Coming hot on the heels of The Spy Who Shagged Me, Mike Myers and Jay Roach teamed up for a third outing of Austin Powers (Myers). Austin Powers in Goldmember is the biggest film of the three, and arguably the least satisfying, though still incredibly funny.

It has a slew of cameos; in fact, the opening of the film is iconic for its cameo appearance. It also expanded the cast to introduce Austin’s father, Nigel Powers, played by Michael Caine. Caine shines here and seems to be having a fun time in a bit of a send-up of superspies, and of course, his only Harry Palmer character.

This time out, Dr. Evil (Myers) and Mini-Me (Verne Troyer) concoct a new plan that involves a gold magnate from the 1970s, a Dutch criminal known as Goldmember (Myers). Despite capturing Evil, Powers is on the back foot from the off because Goldmember has kidnapped his father.

So Powers goes off to the 70s, pairs up with the sexy Foxy Cleopatra (Beyoncé), a delightful riff on the iconic Pam Grier. The pair travel through the 70s and the present to deal with Goldmember and an escaped Dr. Evil before they can unleash Preparation H on the world!

There are a lot of gags, revisited jokes (though Will Ferrell is missing), and lots of laughs to be had. That being said, it’s not as funny as the previous two films. It’s still incredibly funny and is filled with quotable dialogue, but it’s not as tight as the other two films.

Yes, the previous films aren’t much more than a collection of strung-together sketches hung on a narrative, but they work a little better than Goldmember. I don’t think it’s any fault of the creative team; it’s obvious they love the material, and it’s even more obvious that Myers and his fellows know and love the spy genre. I just think it needed a little more of a shakeup and could have used some new blood on the script.

Having said that, I would still love to see one more Austin Powers film. I’d like to see how Austin deals with the 2020s, and how films like Bourne and Craig’s interpretation of Bond would affect it, especially given the reveals in Spectre and here in Goldmember.

Myers is undeniably a comic genius, and Powers is an iconic creation, and so fun to watch onscreen. I like that each film has explored a different time period, and that they play with the tropes of the spy genre, spoofing them brilliantly and entertainingly.

This trio of films is wonderfully entertaining and even now, I find them so incredibly fun. It’s been forever since I’ve watched them, and man, they not only bring back memories, but also still make me laugh out loud.

Thanks, Mike, for these films!