posted
I greatly enjoyed 1999's remake of The Mummy. Yes it was dumb, but it was the fun kind of dumb. I like how one reviewer put it a couple years later: "This is more like seeing someone's RPG adventure come to life than the actual D&D movie was."
The film didn't take itself seriously, the protagonists were endearing, and the villain (by playing it straight) managed to hold it all together.
I skipped over the first sequel and spin-off. The trailers for both looked terrible.
The trailers for Tomb of the Dragon Emperor had some of my fanboy weaknesses. Mainly animate terracotta warriors, yetis, and dragons. I decided to give it a chance.
Hoo boy.
When three snow leopard-faced, heroic yetis come off as nicer, braver, and more appealing than any of the human protagonists, you know the film is a case of serious Deep Hurting.
It doesn't help that the aura of sour disinterest that Brendan Fraser's been projecting since late 2003 has now reached epic proportions.
A lot of time is spent establishing that the O'Connell family was mostly held together by the bond of fighting Imhotep. With him gone, they feel lost and forlorn. They invoke his memory when they want to have a "moment." They constantly wax nostalgic about him. They get at each others throats whenever discussing non-Imhotep topics.
It's all rather creepy and off-putting. Then comes the endless father and son using guns as a phallic metaphor scene.
Jet Li is wasted as the titular Dragon Emperor, who spends the majority of his screen-time bullying his hapless ordinary human general.
Poor soulful-eyed Michelle Yeoh is wasted even worse as an immortal Chinese sorceress who exists solely to narrate the premise, hand out the plot coupons, then die an anti-climactic death.
Many of the terracotta army action scenes and Dragon Emperor monster transformations happen so quickly and staged so awkwardly that I barely knew what I was looking at.
The sole cool thing in the movie: The Yetis. They're sort of bipedal snow leopards who you get the feeling would be salt-of-the-Earth friends for life. Friends who work hard, party harder, and always act excellent towards each other.
Unfortunately, they're only briefly in the film. Man, I missed those noble, funny, butt-kickin' Yetis.
Instead we went back to the increasingly perverse, pathetic, unlikable O'Connell family. May this be their last appearance.
posted
I can't say I'm surprised. Jet Li has been making sounds that this film, while very high budget, isn't all that great.
I have mixed feelings about another mediocre China-related film. On one hand, Jet Li seems to be very efficient at converting his pay to charity work. On the other hand Hollywood seems to already have a rather low proportion of Chinese characters and assigned those remaining as either kung-fu artists and/or villains. If this and Forbidden Kingdom don't too well, that might be going down too.
I just wish that we could get something like the calibre of 'Rome', but set in China.
quote:Originally posted by Mucus: I have mixed feelings about another mediocre China-related film. On one hand, Jet Li seems to be very efficient at converting his pay to charity work. On the other hand Hollywood seems to already have a rather low proportion of Chinese characters and assigned those remaining as either kung-fu artists and/or villains. If this and Forbidden Kingdom don't too well, that might be going down too.
I just wish that we could get something like the calibre of 'Rome', but set in China.
A good film that is worth checking out and may contrast this one is "The Warlords"
Don't forget the comedy sidekick. Martial artists or comedy sidekicks. According to Hollywood, Asian actors are very good for those types of roles.
Wasn't Rome produced by BBC? Technically, not a Hollywood production.
I saw Warlords about a year ago, and I was very underwhelmed. Despite having cast three superstars, the movie was simply mediocre. Also, it depended too much on its huge budget and special effects. At least, that's my opinion. My memory is a little fuzzy, since I don't remember very many details, in terms of plot or characterization. If I can't remember the details to a Jet Li, Andy Lau, or Takeshi Kaneshiro movie, then it must have been very bad indeed.
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posted
I never said that Rome was produced by Hollywood, I just said it was *good* and that I want more
As for 'The Warlords' I can't say that there were many special effects and what there are confined to the first two battle scenes. Compared to a typical Hollywood movie or even one or two of the latest Zhang Yimou films, thats not a lot. I don't even recall much wire work
That said, I don't think it was an amazing film either, but my thoughts on the movie do lie something closer to that of the linked review. It is a good popcorn movie but not worth much thought or rewatching. It IS however an interesting contrast to the Mummy.
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quote:Originally posted by Mucus: I never said that Rome was produced by Hollywood, I just said it was *good* and that I want more
As for 'The Warlords' I can't say that there were many special effects and what there are confined to the first two battle scenes. Compared to a typical Hollywood movie or even one or two of the latest Zhang Yimou films, thats not a lot. I don't even recall much wire work
That said, I don't think it was an amazing film either, but my thoughts on the movie do lie something closer to that of the linked review. It is a good popcorn movie but not worth much thought or rewatching. It IS however an interesting contrast to the Mummy.
I must have gotten mixed up about Rome when you mentioned Hollywood before.
I haven't seen the Mummy, but I'm sure Warlords was loads better, just from my memory of the first Mummy film.
As for the latest Zhang Yimou films... I gotta say, I didn't like Curse of the Golden Flower much either.
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posted
I think about how great Michelle Yeoh was in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and I get miffed all over again at how they completely wasted her in this thing.
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posted
Egads, Curse of the Golden Flower was horrible. Heaven knows I was using it as a comparison for special effects, not as an example of a good movie.
I did like the first Mummy though, not the sequel or the spin off though.
I agree that Michelle Yeoh is wasted, but this is not entirely different from Jet Li, Jackie Chan, or Chow Yun Fat. I don't think Hollywood really treats Asian actors all that well, I think Stephen Chow has the right idea. (i.e. team up with Hollywood and use their money to produce films, but retain creative control and direction)
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