After the box office success of the 1999 remake of The Mummy, director Stephen Sommers, was given an opportunity to write and direct a follow up to the previous installment.
It has been confirmed that The Mummy Trilogy along with The Scorpion King are now canon to the recent 2017 reboot. In response to the news, I’ve decided to look back at the films to show my support.
The following review contains SPOILERS only listed on the negative section. Watch The Mummy (1999) because it’s a requirement to continue and they’re certain plot points related to the movies.
Positive: The Cast from the first film return and delivered a decent job for their performances.
Fun Fact: This is Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s film debut, back when he was a wrestler.
The chemistry Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz’s characters, continues to keep the relationship flowing.
The Set Pieces are spot on authentic one area to another.
An important backstory featuring one of the lead characters.
Action Sequences are much bigger which starts with an epic battle.
A villain in one scene wears a cloak and mask like Dr. Doom. Universal can create better costume designs than Fox’s epic flop Fantastic Four. I’m referring to the one that came out in 2015.
The Sequel predicted a joke from Shrek 2.
Like the 1999 film remake, the tone carefully combines action, adventure, fantasy, horror, & comedy into a well balanced meal.
Negative: I’ll say it before and I’ll say it again with my other review for the 1999 remake, the C.G.I. effects such as the blue screen effect, Imhotep’s mummified form, and the infamous climatic battle, haven’t aged well for a film released in 2001. Nowadays it resembles a video game adaptation from the PlayStation 2 or Nintendo GameCube.
Evelyn unintentionally becomes a Mary Sue, because she somehow knows how to use knives. For who don’t know what a Mary Sue is, it means a person gains special skills unrealistically without vigorous training. In real life it takes many years to master a technique when it comes too fighting.
I’m gonna put this as an optional con. If you’re afraid of scorpions, they appear heavily as a recurring element.
Anck-Su-Namun, Imhotep’s girlfriend, has somehow reincarnated. The last time we’ve seen her, she was back from the dead in the last movie. She can’t be a fully grown adult, in chronological order, she would’ve been the same age as Rick’s son Alex.
The biggest gripe in the history of the David Vs. Goliath scenario, is the unforgettable fight involving The Scorpion King. If you thought Doomsday in Batman Vs. Superman was stupid, get a load of this.
The ending made my brain itchy. It was contrived.
The Final Verdict: C as in Confused but not amused.
Despite the mixed feelings, I kinda enjoyed most of the good parts. If you want to prep up for the reboot to the Universal Monsters franchise. Go ahead and give it a watch, it’s your call.
By the way Dwayne Johnson is rumored to star as The Wolf-Man, who knows if he’s gonna be related to The Scorpion King. Will have to wait and see.
Nickthemoviecritic.com 