The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor
Review
by Sean Lynch
More Mummy : Exlcusive
Interview - Luke Ford
Much
like the franchise itself, the last few months have been a return from
the dead for Brendan Fraser as well.
There was a stage there where he was the toast of Hollywood,
but then seemed to disappear off the face of the earth. But, much like
a
mummy, he just keeps coming back.
The question is - do we really want him?
The latest adventure in The Mummy
franchise
takes a break from sand storms and Scorpion Kings, shifting the action
to Asia.
Fraser returns as explorer Rick O’Connell to combat the
resurrected stone infused Han Emperor (Jet Li) in an epic cinematic
event which traverses the
catacombs of ancient China to the highs of the Himalayas. In toe is
wife Evelyn (now played by
Maria Bello), her brother Jonathan (John Hannah) and son Alex (Aussie, Luke Ford).
The argument
could be made that the reason that the original Mummy
adventures did so well (the first two grossed a combined Box Office
haul of over $850 Million worldwide) was purely because there was a
public thirst for another Indiana
Jones adventure. But even if that was the case, they were
both well put together flicks.
But
eight years later, not only have audiences been given a taste of Indy,
but also a healthy serve of Treasure Hunter junk in the form of National Treasure.
So, from the beginning, not only is demand for the genre low... but now
it has expectations to meet.
And it's in that regard, along with many others, The Mummy 3 fails
dismally.
Director Rob Cohen (XxX,
Fast & The Furious) takes over the reigns from
Steven Sommers for this installment - and it shows - with Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
spiraling out of control resulting in one of the most overblown pieces
of junk to hit the screens this year. And that's saying a lot when you
consider some of the other big budget disappointments we've been
subjected to thus far.
The first two Mummy
movies were always a little popcorn - but the good kind. They borrowed
heavily from the old B-Grade movies of yesteryear, gave a respectful
nod of the hat to Jones,
yet still kept a sense of originality and uniqueness to them.
However, The Mummy :
Tob of the Dragon Emperor seems to be taking all the worst
elements of National
Treasure and then making them worse.
There
is just so little that works here. The performances are left for dead
thanks largely to a script which is comprised with little more than "I
hate Mummies" quips. Yes, "Why won't you just die!" one liners are part
and parcel, and one of the most enjoyable factors, of these sorts of
flicks... but only when they are spliced in amidst a script. So when
the entire movie is like that, it just doesn't work.
Add to that
the fact that Fraser looks about 20 years to young to have a son, the
SFX vary from superbly sublime (the Yeti is a highlight) to downright
Straight-To-DVD (a shot early on in which the Emperor turns into goo),
Jet Li barely turning up on screen... and the the kicker... a very
prominent and very forced "relationship drama" between Fraser and his
son.
Somehow we are meant to believe that Young O'Connell hates
his dad. But at no point does Fraser give off the slightest sense of
unlikability. He is constantly fun, he is young and even when he tries
to be stern - he still seems like he is just joking around. It's almost
painful (but moreso incomprehensible) to watch. How often is it you
hear an actor being criticised for being too easy to like?
Never! But that's the skill Fraser brings to the table, and in this
case, it works against the film.
That said, The Mummy 3
does serve as a decent enough "leave-your-brain-at-the-door" Friday
night popcorn adventure - it's just not a particularly good one. The
scriptwriters have also fleshed out the potential "Son of..." sequels a
great deal better than was acheived in Indiana Jones & The
Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls (in fact, there are times
you kind of wish they'd merged the better elements of both of those
scripts to make one good
treasure hunter movie) with Aussie Luke Ford
delivering a strong performance in his first major US outing.
It must be also be said that there are some pretty cool action
sequences as well, so it's not a total write off.
The
Mummy : Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
is moreso expensive Hollywood endulgence, rather than an overly
enjoyable movie. But it's not without it's charm. However if it's
quality adventure Fraser fans are after, it might pay to hold out for
the far superior Journey
To The Centre of the Earth 3D.
The
Mummy
franchise is certain to be resurrected again, but let's just hope they
put a bit more thought into its rotting carcass next time than
they have with this latest outing.
2 out
of 5
The Mummy:
Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor
Australian release: 11th
September,
2008
Official
Site: The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor
Cast: Jet Li, Brendan Fraser,
Maria Bello, Luke Ford
Director: Rob Cohen
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