What Do The Critics Say?

"Leading man Brendan Fraser is happily still on board, and there’s enough action, mayhem and imagination on offer here for "The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor" to rate as a reasonable addition to this enjoyable if occasionally uninspired franchise. A capable and highly watchable action adventure flick." ERIN FREE FILMINK "The FX are good, there are few decent thrills and it is an enjoyable enough romp. Better than Mummy Returns, not as good as The Mummy but still worth a look." HEART 106.2 "It’s no masterpiece, but for good-natured escapism, the latest Mummy adventure gives Indiana a run for his money." Wendy Ide UK TIMES "All things considered, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is not bad. It's a serviceable spectacle, with plenty of action. While there aren't as many scares as there were in the first movie, there are a couple of dark moments for horror fans to enjoy." Staci Layne Wilson HORROR "This noisy Brendan Fraser fantasy adventure owes more to Indiana Jones than to Boris Karloff. A crazy-quilt comic book with Michelle Yeoh as a sorceress, a tribe of Abominable Snowmen, a visit to Shangri-La, a three-headed dragon, and Hong Kong's most honored actor, Anthony Wong, as a nutcase general. Kids should love it." John Beifuss BEIFUSS ON MOVIES

"This Mummy movie is really two movies: a good adventure epic, with all the Chinese people, and a wan one, with O'Connells and the other the Westerners. Toward the end of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh launch into a vigorous sword fight: and what a grand pleasure it is to watch these two world-class stars in action again." Richard Corliss TIME MAGAZINE "You don't believe it for a minute, but you may find yourself having too much fun to care." Daniel M Kimmel WORCESTER TELEGRAM & GAZETTE "It doesn't take itself too seriously but it takes the action scenes seriously and there are some great ones." Nell Minow BELIEFNET "Could have been a lot worse, but should have been much better, it's a movie you can watch once and be entertained, but it probably could never sustain multiple viewings." Edward Douglas COMINGSOON "As we move from city to desert to mountains, the action gets more frenetic and increasingly silly, which is no bad thing in a Mummy movie. Yeoh is the film's touch of class. Jet Li, on the other hand, is stuck in the Mummy role. Their 21 year old son, Alex, played in swashbuckling style by the Australian actor Luke Ford." Sandra Hall SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

The Inside Story Though director Rob Cohen’s resume includes blockbuster actioners such as "xXx" and "The Fast and the Furious", many moviegoers do not know that he is a student of anthropology who has long been intrigued by, as well as sometimes a resident of, Asia. When approached to helm an epic adventure that would take The Mummy series in a Far-Eastern direction, Cohen realized he could finally join two of his deepest passions: grand-scale filmmaking and China. The director explains his lifelong interest in the country in a foreword to the moviebook companion piece for "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor." "I have a deep love of Chinese culture and a complete fascination with the sweep and tumult of its five thousand year history. Since high school, when my mother began painting Chinese watercolors as a hobby, China had occupied my imagination and reading time. I was intrigued by various dynasties, most especially the Tang and the Ming with their early explorers discovering Indonesia, India, Africa and the giant 'treasure ships' that may have circumvented the world long before Magellan, and might have reached the Americas long before Columbus." the producers behind the juggernaut hits that launched it all with 1999’s "The Mummy" ($US415,933,406 worldwide) and the 2001 sequel "The Mummy Returns" ($433,013,274 worldwide) wanted to head in a new direction for the series and had commissioned Alfred Gough and Miles Millar to shake up the franchise. They felt they had exhausted the possibilities in an Egyptian setting and were looking for a filmmaker who could take the trouble-seeking O’Connells out of Africa and expand their adventures to the continent of Asia. Of the cinemagoers avid interest in the films that share the families escapades, producer Stephen Sommers, screenwriter of "Catch Me If You Can" and "Van Helsing", reflects: "I think the reason they were so successful is that they are romantic adventures set in exotic worlds. People just love that." "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" marks the third time James Jacks ("Tombstone" & "The Gift") and Sean Daniel ("The Jackal" & "Intolerable Cruelty") have produced a 'Mummy' film. For this chapter, they would be joined by Bob Ducsay ("The Mummy Returns" & "Van Helsing") and Stephen Sommers ("Catch Me If You Can" & "The Adventures of Huck Finn") as producers. All four men had begun their collaboration by creating the first two in the series, with Sommers directing and Ducsay serving as editor on both and executive producer on "The Mummy Returns". "It took us years before we had an epiphany of using the Terracotta Warriors in China," Ducsay recalls. "We realized this might be a great catalyst for a new adventure with characters the audience had grown to love in the first two stories." The team discovered in Rob Cohen, a filmmaker with the experience necessary to create a film on the scale they imagined. "Thankfully, Rob wanted to make the picture, because he was an absolutely perfect fit," Ducsay said. "He has the skill set to mount a gigantic production on two continents, is fantastic with action and actors and has a great sense of humour." These are all essential ingredients in the DNA of a 'Mummy' movie," Ducsay notes. "I’m a history buff, and I had read an enormous amount on Chinese history even before I came into this. I have loved the culture since I directed "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story" and a miniseries about two Chinese brothers immigrating to the United States, called "Vanishing Son. It’s a brand-new adventure for our heroes; spectacular, colorful and completely Asian," Cohen explained. Producer Sean Daniel admits that his obsession with this genre as a child continues to bring him back for more. "When I was a kid, I used to go to every Boris Karloff version of a mummy film I could find and the many other mummy movies that followed," he recalls. "I cut pictures of the mummy out of the Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine and stuck them on the wall. When I went to Universal, I immediately started to talk to them about making a mummy movie, as they are a personal love of mine." With director Cohen on board to inject an Asian influence into the series, the returning producers from the first two chapters and Gough and Millar’s revamped screenplay, it was time to cast a shape-shifting emperor and a family of fighting O’Connells. Their task wasn't just limited to the casting. There was also the thousands of man hours necessary to design gun battles and high-speed chases and, creating the worlds of 200 BC and 1946, all of which would prove quite a challenge. Having Brendan Fraser return to the role of dashing adventurer Rick O’Connell was essential to the project, as all who were involved believe he is one of few actors who can blend action and light comedy so well. "We could never imagine a Mummy movie without Rick O’Connell," Ducsay stated. "Brendan is the very embodiment of the character. He looks fantastic; he is in even better physical shape than he was in the first picture, and he does these incredible stunts himself." Fraser appreciated that the distance and time he has had since the last project was mirrored by his on-screen family in the script. "It’s allowed the family to develop, and it’s given us an arc to play: reuniting a family that has grown apart. We find a husband and wife bored with having retired, to say the least, and a son who wants to be a chip off the old block." There wasn’t a question in director Cohen’s mind about who would play the Emperor. "Jet Li was always the one and only choice," he said. "He was going to play the villain for me in Sinbad, so we already knew each other." The problem was, Li wouldn't be available for the entire duration of the lengthy shoot. How did they get around this? Cohen suggested the script could explain that the Emperor had been cursed and turned into a Terracotta Warrior. "We had the idea that a terracotta CG character walk and talk like Jet; then, at a certain point, he comes back as the flesh and blood Jet. He loved the idea and so did the studio." Li was impressed with fellow Buddhist Cohen and his deep love and understanding of Chinese culture. He appreciated his take on the project and signed on to portray the Dragon Emperor. "His shooting style is like a Hong Kong director's: full of energy and change, and very fast." One cast member who wouldn't be returning to the franchise was Oscar ® winning Best Supporting Actress Rachel Weisz ("The Constant Gardener"). Weisz (pronounced Vice") reportedly turned down three million dollars (US) for the opportunity to spend more time with her partner Darren Aronofsky and their son Henry Chance. "After many casting meetings, we did screen tests with five actresses," Cohen recalls, "and the one that blew us away was Maria Bello. She has such strong chemistry with Brendan that it wasn’t much of a decision." 2004 Golden Satellite Award winner Bello (hire the DVD "The Cooler" to see why), was eager to take on the role of a heroine in whom she found a kindred spirit. "I related to Evy as an adventurous soul. I always considered myself a bit of a gypsy, and I jump off a lot of cliffs. In second grade, I read romance novels; I was addicted to them. They were always about some woman who dressed like a man and snuck onto a ship, and a captain fell in love with her. She was a great swordsman and a greater fighter. I just always wanted to be that heroine." Fans of the franchise will be happy to know that John Hannah returns to the role of Evy’s brother, the bumbling Jonathan, who is as much hindrance as he is help to the O’Connell family’s missions. "I remember when we approached John about his role in the first picture, he couldn’t figure out why we would want to cast him in a comic role," says producer Ducsay. "He just doesn’t see himself as funny, but of course he is, and I think that’s been borne out in the series." "Jonathan’s always looking for a way out first. That’s always been the kind of everyman approach if some immortal, two thousand year old guy is coming at you to slap your head off. My first instinct would be to get out, not to stand and have a fight with him," Hannah noted. Casting the role of Rick and Evy’s son, Alex, was a challenge. The character had to be young and exciting, physically credible, and, at the same time, present a feeling of vulnerability to the events that were about to transpire in the latest 'Mummy' adventure. After an exhaustive search, the filmmakers met with charismatic Australian actor Luke Ford ("Kokoda" & "The Black Balloon"), a performer who suggests a rare blend of innocence and power. Cohen recalls his first meeting with Ford. "I was screen-testing several young actors; some of them were famous in the United States. When I looked up, they were all standing around looking at Luke and talking to him, but he was clearly the dominant one." Cohen remembers thinking, "Here are these stars standing around; they’re talking to this kid, and he’s very natural and accessible. Plus, he was the best actor." Of his character Ford notes: "Alex has always been in the shadow of his father. Rick made such an impact in the world of archaeology, and Alex wants to do the same. By discovering the Emperor, he is trying to make his mark." Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh was asked to play ageless sorceress Zi Yuan, the woman responsible for transforming the Emperor into a terracotta prisoner. "Michelle has such dignity that you really believe she is a serene beauty who has been waiting thousands of years to pick a moment and seek her revenge," says Fraser. "I was very excited about the character because she is magical," Yeoh explained. "It’s a wonderful role," the star of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" & "Memoirs of a Geisha" 2006 Golden Bauhinia Award winning Chinese actress Isabella Leong was cast as Yuan's daughter, Lin. The actor was eager to break into English language films and would not only be challenged by the dialogue, but also by the martial arts movements required to play an assassin who is sworn to keep the Emperor Mummy forever locked away. Chau Sang Anthony Wong ("Infernal Affairs" & "The Painted Veil"), who had previously worked with Michelle Yeoh was cast as General Yang. Also cast in the film are: Irishman Liam Cunningham ("The Wind That Shakes the Barley" and "Breakfast On Pluto") as Desi 'Mad Dog' Maguire; British actor David Calder ("The World Is Not Enough") plays fellow explorer Professor Roger Wilson, while Russell Wong ("Romeo Must Die") was chosen to play Ming Guo, the Emperor’s loyal servant and love of Zi Yuan’s life. "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" was filmed over a five-month period in North America and Asia. Montreal in Canada, and Beijing and Shanghai in China served as host cities as the production built worlds that crossed 2,200 years. The visual and SFX effects in the film are spectacular. The SFX department was led by industry veteran SFX supervisor R Bruce Steinheimer. Accomplished VFX producer Ginger Theisen headed the visual effects department. For the Emperor Mummy and his legion of Terracotta Warriors, the effects team developed a series of "liquid solid" warriors made of clay, who were able to flex and bend at will. Whenever they move, they crack and reform. Though only a fraction of the Terracotta Warriors have been excavated from the depths of Chinese soil, the production was tasked with bringing them all back to life. Digital Domain was responsible for the creation of the vast armies of both the Terracotta Warriors (the Emperor’s men) and the Foundation Army (those killed by the Emperor). They had to render a total of two thousand five hundred Foundation Soldiers and four thousand eight hundred Terracotta Warriors. "The Foundation Army are the good guys," co-VFX supervisor Matthew Butler ("Flags of Our Fathers" & "A Beautiful Mind") explained. "These are the workers that have been incarcerated under the Great Wall of China for a couple of thousand years." Also featured in the latest 'Mummy' film are the Yeti, who according to producer Sean Daniel ("The Scorpion King"), "have always been a favorite part of the movie for the filmmakers. We’ve always thought it was just really cool to have the Yeti and Shangri-la be a part of this movie. The Yeti are other creatures, like the Mummy, that people from all cultures can relate to." The film marks the the third collaboration between costume designer Sanja Milkovic Hays and Cohen. One of the biggest challenges was creating costumes for the beginning of the film. "There was very little to go on," explains Hays. "There was some reference to jewelry, a few drawings, a bit of cloth and discovered mummies. I based most ideas on research from museums and books." "China was a great place to set a movie that has fantasy, imagery, history and incredible action," notes Cohen. Synopsis

Rick and Evelyn O'Connell are now enjoying retirement. Their 21 year old son Alex is at University. Or so they think. In fact he has discovered an ancient tomb. Doomed by a double-crossing sorceress to spend eternity in suspended animation, China's ruthless Dragon Emperor Han and his 10,000 warriors have lain forgotten for eons, entombed in clay as a vast, silent terra cotta army. But when dashing adventurer Alex is tricked into awakening the ruler from eternal slumber, the reckless young archaeologist must seek the help of the only people who know more than he does about taking down the undead: his parents. As the monarch roars back to life, our hero finds Han's quest for world domination has intensified. Striding the Far East with unimaginable supernatural powers, the Emperor Mummy will rouse his legion as an unstoppable, otherworldly force; unless the O'Connells can stop him first.

The Verdict "If you were a fan of the first two films, you'll enjoy seeing where the franchise is headed. If you haven't seen either "The Mummy" or "The Mummy Returns", don't worry, this third edition (set in 1946) can be seen as a stand alone film. Be warned: as is the trend of late, there is a massive amount of SFX and CGI imagery in "The Mummy" Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor", one aspect I'm sure some regular cinemagoers may find a little overpowering. Once again the storyline is a mixture of serious moments, goofy fun and a good lashing of action; a formula that has worked well in the past. Australian actor Luke Ford, who will next be seen in the ABC telefilm "Blood in the Sand" and, who was brilliant in "The Black Balloon", has signed an option on two more 'Mummy' films if they go into production. Lets hope there are more opportunities for Ford (who has appeared in McLeod’s Daughters and appeared in "McLeod's Daughters", "All Saints", "No Turning Back", "Home and Away", "Water Rats" and "Breakers") to expand his role as Alex O'Connell in the future. Considering the star power in the cast, the young fella, who confessed to being "a massive follower of The Mummy films", gives a very credible performance. Another cast member who gives a good account of themself, is nineteen year old actress, Isabella Leong. When you take into account she couldn't speak a word of English, her performance alongside that of the much reveared Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh, augers well for future. Good escapist fun. 3 1/2 STARS." Crew Bytes "THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR" was .......
directed by Rob Cohen ["Scandalous", "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story" and "The Skulls"]; screenplay by Alfred Gough ["Shanghai Noon", "Shanghai Knights" and "Spider-Man 2"] and Miles Millar ["Lethal Weapon 4", "Showtime" and "Herbie Fully Loaded"]; costume design by Sanja Milkovic Hays ["xXx", "Cheaper by the Dozen" and "Next"]; production design by Nigel Phelps ["Judge Dredd", "Alien Ressurection" and "The Bone Collector"]; cast by Ronna Kress ["William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet", "The Negotiator" and "Snow Falling on Cedars"]; cinematography by Simon Duggan ["The Interview", "Risk" and "I, Robot"]; original music by Randy Edelman ["Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story", "Shanghai Noon", "xXx" and "Shanghai Knights"]. Who's Who

Brendan Fraser Luke Ford Jet Li Maria Bello John Hannah Michelle Yeoh Isabella Leong Anthony Wong Chau-Sang Russell Wong Liam Cunningham David Calder Jessey Meng Tian Liang Albert Kwan

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Rick O'Connell Alex O'Connell Emperor Han Evelyn O’Connell Jonathan Carnahan Zi Juan Lin General Yang Ming Guo Mad Dog Maguire Roger Wilson Choi Li Zhou Chu Wah

Run Time 112 minutes Rated M [AUST] Copyright ©2008 - UNIVERSAL PICTURES - All Rights Reserved ©2008 All Rights Reserved The Movie Pages - Protected by Australian, International, Copyright & Trademark Laws.