Post by ZapRowsdower on Aug 5, 2008 2:46:36 GMT -5
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008, Rob Cohen)
Crap.
Alright, that's harsh.
There were a few things about this film that actually WERE great, surprisingly enough.
1. Fantastic cinematography by Simon Duggan. Kinda pisses you off that such a bad movie could look so damn good.
2. Michelle Yeoh, breaking through the language barrier like a champ. Her English has improved over the years, as has her ability to act in English.
3. Jet Li. Grossly underused in this film. Instead they opted for a CGI recreation. But it's only when Li is there in the flesh where he shows some kick-ass kung fu. But these moments are few.
4. Randy Edelman's score works well with the film.
Everything else? FUCK no. I have no idea what the producers of this movie were thinking when they tried to replace Rachel Weisz with Maria Bello. Don't get me wrong, Bello is (usually) a wonderful actress. But here... let's just say if I were from England, I'd be offended. And there was so much emphasis on the accent that she forgot to act in the process. Brendan Fraser... don't need to go into too much detail here. But seriously, NO WAY he could have fathered Luke Ford. Unless he knocked some chick up at age 11. I know what you're thinking... "Sean Connery was only 12 years older than Harrison Ford". But he LOOKED older. Which is the point. Brendan Fraser is about 10 years older than Luke Ford, and looks like he's the same age. So those father-son moments come off tremendously awkward. I also don't understand Luke Ford's need to speak with an American accent. Wasn't the kid in the last movie British? And don't they live in England? And doesn't his mother speak with an English accent? Sorry, but America doesn't have THAT much influence abroad, even with Brendan Fraser's help. The only reason this bothered me, mind you, is because like Bello, Ford's accent was off.
Screenplay... Hoo boy. It's as though Alfred Gough and Miles Millar wrote it while watching a marathon that consisted of the Indiana Jones trilogy, Hero, Memoirs of a Geisha, and about 5 minutes each of the previous 2 Mummy movies. And then a documentary about the Yeti. Oh yes, there are Yeti. And get this, they're the GOOD guys. And don't even get me started on the dialogue. Moments that are supposed to be witty and cute are just... dumb and annoying.
And finally, the CGI. The Yeti, the walking statue that's supposed to be Jet Li, the three-headed dragon Jet Li turns into, the giant bear-tiger-thing that Jet Li turns into, and at one point Jet Li himself, are all poorly done effects. Everything cinematographer Simon Duggan accomplished in this film is ruined any time a special effect is thrown on screen. The effects are Van Helsing bad.
The movie itself... slightly better than Van Helsing. The 4 good things I mentioned earlier, 3 of them are things Van Helsing did not have (although sometimes Alan Silvestri's score does still occasionally pop into my head). So hack filmmaker Rob Cohen owes whatever merits this film DOES have to Simon Duggan, Michelle Yeoh, the REAL Jet Li (as opposed to CGI statue Jet Li), and Randy Edelman. I'm disappointed. I actually liked the first two (I liked the second one enough to forgive its faux pas with the CGI Rock-Scorpion), and even tolerated the Scorpion King. Sad to say this, but the series desperately needs Stephen Sommers. And if at all possible, Rachel Weisz. And better writers.
4/10
Crap.
Alright, that's harsh.
There were a few things about this film that actually WERE great, surprisingly enough.
1. Fantastic cinematography by Simon Duggan. Kinda pisses you off that such a bad movie could look so damn good.
2. Michelle Yeoh, breaking through the language barrier like a champ. Her English has improved over the years, as has her ability to act in English.
3. Jet Li. Grossly underused in this film. Instead they opted for a CGI recreation. But it's only when Li is there in the flesh where he shows some kick-ass kung fu. But these moments are few.
4. Randy Edelman's score works well with the film.
Everything else? FUCK no. I have no idea what the producers of this movie were thinking when they tried to replace Rachel Weisz with Maria Bello. Don't get me wrong, Bello is (usually) a wonderful actress. But here... let's just say if I were from England, I'd be offended. And there was so much emphasis on the accent that she forgot to act in the process. Brendan Fraser... don't need to go into too much detail here. But seriously, NO WAY he could have fathered Luke Ford. Unless he knocked some chick up at age 11. I know what you're thinking... "Sean Connery was only 12 years older than Harrison Ford". But he LOOKED older. Which is the point. Brendan Fraser is about 10 years older than Luke Ford, and looks like he's the same age. So those father-son moments come off tremendously awkward. I also don't understand Luke Ford's need to speak with an American accent. Wasn't the kid in the last movie British? And don't they live in England? And doesn't his mother speak with an English accent? Sorry, but America doesn't have THAT much influence abroad, even with Brendan Fraser's help. The only reason this bothered me, mind you, is because like Bello, Ford's accent was off.
Screenplay... Hoo boy. It's as though Alfred Gough and Miles Millar wrote it while watching a marathon that consisted of the Indiana Jones trilogy, Hero, Memoirs of a Geisha, and about 5 minutes each of the previous 2 Mummy movies. And then a documentary about the Yeti. Oh yes, there are Yeti. And get this, they're the GOOD guys. And don't even get me started on the dialogue. Moments that are supposed to be witty and cute are just... dumb and annoying.
And finally, the CGI. The Yeti, the walking statue that's supposed to be Jet Li, the three-headed dragon Jet Li turns into, the giant bear-tiger-thing that Jet Li turns into, and at one point Jet Li himself, are all poorly done effects. Everything cinematographer Simon Duggan accomplished in this film is ruined any time a special effect is thrown on screen. The effects are Van Helsing bad.
The movie itself... slightly better than Van Helsing. The 4 good things I mentioned earlier, 3 of them are things Van Helsing did not have (although sometimes Alan Silvestri's score does still occasionally pop into my head). So hack filmmaker Rob Cohen owes whatever merits this film DOES have to Simon Duggan, Michelle Yeoh, the REAL Jet Li (as opposed to CGI statue Jet Li), and Randy Edelman. I'm disappointed. I actually liked the first two (I liked the second one enough to forgive its faux pas with the CGI Rock-Scorpion), and even tolerated the Scorpion King. Sad to say this, but the series desperately needs Stephen Sommers. And if at all possible, Rachel Weisz. And better writers.
4/10
