The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008) film wallpapers :
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008) Film Rating and Review :
Rating :
Acting – 4/10
Direction – 4/10
Screenplay – 3/10
Music – 4/10
Technique – 6/10
Review :
Dead on its feet
What do you get when you juxtapose a faux-Britannia, mummy-excavating adventure romp with ancient Oriental history and martial arts? A not so cool Mummy movie.
The third film of the entertaining The Mummy series with Brendan Fraser as the archaeologist poster-boy Rick O’Connell, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor traces a story back to ancient China where the evil Emperor Han (Jet Li) seeks world domination through supernatural forces, immortality being his cup of joy. The beautiful witch Zijuan (Michelle Yeoh) is called in to assist the Emperor in his quest, and while she can only guide him to ancient texts that hold the truth, there’s romance brewing between Zijuan and the Emperor’s trusty general, much to the former’s chagrin. Consequently, Emperor Han slays his general, but in turn, is cursed by Zijuan, so that his entire army and he turn into liquid beings of clay and — you guessed it — promptly turn into mummies. Or close enough — they are full-blown terracotta figurines, really. They are also the undead.
Considering that the backdrop is China, this reference to the Terracotta Army (the Terracotta Warriors and Horses were built by the First Emperor of China, Shi Huang Di, dating back to 210 BC and were only discovered in 1974) adds a nice touch to the script.
The next phase of the story opens in 1946; Rick O’Connell and his wife — or Rick O’Connell courtesy his wife — are now retired adventurers, while son Alex (Luke Ford) has taken on the mantle of the archaeologist-warrior-philanderer. He digs up Emperor Han’s tomb, brings up the mummy and in a few minutes, all hell breaks loose. The emperor now seeks eternal life with a dip at the mythical pool of Shangri La, basically ruining the cobbled streets of Shanghai with his stone chariot. Dad and mom get back into action; the boy in turn shows an active interest in a mercenary girl who had set out to kill him; Fraser and gang take a hike up the freezing end of the Himalayas and yetis — yes, those abominable snowmen that kidnapped Chan, if you’ve read your Tintins — turn out to be wonderfully just creatures. The only fireworks that you see are on the chariot chase through Shanghai. It’s not hugely interesting, either.
So what’s the verdict? Frankly, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor might not cut it with audiences who’ve watched and enjoyed the first two films. For one, a malevolent emperor isn’t much of a fear factor to bind the plot together; vicious gods work better. The Egyptians had a few. And the CGI: it’s impressive, but not as impressive as a pharaoh trying to swallow a plane along rocky crevices bordering the Nile. In the entire movie, the only real money scenes are of the jewel-adorned eye of the Shangri La turning into tiny golden serpents to reveal the mythical diamond and an avalanche. On top of that, the kitsch humour is beginning to show signs of strain, the Empire jokes don’t work and the mummies aren’t really frightening.
Fraser looks way to young to be the father of an 18-year-old and Luke Ford doesn’t look 18 — he’s got a double chin, for heaven’s sake, and the cocky demeanour of a man about town. As for Mommy O’Connell, the less said the better. The entire deal about her is that Evelyn is more intelligent than Dad O’Connell — which Rachel Weisz fit into like a tee — and is a specialist in ancient tongues. Instead, in this episode, Mom turns out to be a paperback writer turning Dad’s adventures into trash novels. Who is this lady?
Bottomline? Don’t make a Mummy movie without Weisz. If she’s dead, bring her back; don’t replace her with an artificial Maria Bello. The only cool references to the past two blockbusters is John Hannah as Rick’s brother-in-law Jonathan, who runs a Shanghai jazz shindig named Imhotep, replete with Chinese waiters wearing fezs.
Acting – 4/10
Direction – 4/10
Screenplay – 3/10
Music – 4/10
Technique – 6/10
Review :
Dead on its feet
What do you get when you juxtapose a faux-Britannia, mummy-excavating adventure romp with ancient Oriental history and martial arts? A not so cool Mummy movie.
The third film of the entertaining The Mummy series with Brendan Fraser as the archaeologist poster-boy Rick O’Connell, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor traces a story back to ancient China where the evil Emperor Han (Jet Li) seeks world domination through supernatural forces, immortality being his cup of joy. The beautiful witch Zijuan (Michelle Yeoh) is called in to assist the Emperor in his quest, and while she can only guide him to ancient texts that hold the truth, there’s romance brewing between Zijuan and the Emperor’s trusty general, much to the former’s chagrin. Consequently, Emperor Han slays his general, but in turn, is cursed by Zijuan, so that his entire army and he turn into liquid beings of clay and — you guessed it — promptly turn into mummies. Or close enough — they are full-blown terracotta figurines, really. They are also the undead.
Considering that the backdrop is China, this reference to the Terracotta Army (the Terracotta Warriors and Horses were built by the First Emperor of China, Shi Huang Di, dating back to 210 BC and were only discovered in 1974) adds a nice touch to the script.
The next phase of the story opens in 1946; Rick O’Connell and his wife — or Rick O’Connell courtesy his wife — are now retired adventurers, while son Alex (Luke Ford) has taken on the mantle of the archaeologist-warrior-philanderer. He digs up Emperor Han’s tomb, brings up the mummy and in a few minutes, all hell breaks loose. The emperor now seeks eternal life with a dip at the mythical pool of Shangri La, basically ruining the cobbled streets of Shanghai with his stone chariot. Dad and mom get back into action; the boy in turn shows an active interest in a mercenary girl who had set out to kill him; Fraser and gang take a hike up the freezing end of the Himalayas and yetis — yes, those abominable snowmen that kidnapped Chan, if you’ve read your Tintins — turn out to be wonderfully just creatures. The only fireworks that you see are on the chariot chase through Shanghai. It’s not hugely interesting, either.
So what’s the verdict? Frankly, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor might not cut it with audiences who’ve watched and enjoyed the first two films. For one, a malevolent emperor isn’t much of a fear factor to bind the plot together; vicious gods work better. The Egyptians had a few. And the CGI: it’s impressive, but not as impressive as a pharaoh trying to swallow a plane along rocky crevices bordering the Nile. In the entire movie, the only real money scenes are of the jewel-adorned eye of the Shangri La turning into tiny golden serpents to reveal the mythical diamond and an avalanche. On top of that, the kitsch humour is beginning to show signs of strain, the Empire jokes don’t work and the mummies aren’t really frightening.
Fraser looks way to young to be the father of an 18-year-old and Luke Ford doesn’t look 18 — he’s got a double chin, for heaven’s sake, and the cocky demeanour of a man about town. As for Mommy O’Connell, the less said the better. The entire deal about her is that Evelyn is more intelligent than Dad O’Connell — which Rachel Weisz fit into like a tee — and is a specialist in ancient tongues. Instead, in this episode, Mom turns out to be a paperback writer turning Dad’s adventures into trash novels. Who is this lady?
Bottomline? Don’t make a Mummy movie without Weisz. If she’s dead, bring her back; don’t replace her with an artificial Maria Bello. The only cool references to the past two blockbusters is John Hannah as Rick’s brother-in-law Jonathan, who runs a Shanghai jazz shindig named Imhotep, replete with Chinese waiters wearing fezs.
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Sounds like Tomb of the Dragon Emperor met everyone's expectations... Brendan Frasier tries too hard to act, so you can tell he's acting
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