The Mummy (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
A group of Egyptologists search for an ancient city lost beneath the sand in 'The Mummy', directed by Stephen Sommers. They stumble upon a tomb at Hamunaptra. Inside, the group finds the body of Imhotep, high priest & lover of the Pharaoh's mistress. Without comprehension of their actions, they release this 3,000 yr. old mummy from his grave. Now it's up to them & a group of ancient warriors to stop Imhotep's wrath before he thrusts the world into darkness forever. You can judge by this description that the movie is mainly hokum. That said, it's some of the most engaging, thrilling, fun, & scary hokum that I've seen in ages.
Egypt, 1290 BC: a wonderful opening prologue shows Imhotep (a menacing Arnold Vosloo) being cursed & buried alive after the Pharaoh discovers that he's been having a forbidden affair with his mistress, Anck Su Namun (Patricia Velasquez). Cut to Cairo, 1923: British librarian Evelyn Carnahan (Rachel Weisz) & her brother, Jonathan (John Hannah, of 'Four Weddings & a Funeral') team up with American adventurer Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) on said trip to the lost city of Hamunaptra. They seek treasure. But they are pursued by another band of fortune hunters; all cloaked in black. And unfortunately, this group unintentionally frees 'ole Imhotep from his eternal sleep. The mummy/Imhotep is mighty pissed; and has 3 distinct things on his mind ...
1) Release the 10 biblical plagues upon Egypt. 2) Kill people, and use their bodies to regenerate himself. And 3) resurrect his dead lover, Anck Su Namun. To do this, he would need to use Evelyn's body as a conduit. So, with Imhotep on the loose, Rick (and his group) face not only an incredibly dangerous foe, but also a huge threat to today's world. Imhotep is ready to wreak havoc 'til he gets what he wants. End of story. Can our protagonists stop Imhotep? Well, Rick assures us that they can "rescue the damsel in distress, kill the bad guy, & save the world". Who are we to doubt him?
As you can tell by the plot outline & the dialogue (above), this is pretty silly stuff. Silly, corny, but it's also my cup of tea. The film doesn't take itself seriously; and is, first & foremost, an action/comedy. I was enthralled by nearly all of it. The performances are lively. Brendan Fraser is tailor-made for these types of leading roles. Whoever Rachel Weisz is ... I'm sold. She is both gorgeous & talented. And I bought her & Fraser as an onscreen couple.
The film is long, but it's paced quite well. The music is rousing. The African locales are awe-inspiring. The production values are incredible. And the special effects? Top notch. i.e., swarms of locusts, attacking waves of desert sand, a storm of hailstones, the walking dead, mummy transformations, etc.. Not only do the effects add to what's actually going on, but the employment of those effects made for some seriously terrifying images. I was on the edge of my seat many times. 'The Mummy' gets a little frantic in spots. It's not as iconic as its Indiana Jones-like predecessors. And the script has some issues. But overall, it's just a well-crafted, scary, tense, fun, great looking adventure flick. A real MOVIE.
Egypt, 1290 BC: a wonderful opening prologue shows Imhotep (a menacing Arnold Vosloo) being cursed & buried alive after the Pharaoh discovers that he's been having a forbidden affair with his mistress, Anck Su Namun (Patricia Velasquez). Cut to Cairo, 1923: British librarian Evelyn Carnahan (Rachel Weisz) & her brother, Jonathan (John Hannah, of 'Four Weddings & a Funeral') team up with American adventurer Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) on said trip to the lost city of Hamunaptra. They seek treasure. But they are pursued by another band of fortune hunters; all cloaked in black. And unfortunately, this group unintentionally frees 'ole Imhotep from his eternal sleep. The mummy/Imhotep is mighty pissed; and has 3 distinct things on his mind ...
1) Release the 10 biblical plagues upon Egypt. 2) Kill people, and use their bodies to regenerate himself. And 3) resurrect his dead lover, Anck Su Namun. To do this, he would need to use Evelyn's body as a conduit. So, with Imhotep on the loose, Rick (and his group) face not only an incredibly dangerous foe, but also a huge threat to today's world. Imhotep is ready to wreak havoc 'til he gets what he wants. End of story. Can our protagonists stop Imhotep? Well, Rick assures us that they can "rescue the damsel in distress, kill the bad guy, & save the world". Who are we to doubt him?
As you can tell by the plot outline & the dialogue (above), this is pretty silly stuff. Silly, corny, but it's also my cup of tea. The film doesn't take itself seriously; and is, first & foremost, an action/comedy. I was enthralled by nearly all of it. The performances are lively. Brendan Fraser is tailor-made for these types of leading roles. Whoever Rachel Weisz is ... I'm sold. She is both gorgeous & talented. And I bought her & Fraser as an onscreen couple.
The film is long, but it's paced quite well. The music is rousing. The African locales are awe-inspiring. The production values are incredible. And the special effects? Top notch. i.e., swarms of locusts, attacking waves of desert sand, a storm of hailstones, the walking dead, mummy transformations, etc.. Not only do the effects add to what's actually going on, but the employment of those effects made for some seriously terrifying images. I was on the edge of my seat many times. 'The Mummy' gets a little frantic in spots. It's not as iconic as its Indiana Jones-like predecessors. And the script has some issues. But overall, it's just a well-crafted, scary, tense, fun, great looking adventure flick. A real MOVIE.