The Mummy – An introduction to the Dark Universe: movie review

By Tribute on June 9, 2017 | 3 Comments

“Welcome to a new world of gods and monsters.”

The Mummy, one of Universal’s oldest monster classics has been resurrected from the dead once more. The last time the film got a reboot was in 1999, and it starred Brendan Fraser. Now The Mummy has returned and it certainly has some big shoes to fill, especially considering the fact the film is supposed to kick-start Universal’s new Dark Universe.

Directed by Alex Kurtzman and starring Tom Cruise, The Mummy is very promising at first. Tom plays Nick Morton, a military soldier operating in Iraq who has an eye for expensive artifacts. His partner in crime is the very funny Chris Vail (Jake Johnson). We are first introduced to the duo while they are in the middle of the desert.

Nick has a ridiculous plan to find treasure while Chris is skeptical that they will be able to pull it off. Once their cover has been blown, Chris decides to call in an air strike on the whole village and clears out the opposition. The air strike also uncovers a massive tomb from ancient Egypt.

That’s when Jenny (Annabelle Wallis) comes into the picture. She is an archaeologist in the form of an Indiana Jones-type of character. She quickly explains that the tomb is from Egypt, and demands to get access right away. Nick and Chris are ordered to help her out, but when they approach the tomb they disregard the many warnings and hints to not mess around. Once they board a plane with the tomb, things take a turn for the worse as Ahmanet, who was embalmed in the tomb, escapes and brings down the plane. She then embarks on a journey to search for Nick, who has been cursed to become the god of evil. Can Nick escape his fate and survive?

Russell Crowe‘s character, a modern day Dr. Henry Jekyll, is introduced as a key to the new cinematic universe and will be included in future projects. Henry Jekyll is the mastermind behind Prodigium, a laboratory inside a museum located in England. Prodigium’s goal as an organization is to research monsters and fight against evil.

I think Ahmanet (Sofia Boutella) was the clear standout in the movie, and her portrayal of the Mummy stopped the film from unraveling into a disaster. With an unstoppable urge for power, and a mysterious creepy appeal, it’s clear her character has the strongest personality in the film. While we don’t really get too much information surrounding other characters like Nick and Chris, Ahmanet gets a more in-depth backstory. This is a good thing because although Tom is branded as the star of the movie, the film is essentially about a monster, and it’s important to establish that character’s appeal.

Tom Cruise didn’t appear to be out of place at all, making the film feel like one of his signature action flicks. His character and Jenny spent most of the their time fighting off Ahmanet. From plane crashes to wild chases through the wilderness, the movie is definitely thrilling and keeps you on the edge of your seat. Although this is a horror flick, I do wish they incorporated more action scenes.

That being said, if you’re a fan of The Mummy, or even if you just enjoy monster flicks in general, then I recommend that you check this movie out. The film has several similarities to the original 1932 version, which adds an unusual narrative to the story that is refreshing to see.

If you have seen this movie, would you like to write your own review? Click here to let us know your thoughts on this film! ~Brenden Zerihun

---

---

1. Snepts • June 9, 2017 @ 4:38 PM

   Should have called it MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: CRUISING WITH THE MUMMY.

2. Penguin • June 10, 2017 @ 1:01 AM

   Saw this movie today. Honestly, wouldn’t waste the money seeing it ever again. Not worth losing good money on this one.

3. Laurie • June 10, 2017 @ 9:04 PM

   That’s what I have been hearing.. too bad it was going to be my next movie I’ll go see It Comes at Night or Meagan Levey instead

---

---