Rating: 
Summary: Way more entertaining than the first.
Review: "The Mummy Returns" (2001)Let's get one thing straight, I did not like the original Mummy film that much. I thought it lacked plot and was kind of boring. I didn't hate it, but I did expect more. I was not really looking forward to The Mummy Returns because I didn't like the original enough to take the second one seriously, but surprises come along occasionally. I'm very happy to say The Mummy Returns is definitely a good sequel that impressed me much more than the original film. The story, amazingly, was one of the strong points of this movie. There is a whole bunch of plots going on, while include the kidnapping, the parents going cross-country, the resurrecting of that darned mummy, the deal with the ancient warrior, The Scorpion King, and heck, the parents even get enough time to discover about their past lives! Excellent! Most of the original cast returns to play their characters. Freddie Boath and Patricia Velasquez are new instalments, Boath playing the never-annoying and potentially hilarious child of Rick and Evelyn (Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz from the first movie), and Velasquez playing Imhotep's (Arnold Vosloo) lover before he died. Fraser and Weisz head the screen again, and return with their excellent chemistry and acting skills. Unfortunately Fraser isn't given quite enough witty lines and funny scenes as in the first movie, but Weisz's character has a big improvement. She's no longer a geeky bookworm, but a make-up wearing, [guy]. Weisz looks beautiful and is clearly enjoying herself. John Hannah also returns, but unfortunately he just annoyed me in this movie. Arnold Vosloo is very good in this movie, he barely has any lines, but he connects with the audience excellently with his awesome facial expressions. Oded Fehr is back again to talk about destinies and fate, and kick some booty. He does exactly what the director instructs him and comes off as a fun actor but unfortunately he didn't have a very believable character. The length and pace of the film was nice and I liked the way it started because it really got you into the mood for the 'Indiana-Jones' way of things. The movie rolls along nicely and is able to fit many funny one-liners, neat and clever story twists and awesome fight sequences. I particularly enjoyed seeing the range of new beasts and sets in the movie. It's good to see the mummy is out of Egypt and the atmospheric but boring temples and he's come to London. Some very cool set pieces and chases revolve around the setting of the movie, which I really enjoyed. Unfortunately the movie is weighted down a little by a couple of flaws. The special effects at the end are absolutely terrible! Things were going well until we saw The Rock's version of a beastly Scorpion King! The Scorpion King at the end looks like he's crawled out of an unpopular, unwanted video game and inhabited himself somewhere through this movie. The Mummy Returns also doesn't have as much charm about it as The Mummy did. Overall, I did enjoy this movie. It was an incredibly entertaining feast of fun, a really neatly made and intriguing popcorn sequel that mixes itself into every genre and does it well. Plus, there's Rachel Weisz and Patricia Velasquez sword-fighting in only bikinis and gold body spray. Now, how can you possibly refuse? MY GRADE: B+
Rating: 
Summary: BEST MOVIE!!!!
Review: this was definatly the best movie that i have ever seen. i loved all the action but most of all the actors that were chosen for the parts were fantastic!!!! rachel weisz and brendan fraser are my two most favorite actors though. just a fantastic movie i would give it ten stars if i could!!!!
Rating: 
Summary: What Happened!?!?
Review: This movie bothered me. And the fact that it bothered me bothers me even more! I absolutely LOVED the first one...I mean, I saw "The Mummy" in theaters more times than any other movie, and I watch it often still on DVD. It had such a good combination of characters, story-line, special effects, and so on. So, naturally, I believed the second one would be good. I was wrong!! Oh Lord, was I wrong...I almost cried, watching it, for what was done to the movie. Here are only a few things wrong with it: 1) Evey: All right, in the first movie, this character was great. She was a ditzy, naive librarian with just enough charm to stop her from being irritating. But in the sequel...well, first off, unless I'm mistaken, the time-setting was 1933. Women did not wear those form-fitting bodysuit things in 1933. At least in the first movie, she wore correct clothing for the time. And also, she became this weird, "wannabe-superwoman" type of character that was simply ANNOYING. I could go on...but I believe you get the idea 2) Rick: What happened to Rick? Where's the brave, adventurous, wise-cracking hero we all know and love? In this movie...God, I don't even know how to describe him other than "whipped". He's almost regulated to the background except when he suddenly developes a tattoo (that he lacked in the first movie!) and Ardeth is telling him "you're the one." The one what? Poor Rick...I miss him :( 3) The Kid: kids are always bad. The kid who played Anakin Skywalker in SW-Ep1 totally ruined THAT movie. This kid ruins this movie. And he's 8...ok, I don't care HOW smart you are, no 8-year-old is going to act as cool and collected as that kid did. And he was simply ANNOYING...just irritating as all heck 4)Jonathan: ACK!! I almost cried when I saw the representation of my favorite character in this debacle. In the first movie, Jonathan was such a great character...funny, brave, a bit of a ne'er-do-well, but loveable. And he was smart...he was a developed character. But in this movie, he's almost a sidekick to the kid! He has no originality, none of the charisma that made him an endearing personality in the first movie and... 5)THE PLOT!!! Oh...wait, nevermind, there was none!! There were too many subplots, and the subplots themselves were simply stupid. Though I could bring up many strange innaccuracies...wouldn't Imhotep have noticed that Evey was the reincarnation of Nefertiti in the first movie? Wouldn't he have done something then? The first movie was almost intelligent in its scope, in its subtle parody, in its attempt...this movie is anything but subtle and intelligent. It is a waste of time, and a shame to the first movie, which was so wonderful. In conclusion...pass this one up, just watch the firsy (and best!) Mummy!
Rating: 
Summary: The Mummy Returns
Review: After The Mummy's huge commercial success, a sequel was inevitable, and this is one of the better sequels of late, yet still succumbs to the old "bigger is better" rule, and hey, in the original we had an all-powerful villain, let's have two! The main star of part 2 is not Arnold Vosloo, as he was in the first instalment, but Dwayne John-oh sorry, "The Rock" as the scorpion king, a mighty warrior who turns up in the film as a shoddy CGI creation that smacks of "could've been better".
But Arnold Vosloo, with more story to chew on this time around is great. Oded Fehr as Ardith Bay and Brendan Fraser manage not to get lost amidst the barrage of CGI and Rachel Weiz provides the eye candy but this time gets to kick some serious butt. The visuals and action (very loud) make up for the limp dialogue and overly complicated plot. The ending threatens to sink the whole film, with so much CGI it's easy to see it's fake, and the story starts to get very predictable and hokey. Regardless, it's good fun in a non-challenging way.
Rating:
Summary: Mummy's back, this time with sting
Review: Two years after the success of the action adventure THE MUMMY, Writer Director Stephen Sommers again raises the dead with THE MUMMY RETURNS. While this initially appears to be a sequel, by film's end it is the second part of a larger story as Sommers intricately combines the two films. That is not to say the screenplay stands up to much scrutiny, it has more holes than an Egyptian dig site. This second film aims for a younger audience, trading in the relentless gross out of its predecessor for a more family themed story. In fact, now that our two heroes are married and have an eight-year-old son, the story feels like a SPY KIDS adventure. Brendan Fraser returns as Rick O'Connell with as much charisma as he had in the first film. Rachel Weisz also returns but her uppity British librarian is now a sexy adventuress. Her Victorian wear has been traded in for form-fitting and revealing outfits. Their romance has blossomed and much fun is had at the expense of their sappy flirtings. John Hannah also returns as the comic relief brother but this time he carries a smaller role. There are several other sources of comic relief now. Imhotep (Arnold Vasloo) is back and less treacherous this time around as we have a new source of evil, the Scorpion King played briefly by WWF wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. Later, he is portrayed by a Computer generated scorpion/man. He is not as thrilling a villain as the mummy was in the first film, but that did not stop filmmakers from creating a spin-off film THE SCORPION KING. (I wish I could say it had no relation to the Mummy films...) The special effects in this film are well executed and fun providing a reality that only film can provide. How else can decaying armies of thousands battle it out, limbs flying? But, then the film putters out as the Scorpion King effects are un-impressive. An adventurous musical score by Alan Silvestri backs all of this. The DVD has a great audio/video transfer as well as a treasure trove of extras including a commentary by the creators.
Rating:
Summary: Better the second time
Review: Excellent Action / adventure movie. Super special effects.
Parts are incredibly funny. Better than Original.
Rating:
Summary: The most hilarious spoof to come down the pike in years!
Review: I have to wonder what was going through Stephen Sommers' mind when he started writing this movie. Certainly it must have been something perverse, because Sommers pulled an amazing fast one; he got Universal to lay out a fortune to make a spoof of big-budget, effects-laden action flicks. Of course, Sommers does deliver the thrills. If you want to see this as a straight action movie, go right ahead, it's certainly quite enjoyable that way. One of the things I like about Sommers' satire is that you can take it or leave it, a very generous thing for a director to do. But the cinemaphile in me gets a charge over the fact that Sommers is mocking every convention in the blockbuster with this flick. It's pretty hard to miss. Sommers visually refers to just about every major epic/blockbuster, especially if they had to do with deserts. There's the obvious "Indiana Jones" jokes, but there's also "Lawrence of Arabia", "Star Wars", "Titanic", "E.T.", "The Seven Samurai", and a whole bunch more. About the only one he missed was "Cleopatra" and I suspect I'll catch that one when I see it again. He also drops in other pop culture touchstones; that blimp looks suspiciously like a certain dirigible from MAD Magazine, for example. Then there's Sommers' take on the formula. He blows absolutely everything up to ridiculous size. I don't want to blow any plot points, so I won't offer any examples, but one viewing should make it obvious. And then there's that wonderfully godawful big special effect at the end. I imagine the only reason Sommers didn't take out every third frame to make the motion jerky was because he didn't have the time; otherwise, it's a hilarious nod to Ray Harryhausen (only, of course, not as realistic.) If you want straight action, this will be most satisfying. But as a rip-roaring spoof, it's even better.
Rating:
Summary: Great for what it is.
Review: For a sequel, it's pretty good. In some ways, it might even be better than the first in terms of style and sheer spectacle. The whole cast from the original is back (Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz make a great pair), and better than ever with a few surprises up their sleeve, and they don't disappoint. The special effects are a step up from the first, and the story is almost as good. The Mummy Returns can really be sum up by calling it one of the better sequels to come out in recent years and I hope he returns again.
Rating:
Summary: Yummy Mind Candy.
Review: THE MUMMY RETURNS is a sequel to 1999's THE MUMMY. It is an Indiana Jones wannabe crossed with a classic horror flick and flavored with a dash of cutting edge special effects. The combination works brilliantly, bringing forth a modern action-adventure franchise full of Abbot and Costello self-parody. THE MUMMY RETURNS takes place 8 years after THE MUMMY ended. Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraiser) has married Evelyn (Rachel Weisz) and they have produced an extremely resourceful and witty son named Alex (Freddie Boath). Most of THE MUMMY's original cast is back including my favorite character, Evelyn's hokey brother Jonathan (John Hannah). Anyway, in this movie some really evil guys have dug up and resurrected mighty mummy Imhotep (Arnold Voslor). The whole world is in danger because not only can Imhotep spew plagues from his mouth but if he gets his hands on a pretty bracelet he can control the dog-headed demon army of his former arch nemesis, The Scorpion King (The Rock). Then he will be invincible and can conquer the world. Since O'Connell has defeated Imhotep before he's the only one who can stop him this time around. This is a mind candy movie equivalant to a week-long sugar high. Therefore, most of the acting is cheesy. However, Fraiser pulls off a remarkable performance considering he's second billing to the real star of the movie. That star belongs to the special effects. There is something to amaze you every five minutes: from mummies to flesh-eating pygmies to dog-headed demons to a giant flood. It's one of the cheapest roller coasters around.
Rating:
Summary: Typical Hollywood something-for-everyone approach to film ma
Review: While Summers' first effort at the mummy remake business was a delightful tongue-in-cheek pastiche of the 1930s films, his The Mummy Returns is a great disappointment. The much awaited sequel-some of the fan sites were abuzz from the moment the decision to make it was even rumored-attempted to cater to the interests of almost everyone, dissolving into a bland tale whose only claim on the viewer's attention was its complexity. The film was overly serious and melodramatic. The theme of reincarnation seemed to have been introduced to salvage an otherwise rather banal plot. It also allowed for the introduction of some wonderful period scenes with colorful costumes and the only interesting martial arts activity in the film (though not necessarily good-those in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon are infinitely better). The film relies heavily on CGI, but other than the splendid recreations of Ancient Egypt most of the computer work is trite, consisting of little toothy monsters and the return of the skeleton army. Again the history is atrocious. Seti I was not stabbed to death. The Egyptian museum possesses his mummy among the collection of its royal mummies, so that's definite. Nefertiri was the first and favorite of his Queens (her tomb is among the most beautiful and elaborate in the Valley of the Queens near Luxor) and not his daughter. Imhotep is an Old Kingdom architect, and the Scorpion King is an early pre-dynastic king. Ahkhsunamon was the heiress to the Thutmosid dynasty (the XVIIIth not the XIXth) one of the six daughters of Akhenaton and Nefertiti, and the wife of Tutankhamon (remember him?). Etc, etc, etc. It's unfortunate, since the errors in the first film could have provided the plot to the second; all Summers had to do was figure out plausible explanations for some of them-the movement of the pyramids from Cairo to Luxor being one of the few that would be difficult to explain away short of extraterrestrials. I did it in my spare moments at work-few enough in ICU-and came up with a wonderful, historic, internally consistent plot. Certainly Summers has more imagination than I do! Although most of the central characters reappeared and were played by the same actors, they had been transmogrified to such an extent that only their names and faces remained the same! With the single exception of Oded Fehr as Ardeth Bay, most of the characters did more morphing than the mummy himself. O'Connell, for instance, has become a mere shadow of himself. Marriage seems to have robbed him of the last shreds of his sense of the absurd, and even when he is at his best, when dealing with his erstwhile buddy Izzy Buttons (Shaun Parkes), the latter steals every scene they're in together. Rick's almost frenetic activity in the first film and his sharp as tacks wit are missing and missed in the second. Maybe it's an advertisement against the unhealthiness of matrimony for males! The individuals who were most disappointingly out of character were the two central women, Evie and Ankhsunamun. The former has lost the ditzy, accident prone intellectual aura that lent her such charm in the first movie. The Evie of the first film was a woman one might well see someone like O'Connell taking risks to rescue, a bright person whose brash naivete might both exasperate and attract. The Evie of the Mummy Returns has an edge. She's sexual rather than sexy, and she's definitely not funny. Where is the wonderful woman who proudly, if drunkenly, states "I am a librarian!" and passes out mid-kiss, collapsing face first into the sand. Of all the characters, Ankhsunamon's change is the most disappointing. Here is a woman who sacrifices her very life for her lover in the first film, certain that his own love and devotion will do whatever it takes to resurrect her if he can. In the first movie he nearly succeeds. In the second, she has somehow managed to be reincarnated and attempts to bring him back from the dead for little other reason than to achieve power. She is no longer the almost feline creature who exudes strong sexual allure that she was in the first film. Instead of a seductress, she's now a, harsh looking Vogue model type, like a harden femme fatal out of a Dashiell Hammett murder mystery. Her motives seem less certain, her devotion to her lover less apparent, and her courage more in doubt. Her recoil in the face of danger seems merely a literary contrivance, a foil to Evie's unfailing allegiance to Rick. Subverting his part as title character in order to bring in fans of the professional wrestling stars, Imhotep goes from a man with a mission to a man with feet of clay by the end of the story. He becomes a foil for the new focus of the film, The Rock. This is a great disappointment, since his character's problems are central to the movement of the whole story, even the whole series. When both Rick and Imhotep were confronted with the evil of the Scorpion King, one almost expected them to work together to defeat him, perhaps deferring their own conflict to a latter episode. Instead Summers merely chooses to make the issue a contrast between a couple devoted to one another by virtue of love and one devoted to power alone. Oded Fehr, whose character Ardeth Bay delighted the audience of the first movie, embellishes the film more often, but his appearances seem more ornamental than purposeful, a sop to the millions of fans who enjoyed him in the first film. Surely more could have been done with his character. Probably the most delightful pair of characters were Rick and Evie's son, Alex, and his arch enemy the towering black henchman assigned as his jailer. The two were perfect foils for one another, and by the end one almost hoped that the latter would change teams, for whatever self-seeking purposes, and save the boy.
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