The
Mummy was fun. It was an interesting movie that borrowed a
little from the Indiana Jones adventures.
The Mummy
Returns was fun, yes, but borrowed just a little too much
from the aforementioned adventures. In a sense, this movie has a
bigger scope and its plot is much more complicated. The overall
feel to it was different from the original as it involves more
people (too many, actually), more locales, more action, and more
special effects (maybe too much?!?).
Rick
O'Connell (Fraser) and his wife Evie (Weisz) are still into
tombs and ancient discoveries. However, they're not alone
because they have an 8-year old son, Alex (Boath). The actual
opening of
Mummy Returnsconcerns itself with the life
and fate of a warrior, known as the Scorpion King (Dwayne "The
Rock" Johnson). After losing his army, he makes a deal with someone
(I forgot with whom as fast as it was explained) and in return
is awarded an oasis in the middle of the desert (the most
monstrous special effects scene of all). The Scorpion King's
bracelet is now hidden in a tomb, one that Rick and Evie happen
to explore. But they're not the only ones looking for it. Some
mad shit happens at the O'Connell's house and Imhotep (Vosloo)
is revived in the British Museum with the help of its
reincarnated secret lover Anck-Su-Namun (Velasquez) and the
museum director. Then comes an exciting, but overly long
sequence involving a bus, Rick, Evie, her brother Jonathan,
Alex, four nasty Spiderman-like creatures.
Since
I couldn't follow the plot entirely when watching, I won't even
bother going into it. However, a really awkward and senseless
subplot explains how Evie is Pharaoh's reincarnated daughter. It
just makes you go, "yeah, whatever." Also, Evie's son
is the stereotypical smart ass kid who fears nothing and has
confidence in everything (just very unlikely). Mummy Returns
is not really about Imhotep, but rather about the Scorpion King.
Also, Imhotep doesn't have that "scary" image anymore,
but his powers regarding water is something to look out for,
especially if you're in a balloon, like the O'Connell's and the
rest of the team.
As
much action and special effects Mummy Returns had to
offer, there just isn't much going for it in the long run. Most
notably is the conflicted plot and the mounting similarity to
the Indiana Jones adventures. If there's one action scene I
enjoyed, it has to be the one where the tiny skeletons fall to
their death after Rick throws dynamite in their way. This was
also the funniest moment as it completely resembled the
Lemmings. The ending is where everything comes together and
makes some sense, but also where things become strange.
First, the Scorpion King comes back as a scorpion (originally a
human being). Second, it's entirely in CGI, even his face that
very closely resembles The Rock. Of course, kudos to ILM, but seeing him in complete CGI just was a bit odd. Third,
there was only way to kill it. How did Rick know how? A drawing
on the wall was nice enough to map it all out. Jonathan had the
artifact (a.k.a. spear) with him all the time. Coincidence? I'd
like to think so, but it doesn't work.
The Mummy Returns was mostly about big action sequences
and "adventure reborn." Fraser delivered the usual
brainless one-liners with great accuracy, Fehr acting as the
wise man, and for the sake of comic relief there was John
Hannah. The directing was fairly decent and so was the writing.
I mean, with everything that happened in this sequel I have to
give Summers some credit for going to these great lengths.
The Mummy Returns will make big bucks because of the action and
not the story; what a shame.
