Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11389 in DVD
• Released on: 2006-06-05
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Formats: PAL, Special Edition, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 120 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
If you're expecting bandaged-wrapped corpses and a lurching Boris Karloff-type villain, then you've come to the wrong movie. But if outrageous effects, a hunky hero, and some hearty laughs are what you're looking for, the 1999 version of The Mummy is spectacularly good fun. Yes, the critics called it "hokey," "cheesy," and "pallid." Well, the critics are unjust. Granted, the plot tends to stray, the acting is a bit of a stretch, and the characters occasionally slip into cliché, but who cares? When that action gets going, hold tight--those two hours just fly by.

The premise of the movie isn't that far off from the original. Egyptologist and general mess Evelyn (Rachel Weisz) discovers a map to the lost city of Hamunaptra, and so she hires rogue Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) to lead her there. Once there, Evelyn accidentally unlocks the tomb of Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo), a man who had been buried alive a couple of millennia ago with flesh-eating bugs as punishment for sleeping with the pharaoh's girlfriend. The ancient mummy is revived, and he is determined to bring his old love back to life, which of course means much mayhem (including the unleashing of the 10 plagues) and human sacrifice. Despite the rather gory premise, this movie is fairly tame in terms of violence; most of the magic and surprise come from the special effects, which are glorious to watch, although Imhotep, before being fully reconstituted, is, as one explorer puts it, rather "juicy." Keep in mind this film is as much comedy as it is adventure--those looking for a straightforward horror pic will be disappointed. But for those who want good old-fashioned eye-candy kind of fun, The Mummy ranks as one of choicest flicks of 1999. --Jenny Brown

Special Features
English
Region 2

Synopsis
In the 1920s, a group of archaeologists led by adventurer Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) discovers the mummified body of Imhotep, an Egyptian priest who was cursed for falling in love with the Pharoah's mistress. When they accidentally resurrect him, the battle for survival begins, as the mummy begins to use his powers to reclaim his long-lost love. Director Stephen Sommers updates this classic Universal monster for the 1990s, using a dazzling array of computer-generated special effects. Fun performances from Fraser and Rachel Weisz add to the tongue-in-cheek Saturday matinee appeal.

Customer Reviews

Mummy AND Mummy returns review.
When i bought the Mummy Returns on VHS it was without seeing it, i had really enjoyed the Mummy and thought this would be a sound buy, and at the time (some seven years ago) i thought it was after seeing it. But 7 years later looking back on both the Mummy and its sequel i realize that both this films, more so the second one are rather limited. Its not that i didn't enjoy them or felt the effects were poor, but they don't really give you anything more than a decent enough adventure story which really becomes formulaic in film 2. I think The Mummy had enough fun, good acting a was a good enough watch for 2 hours, despite rolling around in its own humorous easy-going story, but hey that was very watchable and there was hardly a dull moment in that movie which in short delivered what it promised and did its job as a fun filled summer blockbuster. But number two never really enters new territory, you have a organized group of bad guys who want to resurrect the mummy from film one to "take down" the new villain, the scorpion king(which allows "The Rock" a glorified cameo at the start of the movie).

The heroes from film one are all back with one new slightly indifferent addition Alex the O'Connell's son who manages to avoid being too annoying despite taking any real seriousness the film had to offer away. The acting for the most part is good with the regular gags,one-liners and more of the same action from film 1. Whether The Mummy returns is a rehash is up for debate but generally quite a bit is recycled from its predecessor namely the action sequences such as the sandstorm from film one, this time with water, various nods to gags in film one such as dialog, the bookcase scene but i suppose this film has enough new material despite not seeming all that original. The action scenes are fun namely a bus chase involving mummies at the start and the most improbable chase through the jungle where Brendan Frazer outruns the sun(yes i did say that). I think another reviewer on this page(Rp Jones) hit the nail on the head when they said the novelty of the first movie had worn off.

The Mummy was(for me at least) a 20's style adventure in the desert with a arsenal of special effects, good actors and a decent premise that featured all this action in pyramids and exciting scenes of that nature and thats what i at least found so appealing about it after looking back over it. Its sequel doesn't ever seem as interesting despite being watchable and the characters seem a little more detached in the scenes involving CGI than they did in the first one. As a massive Indiana Jones fan i feel obligated to say that these film s do not come anywhere remotely close to that Trilogy but to be fair we don't generally get a Raiders movie very often so it doesn't infringe on these movies too much, just don't go in expecting to see Raiders of the lost Ark/Temple/Last Crusade quality in these movies is all i mean.

Overall the two Mummy movies do alright, i enjoyed film one even if it it was a bit silly and could have afforded to be a bit more sinister it was still entertaining. The Mummy returns however didn't do it for me in the ways the first movie did, it didn't manage to pull off the humor and occasionally serious aspects of the first nor was the story as interesting, while film one was a part loves story/adventure/apocalyptic , Returns revolved around a quest for immortality and i suppose the family dynamic it introduced. Finally, The Mummy did enough a good blockbuster, Mummy returns was OKAY both do just enough to pass. I have posted this for both The Mummy movies pages because this is an opinion of both as opposed to just one of them.

Good visual effects, but ...
A few minutes into this I realised that it was more of a kids film. Perhaps I was expecting something at least a little bit more sinister and gripping, but that certainly wasn't the case.

This movie does have great visual effects but it seems to be rather aimed at juveniles (13 or under?) which is a big surprise considering that it's officially rated 15.

Two-thirds of the way through I ended up slightly speeding up the DVD and reading it from the subtitles. If I had kids I would maybe sit them in front of it while I did something else like mowing the lawn.

Really enjoyed this film
Bit disappointed to see some very negative reviews of this film but each to their own. We don't all have to agree. I should stress I haven't seen the original Mummy so I'm not comparing the two.

I did enjoy this film though. Right from the start, I found the plot interesting and eye catching. The recreations of ancient Egypt are beautiful. However it's not the sets (or even the outstanding special effects) that do it for me in this film, it's the characters.

It's difficult to fit The Mummy into one genre. You have historical information (may not always be totally accurate but then neither was Braveheart), you have action, you have extremely likable characters and strangely, you have comedy.

Acting, this film is quite good in my opinion. Rachel Weisz and John Hannah are both accomplished actors and seem to enjoy their parts (Hannah is particularly good as the cowardly yet lovable Jonathan). Arnold Vosloo (Ihmotep) doesn't do much speaking as the Mummy but nevertheless I did enjoy his portrayal of the character. Brendan Fraser is ok in this role. He's definately been hired for the chiselled good looks more than his acting though. He plays the rugged Rick O'Connell who falls in love with Weisz's character Evelyn as well as being the man to tackle Ihmotep face to face.

The characters I think is what makes this film so enjoyable. They seem to have a genuine rapport with each other and it shows on screen. I can't pick a favourite character but each have their little quirks that made me laugh out loud. What is also interesting is that all the characters are likelble, even Ihmotep. However, I didn't find Ihmotep to be 'bad', more tragic.

Although explained in a bit more detail in the Mummy Returns, Ihmotep operates through love and his desire to resurrect his one love. He doesn't operate through a desire to control the world or to inflict death on people (although he has to kill to regenerate, the curse makes him do this). In this sense, Ihmotep is in a way a bit of a sad, controlled character. Most of the time he is operating due to a curse or in the second film, only resurected to help the plan of another.

I think the light heartedness of this film deserves a mention because it's unexpected and for me, it makes the Mummy that little bit more special. if you decide to get this film, or have seen it, you'll know the light hearted bits I mean. One of favourite parts were the disliked jailer on the burning boat asking O'Connell "WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?!" to which O'Connel replies 'Wait here...I'll go get help!' he then jups overboard leaving the man on the sinking boat to work out for himself what he should do in those circumstances.

Benny, the back stabbing (supposed) friend of Rick also deserves a special mention. The poor man is on the receiving end of O'Connel's beatings, attempted drownings and well as being obliged to enter into Ihmotep's service. All of this however, is done with such a gentle and light hearted attitude that there isn't really much that's unpleasant about Benny (Probably meant to be the least likable of all the characters).

The effects in this film, I don't think anyone can deny, are outstanding and cutting edge for the time. The Egypt recreations are dazzling but the sand effects with Ihmoteph's face are fantasic.

All in all, this film may not be perfect but it's still enjoyable and as I've said, doesn't take itself too seriously. The effects alone make this film worth at least a little bit of your time. While this film isn't meant to test you, or give you a hugely action packed ending, it's still more than watchable and frequently, amusing.

Give it a go and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.