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"What the Deuce?"
Regular
on 08/08/2008 at 8:39:02AM
Total Posts: 1112 |
The Mummy – Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Brendan Fraser is back as Rick O’ Connell, no longer set in Egypt, the O’ Connell family are in China where the great Han Emperor has been resurrected. The Emperor who has been sealed away for over 2,000 years tries to bring his terracotta army of over 10,000 back to fight for him and take control over China.
A fairly standard plot for this genre of film, and like all of the previous Mummy films it has that lighter side to it. Even when the world looks like it is doomed, there is always a joke made or some cheesy line. This kind of adds to the films charm and can often be found in any film that stars Brendan Fraser. Evelyn O’ Connell who we are used to being played very well by Rachael Weiss has been replaced with actress Maria Bello, for me this was a bad choice, I do not know if they had to replace her or not, but the character seems very false and a bit forced. Maybe the correct way to say it is that the character has been over played. While I am not saying Bello is a bad actress I just found her not to my taste for this role in this film.
Some of the old faces are still in the film, such as John Hannah who plays Rick’s brother in law Jonathan, always well played and adding the classic scared character that comes out the other end ok, and adding some good comedy on the way. A new face (but old character) is Luke Ford, who plays Alec O’ Connell, the son of Rick’s, very much like his father in his rebellious ways and enjoying exploring tombs and making new discoveries. Anyone who has seen the first Mummy film will see that Ford has done a great job of acting like Fraser in the first one, really making the audience feel they are a real family.
As I mentioned earlier this film is set in China, and not Egypt like the predecessors, using the great wall and other various locations within China to make this film look great, and all the computer effects used are done well. You can see it is not a cheap film, but the whole way through the film I thought it lacked something that the other Mummy films had. It all seemed a bit rushed and ended very quickly. Jet Li has very little speaking and he has not really been used to show his excellent martial art skills. This is a shame, because most audiences enjoy seeing his fantastic abilities.
I would be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it, but if you asked me if you should pay £7 to watch this film, I would probably have to say yes. However, if you were not too keen on the originals you are probably best to wait for it to arrive on DVD. There are some big films out at the minute and a few more coming soon, I know some people do not like Brendan Fraser or the original Mummy’s. The third instalment is different to the first two so if you are one of those people it would be worth checking out on DVD to see if the new changes suit you.
In summary, I think it is a solid film, with nice special effects. A standard, but fairly strong plot with some good acting. A couple of flaws and dislikes on my behalf on choice of cast, but then all this may just seem amplified due to seeing some very good films like The Dark Knight, it may have put my expectations up when I go to the cinema. Either way it is a good film that the whole family will enjoy.
7.5/10
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Emmie87
"What the Deuce?"
Regular
on 08/08/2008 at 9:50:17AM
Total Posts: 1112
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Yea for Mummy fans it will be a good film, but i do think it slightly lacked what the others had but still a very enjoyable film!
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pb
"Spoooooon!"
Moderator
on 08/08/2008 at 9:21:22AM
Total Posts: 7733
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Nice review. If it's anything like the first two, as you say, I'm sure I'll love it.
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Emmie87
"What the Deuce?"
Regular
on 08/08/2008 at 8:39:02AM
Total Posts: 1112
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The Mummy – Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Brendan Fraser is back as Rick O’ Connell, no longer set in Egypt, the O’ Connell family are in China where the great Han Emperor has been resurrected. The Emperor who has been sealed away for over 2,000 years tries to bring his terracotta army of over 10,000 back to fight for him and take control over China.
A fairly standard plot for this genre of film, and like all of the previous Mummy films it has that lighter side to it. Even when the world looks like it is doomed, there is always a joke made or some cheesy line. This kind of adds to the films charm and can often be found in any film that stars Brendan Fraser. Evelyn O’ Connell who we are used to being played very well by Rachael Weiss has been replaced with actress Maria Bello, for me this was a bad choice, I do not know if they had to replace her or not, but the character seems very false and a bit forced. Maybe the correct way to say it is that the character has been over played. While I am not saying Bello is a bad actress I just found her not to my taste for this role in this film.
Some of the old faces are still in the film, such as John Hannah who plays Rick’s brother in law Jonathan, always well played and adding the classic scared character that comes out the other end ok, and adding some good comedy on the way. A new face (but old character) is Luke Ford, who plays Alec O’ Connell, the son of Rick’s, very much like his father in his rebellious ways and enjoying exploring tombs and making new discoveries. Anyone who has seen the first Mummy film will see that Ford has done a great job of acting like Fraser in the first one, really making the audience feel they are a real family.
As I mentioned earlier this film is set in China, and not Egypt like the predecessors, using the great wall and other various locations within China to make this film look great, and all the computer effects used are done well. You can see it is not a cheap film, but the whole way through the film I thought it lacked something that the other Mummy films had. It all seemed a bit rushed and ended very quickly. Jet Li has very little speaking and he has not really been used to show his excellent martial art skills. This is a shame, because most audiences enjoy seeing his fantastic abilities.
I would be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it, but if you asked me if you should pay £7 to watch this film, I would probably have to say yes. However, if you were not too keen on the originals you are probably best to wait for it to arrive on DVD. There are some big films out at the minute and a few more coming soon, I know some people do not like Brendan Fraser or the original Mummy’s. The third instalment is different to the first two so if you are one of those people it would be worth checking out on DVD to see if the new changes suit you.
In summary, I think it is a solid film, with nice special effects. A standard, but fairly strong plot with some good acting. A couple of flaws and dislikes on my behalf on choice of cast, but then all this may just seem amplified due to seeing some very good films like The Dark Knight, it may have put my expectations up when I go to the cinema. Either way it is a good film that the whole family will enjoy.
7.5/10
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