Director Rob Cohen should’ve kept this belated franchise addition under wraps since it leaves everything that made The Mummy such a decent popcorn flick back in the catacombs.
Gone is plucky/curvy leading lady Rachel Weisz (exchanged for Mario Bello, doing a British accent that’s more cracked than cut glass); Egypt is
swapped for China and desiccated ghouls are shoved aside by a Terracotta Army of flowerpot men led by Jet Li.
A mummy movie without a single bandage? We want a refund. The extras are limited to deleted/extended scenes and a croaky Cohen yak track where he natters about using fake Epsom salt snow, working with “Big B” (“he’s unique for his ability to take the pie in the face”) and his, like,
really deep respect for Chinese culture. Pass the embalming fluid.
Jamie Russell
