Mix Analysis 11 - Austin Powers

Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me

Year: 1999

Scene 1, Austin is in a hotel room with his wife Vanessa, who turns out to be a robot.

2:20-3:20

Time SFX 1 SFX 2 Music Ambiance Dialogue

2:20 Austin and Vanessa

2:21 Reversed voice, like a tape rewinding

2:22 Vanessa repeats herself

2:26 Foley of getting out of bed (Vanessa)

2:31 Pouring champagne (quiet) Austin and Vanessa

2:34 Glass bottle breaking

2:36 Austin

2:41 Foley of getting out of bed (Austin)

2:43 Tv turns on music from movie begins

2:44 Austin

2:49 Click for remote

2:50 Television rewinding

2:52 Robotic movement (faint, whir sound)

2:56 Rewinding continues, Robotic movement sound again

2:57                                                                                                                               Austin

3:00 Click of remote

3:01                                                                                                                                                          Vanessa

3:04 Click on remote, robotic whirl

3:07 Click, robotic whirl                                                         Vanessa

3:08                                                                                                                                             Vanessa in spanish

3:11 Soft click                                                                                                                              Austin yells

3:13               Smack of grabbing neck               Low string intro                                            Austin chokes

3:16 Robotic machinery whirls quickly String crescendo

3:17 Electronic sounds continue                                                                                    Austin talks (while choked)

Scene 2

Basil brings Austin to their headquarters to show him the time machine they have built.

23:48-24:48

Time SFX 1 SFX 2 Music Ambiance Dialogue

23:48 Typewriter typing letters tense string music speaker announcements Basil speaks

24:03 Some lab equipment is added, beeps

24:09 Vent release String crescendo

24:11 Beeps on keypad Music stops Basil and Austin

24:45 Music begins again Austin yells

Supervising Sound Editor: Frederick Howard

Also worked on: Arrested Development, American History X

Sound Re-recording Engineer: Joe Barnett

Also worked on: American History X, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

I picked this movie since Frederick Howard worked on it and he also worked on Arrested Development. I wanted to compare his style between movies and television. This is also a comedy, like Arrested Development and I can see the similarities between the two, audio wise. For example sound is very minimal, unless the scene takes place in a lab, or a busy street, attention to ambiance is somewhat left behind. This allows the sound effects and dialogue to stand out. Both of those are exaggerated, which is how Frederick Howard makes his comedies. The music is there to add some tension and fill in the gaps, and the score tips its hat to James Bond and old spy movies, but the focal point of the sound design is allowing the dialogue and sound effects to compliment the action and be funny on their own.