Rating: Summary: Nothing short of brilliant Review: (...) In one sentence - "The Mummy Returns" is even better than the 1999 version of "The Mummy" - MUCH better.In my opinion, in the first film of the series Sommers (the writer/director) was still exploring his subject. The result was good, but sometimes it seemed a little unsure of whether it was set in the 1930s or the 1990s (in 1930s clothes). The new film has no such ambiguities. It's as true to its period as any of the Indiana Jones films, for example. Also the brief flashbacks to ancient Egypt are kept short, simple and believable. One of the main reasons why the film works so well is the quality of the acting. By this I mean that the director and cast have avoided all temptation to play the story with tongue in cheek, and thereby help to make what are, objectively speaking, a totally OTT set of events, seem entirely credible. Having said that, the plot itself is well-developed and cracks on at a rate of knots. As to being "too" fast or "too" action packed, what on earth was the reviewer expecting to see? "Driving with Miss Daisy"? Of course it was fast and furious, but I found that it was ALWAYS coherent and rational within its own little fantasy world. And "too many" special effects? I can only say that it occurred to me, at the time, that the special effects, though they are a major feature of the film, had been used with great restraint. But then, I grew with films like "The Ten Commandments", "Spartacus", etc. so a screen-full of extras pretending to beat seven bells out of each other seems perfectly reasonable to me, even when 90 per cent or more of those extras are computer generated. If there were any shortcomings in this department, I guess we might wish for a more convincing "creature" in the battle inside the pyramid, which I personally found was too obviously virtual reality. But that's a minor consideration. So, if you really can't handle anything more exciting than watching paint dry, then by all means avoid this film. If, on the other hand, you enjoy a bit of well-crafted escapism, all-round good acting and a story line that is thrilling, sensational and gripping then get out and buy this video. You won't regret it!
Rating: Summary: Nothing to Return to Review: The Mummy Returns--your classic sequel. Put everything, and I mean everything, that worked in the first movie into the second. But, to make it interesting, you need to add lots and lots of special effects. *YAWN*. If I hadn't known any better, I would have thought I was watching the first movie. The Mummy Returns was plain and simply a bomb. It shouldn't even be associated with the original, because at least the original came up with it's own ideas and had some character development. In The Mummy Returns, it was all special effects. Nothing more than that. Sure, they were great, but it got real old halfway through this stale and utterly disappointing film. It seemed Stephen Sommers only focus was on the special effects and nothing else. The Mummy Returns was a pitiful attempt at a sequel, and hopefully, but not likely, this will be the last movie in this series. 2 Stars
Rating: Summary: All right Brandon Frazier! Review: It is true that the first movie of series edges this one. But, this tale delivers great run of events introducing small bit as the lore of the Scorpion King. I think Brandon Frazier is turning out to be the next Indiana Jones. He and his his wife pull off a wonderful marital combo. Can't wait to see next flick in series. The young son was interesting. Yet, if there is a third, I hope the movie writers age his son to sixteen or send him off to boarding school. Good movie, great sci-fi effects, true reflection of original loveable characters.
Rating: Summary: Very dissapointing! Review: I'm not a big fan of the first Mummy movie but this sequel was sad. This movie wants to be Indian Jones but lacks the heart and the complexity of that wonderful character. Some say that these are great special effects. What are great special effects? Star Wars Episode 1 had great special effects where a lot of time was obviously invested in the little details of the CG characters and the action scenes. This movie looks like a video game and there was hardly a moment where I could accept what I was seeing. A problem with this, and also with the first, was that the filmmaker seems to think that if he moves the camera fast while showing a lot of explosions and a large monster chasing down the heros that we're just gonna be on the edge of our seat even though what we are seeing is so unbelievable and so poorly done that it goes beyond being laughable to the point where you are just disgusted with it. I can't say much about the characters accept that...well, i can't say anything. They speak strongly for themselves. THey are just really goofy. The filmmaker seems to lack confidence in being able to entertain the audience by taking the film seriously so what we have is a very uneven movie because he's constantly bombarding us with flashy images to keep our interest. He has no faith in his story or characters.
Rating: Summary: A MUST Own!!! Review: Most sequels can never do justice to the original. Put all your doubts aside. This sequel does more than justice to its original and more. Of course, Brendan Fraiser makes it all look easy. Is he the next Indy Jones? It's possible. With the awesome special effects and the great script this movie should be a MUST OWN. It was for me.
Rating: Summary: Good, movie lots of special affects Review: This was a good movie- not as good as the first, but the special effects were great.
Rating: Summary: Thank God the mummy returned Review: I didn't think the movie would be any good, like most sequels to good films they've burned themselves out with the first one. But I was wrong. Alex manages to avoid being the standard precocious brat that you want to shoot within 5 minutes and adds a lot to the film. I particularly enjoyed the play between Anuk-su-na-mun and Imotep - in fact I felt almost sorry for him by the end. Great effects too, and the pace of the film is enough to keep you on the edge of your seat. In my view one of the few sequels that was actually better than the original film.
Rating: Summary: Good effects, bad plot Review: The Mummy Returns had both its ups and downs. Unlike many horror sequels that break their own rules, (no the scream 3 commercial is not right). Imhotep returns from the grave a rotted carcass and has to absorb the organs from a bunch of riffraff thieves. The CG effects were pretty good, even through the CGI depiction of the Rock (his real name is Dwayne) looked pretty plastic and pitiful as the Scorpion King. There's plenty of action and the ending of Imhotep and Anuk-su-Namun is bittersweet irony. (The tears welling up in Imhotep’s eyes were a pretty nice touch) When I said the movie didn't break its own rules, I lied. Apparently, somewhere between getting stabbed in the belly by Rick and being squashed flat by the entirety of the Hamunaptra complex, Imhotep magically acquires telekinetic abilities. Instead of adding new powers to his already bloated repertoire of skills, the writers should have stuck to the original 10 plagues. And when did Rick get this magical new tattoo? In the first mummy movie there was no talk whatsoever of some mystical “warrior of light” fighting a half-man, half-scorpion freak, nor was there any mention of Rick’s tattoo. Instead of creating this artificial background for a character, A new character (possibly Rick and Evelyn’s son, whose name I can’t think of right now) should have been introduced as the mighty slayer of the Scorpion King. Yet another problem was the “matrixization” of the entire movie. You know what I’m talking about! All the fight scenes were in slow motion with lots of debris flying around, and while there was no dodging of bullets, the fight between Rick and Imhotep prior to the grand arrival of The Almighty Stone-Soup Cooking, Scorpion Eating, Eyebrow Cocking, Plastic Looking Scarred-Up Mess We All Know And Love As The scorpion king a.k.a. the rock was just kinda not normal. It would also help if we were given a little backstory about the weirdo cult in the red robes who are convinced that Imhotep is their savior, and about the relationship between Ardeth Bay and the black guy with the really cool sword. I mean, the only thing that you see between them is the exchange of a few words that show them to be ancient mortal enemies, but nothing more is said. (...) All in all, the movie was jammed full of actions and special effects, which kinda compensated for all its plot holes. Excuse me. I need to go jump over some sacred stones now.
Rating: Summary: An OK sequel. Review: If were to write a dictionary, I would have written the following on "film sequel": "Poor attempt of copying a movie that scored high on box-offices." Sequels are for the most part bound to stink, but it doesn't always have to be like that! Stephen Summers wrote the script for The Mummy Returns not long after the release of the first mummy movie, The Mummy. He got all of his original crew and cast back, including a few new ones. They all make wonderful performances in this film! The acting is top notch! However, when it comes to the story, there's a few holes. The story isn't nearly as good as the first mummy movie, which was a huge hit at the box-office. But come on! Who can blame Summers? Writing sequels is not easy. You put your soul, heart and all your ideas into the first one, and when it's time to make a sequel- you've ran out of ideas. Well, not exacly run completely out of ideas, but I'm sure you know what I mean. The script does have a few holes, and some of the jokes and dialogues are very cheesy, but it's nothing that really confuses the viewer when he's watching it. Now, let's talk special effects! The main man of ILM, John Berton, was the the man leading the special effects team on this movie. I've been a fan of ILM for many years, and John Berton has always been my favorite. He really knows what he's doing! He puts his soul and heart into making the special effects. You can see that he's eager to please the director, who in this case, is Summers. They wanted a kind of Harry Hauser feel to the special effects, and that's the way they made them. Some of the special effects, I admit, could have been done better, but hey- nobodys perfect! Regarding the scorpian king at the end of the movie. Many people say that it stunk and looked awful. The people saying that clearly have no clue when it comes to special effects. The best ILM artists worked on it, and it turned out great! Just to let you all know; ILM hasen't come as far as to making CGI look just like humans and animals. And to quote John Berton: "Computer technolegy will never replace real actors!" The scorpian king was superbly made and it turned out fantastic, PERIOD! Anyway, this movie is really worth having, even if you're not a mummmy fan, it's still a ride! Despite some plot holes, Iæm sure you're gonna love this movie!
Rating: Summary: *surprised* Review: I was dragged to the theater by a friend to see this movie, and I kept thinking "Oh dear, another stupid action flick." When I saw it I was surprised, It wasn't that bad. While the plot was a little lacking, I'm giving four stars, because it surprised me.
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