The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
2008  PG-13  ACTION  1h 41min
CAST— Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, John Hannah, Russell Wong, Liam Cunningham, Luke Ford, Isabella Leong, Michelle Yeoh
MUSIC— Randy Edelman  DIRECTOR— Rob Cohen

     If the first two Mummy movies (not to mention The Scorpion King, parts II and I) were not your cup of tea then don’t even think about this one. It’s all pretty much standard by now; the roaring guns; the sword fights; vast armies of the undead. The premise is forgettable fluff; over two thousand years ago a maniacal Chinese emperor leads a massive army who begin to conquer all of China. Before this can happen he falls under a spell that turns he and his armies to stone but will (for reasons unknown) restore them to life at the most inopportune times. But Rick and Evelyn O’Connell, the heroes of previous mummy-related adventures, are drawn into this case. They must prevent the emperor from partaking from the mythical Shangri-La which would render him immortal. Not as good as The Mummy (1999), but pretty much better than all the rest, including various prequels and sequels. It never swept the Oscars, but what can you do?
OUR RATING— ** ½
PRECEDED BY— The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior (2008), The Scorpion King (2002), The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption (2012), The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power (2015), The Mummy (1999), The Mummy Returns (2001)