The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

Starring: Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Mario Bello, John Hannah, Michelle Yeoh, Luke Ford
Directed by: Rob Cohen
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure
2008

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) and Evelyn (Mario Bello) travel to China to rescue their son (Luke Ford), who has gotten into some trouble with the mummy of a dead emperor (Jet Li) determined to raise his army and conquer the world.

Review:

Tim: I am a huge fan of The Mummy franchise. The original film is one of my all-time favorite movies. I love the combination of humor and action with some special effects thrown in. Part of me wants to watch Mummy movies until the end of time. That being said, I was very wary of this movie. I didn't see the reason for a third film, and I was worried about a key actor being replaced. All this being said, this film is (not surprisingly) a complete and utter disappointment. This movie should have and needed to be so much better.

One of the film's biggest flaws comes from the absence of Rachel Weisz. The first two movies worked for a number of reasons, but Weisz's presence greatly helped. I understand why Weisz opted out. The movie's script couldn't have been very strong, and she was ready to move on. However, her loss is felt constantly. Mario Bello is a good actress, but she is not Rachel Weisz. I hate when movies replace actors or actresses in the middle of a franchise. This film is a perfect example of why this doesn't work. Every scene with Bello reminded me of how much I missed Weisz in this role.

I admit that the movie got a much needed boost of energy and excitement by moving our heroes to China. This small change presents our protagonists with a new and interesting twist on the mummy tale. However, this is not enough to save a bad movie. Jet Li works well as the evil mummy emperor, but he isn't spectacular. Everything in this movie is a marked decrease in quality from the previous films.

I absolutely love Brendan Fraser as Rick O'Connell. I think this is a perfect match of actor and role. However, he just doesn't work here. The script is so ridiculous that he comes across as silly, a far cry from his superior performances in the previous movies. He doesn't have nearly the same amount of chemistry with Bello as he does with Weisz. This was a huge disappointment.

The movie fails on many, many levels. Yes, there are some fairly decent action scenes. However, on far more occasions, the movie is silly, stupid, and utterly ridiculous. There are so many instances of complete failures throughout this movie that it is debatable whether I should even mention. The absolutely worst moment involves the Abominable Snowmen and the field goal. I hated this part more than anything I've seen in recent years. There are so many ridiculous moments throughout this movie.

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is the film that finally kills this franchise. As much as I loved the original film, and as much as I'd like to see more and more Mummy movies, after watching this film, I think this is where we draw the line. The franchise took a huge step backward with this movie. I was completely disappointed, and that is a real shame.


Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Jurassic Park, Tremors