And so it begins....

Rating: 7/10 (4 May 2001)

Every year, around this time, I always start to get a little giddy. I'm always so excited to see summer roll around, so I can watch those guys at ILM have their fun, trying to outdo what they did last go round. Each year, summer movies seem to get more and more computerized, and less entertaining. After watching The Mummy Returns, I feel the trend will continue. Make no mistake, the film is an action ride from beginning to end, but not once is it truly a FUN ride.
I was really pumped to see this film. I mean REALLY pumped. I don't even know why. Granted, I liked the first Mummy film, but not that much. All I talked about for the past two weeks was seeing this movie. I don't even know why...I just did. My friend even made some off color sexual remarks about the Mummy and I. Yes, it was that bad. I guess I shouldn't be surprised I was disappointed. I had it coming.
What hurt the film the most was too much action. I love thrills and chills and yadda yadda...but it was too much. The film had formula written all over it. Too many characters, too little development, jumping from one death defying circumstance to another. The CGI was good, but way overdone. I miss the days where characters actually got the chance to interact with one another. So darn much of the film felt incredibly fake. It was more like watching a video game. Apparently, they forgot to actually write the thing. I got a feeling Sommers and crew just sat around thinking of things that would LOOK cool in a movie. I think some of the ideas were jokes that somehow got scripted in by accident. Some of it worked great, but other scenes just made me want to laugh...and not when I was supposed to, either. Granted, the film is supposed to be a comic book fantasy film, but we're not idiots. We won't watch anything. Then again, I was there day one and many were there with me...so maybe we will.
As far as the cast goes, I can't really blame them. Each did their job and did it well. It was good to see everyone back for a second go round, and I still like the characters. Fraser, Weisz, Hannah, and Fehr did a great job. Freddie Boath didn't grate my nerves like I thought he would (*cough-Jake LLoyd-cough*) and was actually pretty funny. BUT...the Scorpion King, portrayed by The Rock. WHAT?!? What is the big deal? How can "Hollywood" determine if this guy is the next big action star...he's in the film for all of 5 minutes, and had like three lines of gibberish? I mean, I'll give the guy a chance, but to give him a prequel based on his performance here is just silly.
So, even as I bash the film, it filled the time and I am in total LOVE with Patricia Velazquez, so I'd give it a 7 out of 10. Yeah, I'm a bit of a hypocrite, so what? $7 bucks isn't too much to pay for a couple hours of watching the most beautiful female on the planet.