Review of The Mummy (1999) by Harry W — 21 Nov 2013

The Mummy attempts to combine childish comedic elements of family friendly adventure with that of a legitimate action adventure one, but it's consistently inconsistent with some jokes being cringe-worthy or excessively cliche, predictable or repetitive while others come from unexpected directions and give viewers a mild laugh.

But as the horror themes begin to seep their way in, The Mummy becomes better. It manages to educate viewers on what a mummy is supposed to represent in Egyptology and brings it to the surface for a modern day adventure. It gradually strengthens The Mummy enough that some of the comedic elements even become stronger because viewers understand the legitimate strength if the story. It develops well to because it goes from a story about discovery to one that has zombies, camel races and plane chases. It just becomes better the more it progresses and it explores more themes of the genre which does in fact make it a good adventure film that defied my expectation after a substandard beginning.

The script has a series of one-liners that never really succeed and are a little excessive at the beginning, and if takes a while for them to cut down and be replaced by real adventure wherein they become slightly higher quality.and more successful as they hit during some intense moments when viewers don't see it coming.

And I was very pleased with the quantity of action in the film, particularly the high quantity of shootouts and sword fighting which were combined into the story very well and were strongly choreographed and delivered with gusto.

The Mummy does also benefit from a strong and adventurously themed musical score which keeps the atmosphere rich and ensures the narrative is strong as it explores intense dynamics and such.

The Mummy is also really well shot with some fine quality cinematography and edited excellently which keeps it moving at a decent pace without ever being too quick or ever sitting on one shot for too long. The editing matches the mood of its scenes well and ensures that the action is very well constructed, and it's better than the editing in most of the action films these days.

Really, Director and Writer Stephen Sommers knows that The Mummy has to be a visual spectacle and he revolves the story around it and writes the script to make it a fun one even if it is hit and miss with the comedic elements.

Brendan Frasier is a charismatic lead because as The Mummy only requires humourous elements without being a full-fledged comedy, Brendan Frasier is spot on for the lead role. Unlike many other actors who would face this part, Brendan Frasier doesn't attempt to mimic Indiana Jones and instead creates his own character who is a legitimate action adventure hero but not without elements of comedic tendencies or line delivery. He manages to make it work c and he's a serious lead as well as a humourous one, and he manages to work with the script so that it actually consistently succeeds in one area. Rick O'Connell is actually a pretty awesome character and he's definitely a fun adventure hero to remember. Brendan Frasier really does an awesome job and gives one of his best performances, one which reminds us why he's a great actor and how he earned the title of being a Hollywood star. Before The Mummy I would never have picked him as an action hero, but here we stand with him holding the character Rick O'Connell as a memorable hero that is both funny and heroic.

Rachel Weisz is also a good performer to have in board because she emits the same kind of charm Rachel McAdams did in Sherlock Holmes although her character is significantly weaker and written as being a damsel in distress who has her own uses. The strength comes from Rachel Weisz's natural talent which allows her to transcend the script and give an effortful performance which combines with her beauty to fit the context of the story and the fun of it too. Even though at times her articulation of lines are a bit cheesy, overall she's a memorable presence. She isn't perfect, but she gets the tone of the story right.

Although John Hannah's character is built solely on the basis of providing comic relief, at times he manages to provide a laugh or two even when he has some if the cheapest comedic lines in the script. He's a fun guy to have around.

Arnold Vosloo also does a decent job portraying the titular mummy Imhotep even though it doesn't require too much effort. He just gets his facial actions spot on which is what is required.

All to he cast members manage to interact with the actual Mummy well, and the fact that he is entirely built of CG effects is forgotten by how well they all pretend it actually exists. The visual effects are pretty good too.

So although The Mummy doesn't start out the strongest, the buildup of action and adventure combined with the exploration of Egyptology and performance of Brendan Frasier make it a surprisingly entertaining film which I was very pleased to watch, more so than I expected or hoped.