Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery premiered ten years ago this summer and is one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. It is inspired by and pays tribute to 1960's spy movies, the Beatles in A Hard Day's Night, Roger Ebert's Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, Woody Allen's Sleeper, Benny Hill, and many other beloved classics.

Not much of a hit during its theatrical release, this first Austin Powers movie went on to make millions as one of the earliest fully loaded special edition DVDs. The inferior sequels were triggered by those DVD sales... the first time such a thing ever happened. Each made more money than its predecessor, though each is also less funny. In my opinion, comedy movie sequels never work.