has not yet been tackled in any detail within Academe. However, by posting it here with a date stamp and a Creative Commons Licence, I suppose I’m going some way to making it my own. Anyway, I find it a highly useful ‘text’. And it makes me laugh. So here goes…

I recently spent a few days at home with my parents. They were slightly bemused that I wanted to watch all three ‘Austin Powers’ films. The implied question ‘you get funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council to watch things like this?’ seemed to hang in the air. Can’t think why.

However, all three films were, from 1997 onwards, very commercially successful worldwide, and hinge entirely upon both a recognition of and affection for many of the reductive ‘myths’ of the 1960s. They are brilliantly observed and executed homages to numerous late 60s films, of course – not least the Goldfinger era Bonds. The third, Goldmember, even pastiches elements of ‘Blaxploitation’ films.

But Mike Meyer’s major achievement as scriptwriter of these films – aside from his brilliant portrayals of both Austin and Dr Evil – is to make us like Austin, for all of his anachronistic, and thus often crude and misogynistic behaviour. Humour is entirely subjective, of course, but, to paraphrase Kenneth Tynan on Look Back In Anger, I do not think I could love anyone who cannot at least smile at the opening title sequence of Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. Every element of costume, music, set and dance steps compresses so many of the stylistic tropes we have been conditioned to believe constituted ‘Swinging London’ into just a few minutes. Generally, with films, “if they don’t have subtitles I just don’t understand them”. But this is one mainstream movie which everyone with an interest in representations of this period should see.

I’ll be analysing Austin in much more depth, of course (oh, behave!), but here are two extracts of dialogue which I think are quite brilliant. Any reactions and comments on any of this would be gratefully received.

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Having been defrosted after 30 years of ‘cryongenic freezing’:

Vanessa Kensington: Mr Powers, my job is to acclimatize you to the Nineties. You know, a lot’s changed since 1967.

Austin: No doubt love, but as long as people are still having promiscuous sex with many anonymous partners without protection, while at the same time experimenting with mind-expanding drugs in a consequence-free environment, I’ll be sound as a pound.

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When Austin finally captures his nemesis, Dr Evil (underscored by Bacharach/David’s ‘What the World Needs Now is Love’):

Dr Evil: We’re not so different, you and I. However, isn’t it ironic that the very things that you stand for – free love, swinging, parties – are all now, in the Nineties, considered to be ‘evil’?

Austin: No, man, what we swingers were rebelling against is uptight squares like you whose bag was money and world domination. We were innocent, man. If we’d known the consequences of our sexual liberation we would have done things differently but the spirit would have remained the same. It’s freedom, baby, yeah!

Dr Evil: Face it – freedom failed.

Austin: No man, freedom didn’t fail. Right now we’ve got freedom and responsibility. It’s a very groovy time.

Dr Evil: There’s nothing more pathetic than an ageing hipster.

Austin: Alright baldy, shut your cakehole. Come on, let’s go. On your bike.