Movie Review: The Mummy Returns

Stars: 3 out of 5
Pros: Acting and story

Cons: Effects and reincarnations story

The Bottom Line:

Plot doesn't quite work

But entertainment still there

If you liked the first

"We've Had Bad Before."  "This is Worse."

I don't think anyone was surprised more then me when I enjoyed The Mummy in 1999. That's why I was so excited to go see The Mummy Returns in 2001. I came out of the theater highly disappointed. But a recent second viewing has made me appreciate it more. Granted, it still has some serious flaws, but it is a better movie then I originally gave it credit for being.

It's 1933, and the O'Connells are at it again. The now married Rick (Brendan Fraser) and Evy (Rachel Weisz) are back in Egypt exploring a long sealed tomb. They've even brought their eight year old son Alex (Freddie Boath) along for the ride. They're here because of a bunch of strange dreams Evy has been having. Exploring the tomb, they find the bracelet of the Scorpion King (The Rock).

Unfortunately, they aren't the only people looking for it. A group of diggers has found the mummy of Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo). They intend to revive him and let him kill the Scorpion King, thereby allowing him to control the Scorpion King's army and rule the Earth. But, in order to do all that, they need the bracelet.

Which is why the O'Connells are attacked when they return home to London. And since Alex has just put the bracelet on, he becomes a target. Joining forces with Evy's brother Jonathan (John Hannah) and Magi Ardeth Bay (Oded Fehr), they set out to save the world again. But in this race again time, will they win?

At times, I viewed the Scorpion King storyline to be just an ad for the next year's spin off movie about the character. On further reflection, I actually like it because it adds another layer to the plot. Instead of just "defeat the mummy" again, we're in a race to defeat the mummy before he resurrects this bad character to increase his own strength.

In fact, I must admit to being surprised at how original the plot of this movie was. Yes, there are some familiar elements from the last one, but since the mythology has already been established, they are glossed over rather quickly in order to get us to the new material. I still think the dirigible being chased by a wall of water was a bit of a cheat since it copied the plane and sand scene from the original, but I'm more forgiving of that obvious recycling now.

Because so much of the myth surrounding these characters had already been established, this movie starts much faster then the first one did. That's definitely a plus since one of my complaints about the first is the slow first half.

Almost the entire cast from the first movie is back, and that's a good thing. They all do a great job bring their characters to life again. And you can tell they like each other because their on screen chemistry is fantastic. Basically, it's fun to watch them.

One reason I like this "horror" movie is that it really isn't. This is an action/adventure movie with some occasional scary elements and plenty of the supernatural thrown in for good measure. While it does have some comedy, it is missing the witty lines from the original, something I definitely miss. They are still there, but not nearly as frequently.

There are other, more serious problems with this movie. As part of the mythology this time, we get long sequences about how some of the characters are reincarnations of characters from 5,000 years ago. Why? All it does is slow down the story in the middle and make things needless complicated. If that aspect were cut, we could have gotten rid of 20 minutes in the 2 hour 10 minute film and made things simpler.

The other big problem with this movie is the computer effects. While the effects in both of these films are stylized and supposed to be slightly cartoony, this time they go over the top. There are so many computer effects and they are so fake it is distracting. Instead of pulling me in, they push me out of the action. This is especially true when we finally see the Scorpion King. Um, was that supposed to impress me? Because it just makes me want to laugh. Not a good thing for the big heavy of the piece.

While the original probably has the same short comings, they are more noticeable here. The movie itself is better then I remembered, but it isn't enough to overcome the flaws. If you liked the original, you'll probably enjoy The Mummy Returns. But if you skip it, you aren't missing much either.