My Review of "The Mummy Returns"

The Mummy Returns is the big blockbuster sequel to The Mummy. It came out back in 2001. I remember this movie back in the day when it first came out. It was the first and only movie I've gone to the theatres to see with my parents. So I thought I'd at least have some nostalgia and good feelings about the movie. Back then I remember it to be a pretty big spectacle but this was over 20 years ago.

The movie starts off with a little montage to introduce us to a new big boss called the Scorpion King. This was also the first time we ever saw the Rock on the big screen. He plays as the new villain but he has no meaningful dialogue. It's a tale of how he was a powerful leader to suffer an ill fate. Much like the original movie this villain's evil has been locked away by a mysterious artifact.

Again, we have Rick and Evelyn from the previous movie causing trouble by continuing their crypt robbing adventures. This time they're not alone. They now have a son named Alex. He's a troublemaking smart-alecky kid. Something like a Dennis the menace sort of character.

They of course stumble upon the Scorpion King artifact and as soon as you know it villains are out to get them because of it. This couple never learn their lesson. To top it off the villains chasing them resurrect the mummy from the last movie. That kind of made the last movie feel a little pointless but there's a lot of mindless rationality throughout this movie.

As soon as you know it the villains not only get ahold of the Scorpion King artifact but they also have Alex. Now it's up to Rick, Evelyn and their dunce of a brother, Jonathan to save Alex and the world.

This movie is kind of more complicated than it has to be. Somehow they made all the elements kind of fit with one another. They really didn't need to add the Scorpion King element in there unless he was integral to the story. It felt like more of an afterthought than anything else.

The reintroduction of the mummy felt like kind of a lazy way of bringing him back from the dead. It kind of brought up a whole slew of holes in the story from the first movie. Though we have to remember that this isn't high art either though.

It's a mindless blockbuster movie but this time geared towards a younger audience. It is evident that they are trying to push this movie to kids with a focus on Alex throughout the movie. The jokes are a lot more juvenile and it's really taken a turn.

There is also a lot more CGI added to this movie. This really didn't age well. Sometimes I felt like it was going from cartoon to real life and vice versa with no seamless transitions. The graphics were quite bad. It's a shame because I remembered them to much better than this. Now that the standards have been elevated so high it's really hard to ignore how bad and jarring it is to see some of these bad effects.

Though the sound and auditory experience is good. You hear all of the special effects all over the room if you have a surround system. I think this kind of helps immerse you in the movie but the visuals are really hard to take.

Overall, it's not a great movie and it relied on it's special effects back in the day to make it stand out. Unfortunately over the course of time these special effects are now quite outdated and look quite bad. That's why I unfortunately have to give this movie a 3.5 out of 10. Not even nostalgia can save this movie from disaster.