Y'know, I just love this movie so much, enough to help me forget how quickly downhill the franchise went after it. This one's on my desert island list.
A ★★★★ review of The Mummy (1999)
It’s a horror film. It’s an action flick. It’s a romantic comedy. It’s all three in one, and it’s a hell of a lot of fun. The primary cast are all great in their roles — Brendan Frazier as treasure-hunting solder-of-fortune Rick O’Connell; Rachel Weisz as perky archaologist wannabe Evy; John Hannah as Evy’s wastrel brother, Jon; Arnold Vosloo as the evil but tragic Imhotep, the titular Mummy; and Kevin O’Conner as the scumbag schmuck sidekick, B…
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Same here! The first movie was really great. Looking forward to the reboot. Hope they increase the scare factor and do away with the goofy stuff.
The first movie (above) has a good blend, IMO, between scariness and horror on the one hand (with the bloody / gruesome stuff taking place in silhouette or offscreen) and humor / goofiness (Beni, Evy, Jon), but the latter does't get in the way of the former or clash, IMO, as it's in the service of the plot and the characters.
I don't need or want to see a Mummy that's just a horror film.
Really? I may have to watch it.
Hmm. Best I can do right now is to see it on Spike. 😛
I feel that since they are rebooting the franchise, its better if they give
it a different feel. They tried the horror-comedy route last time – it was
good, as you pointed out; maybe we could call it great. But since they are
working on it again, they could go for a a different path. Its like sex.
Having sex with the same person in the same way can be boriing. So why not
try something different? Why not see what happens when the scare factor is
upped several notches and there is no respite via a laugh riot?
+Indraneel Mandal Fair enough — trying to imitate the predecessor rarely works.
Reboots are a funny thing. There's a sweet spot between imitation and homage, between "They're trying to recreate the original, which is dumb because we have the original" and "Why the heck did they call this a reboot except to get some free publicity for it."
I agree with you totally. Most reboots just seem to be exploiting the fame of the original. Besides they can never match the aura of the original since there is no wonder of watching something unfold for the first time. Reboots/remakes/sequels are mostly examples of lazy film making and cash grab efforts.
For example I will always enjoy Schwarzenegger's Total Recall compared to the latest effort, in spite of the superior effects in the latter. Again, I am not too enthusiastic about Arnie's planned Terminator and Conan sequels, as I think the former franchise should die a natural death, while the latter should examine some of the other Conan adventures with younger actors (Yes I have seen the one with Momoa, and though I cannot be as critical as most other people, I did not find it great).
Similarly I am a big fan of the original Robocop movies, and do not think anything can match the excitement of watching such a character the first time. However, after watching the trailers of the newer version, my initial pessimism has given way to interest, and I will check out the movie whenever possible. This is not to compare with the originals (they will always remain special, in spite of the clunky effects) but just with the hope of having a good time.
As far the Mummy movie is concerned, it was itself a reboot, but undoubtedly a great one. Would like to get my hands on the original.
Sorry for the long post. Couldn't help it. smiles sheepishly
+Indraneel Mandal Good recollection that The Mummy was a remake (the 1932 original, with Karloff, had one of the scariest scenes I ever saw as a kid, where Imhotep is being mummy-wrapped alive).
I will say that I give a lot more of a break to reboots that happen 60-odd years later, rather than 5 or 10.
I'm also cautiously optimistic about the Robocop reboot — it seems to be being played much more for straight drama than Verhoeven's more satirical approach; hmmmm, another movie I need to rewatch.
You are spot on. Reboots should not be like the Amazing Spiderman – restarting the story when the original is still fresh in the minds of people. The sequel however could be interesting with at least two new villians being introduced.