rating:
(out of
4 stars)United States; 1999
Directed by Stephen Sommer; produced by Sean Daniel, James Jacks; screenplay by Stephen Sommer
Starring Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Arnold Vosloo, Kevin J. O'Connor, Oded Fehr
This 'Indiana Jones' film without characters named Indiana Jones and stars like Harrison Ford has more to offer than one might expect. It steals an entire film together, but it's mindless fun both in adventure and comedy. It is the kind of guilty pleasure you should not be ashamed of (like, just to name one, 'National Treasure' - also a guilty pleasure of mine), as long as you understand this is not even good enough to be in the shadows of 'Raiders of the Lost Ark'.
Harrison Ford is replaced here with Brendan Fraser, the likable actor from 'George of the Jungle' and many other bad films. He is Rick O'Connell, an unwanted hero when he leads siblings Jonathan (John Hannah) and Evelyn (Rachel Weisz) to the secret city of Hamunaptra. They have competition from a group of Americans, with their guide Beni (Kevin J. O'Connor), who once betrayed O'Connell while defending Hamunaptra. He betrayes O'Connell again when he becomes the servant of The Mummy, once the priest Imhotep, they unleash by accident.
'The Mummy' is one of those clearly defined adventure films. There is a hero and his love interest, a sidekick, a competition - later serving as the first victims of the real villain - and of course the real villain. All you need here is entertaining filling to make it work, as 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' proved better than any other film before and after it. Here most of the things work. Fraser, Hannah and especially the gorgeous Weisz are effective, the visual effects are good enough and while it lacks on adventure, both suspense and silly comedy make up for it.
I have seen this film more than I should have, but still I feel this way. Some films look like they were made with a lot of joy, and this feeling is felt by its audience. 'The Mummy' - and even its lesser sequel - belongs to this group. Since films in the genre are not made that much, I am grateful when they bring this kind of quality.