The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

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The gang are back (sans recent Oscar winner Rachel Weisz) for another installment of the Indiana Jones-inspired Mummy franchise. While that sequel was an unequivocal disappointment, however, this is a second bash at some old-fashioned B-movie fun. Once again, Brendan Fraser is our lead, Rick O'Connell, although he's handed over some of the swashbuckling duties to his on-screen offspring Alex - who looks like Sean Astin, after hitting Curves hard for a few sessions. You won't even begin to buy him as Fraser's son - as Fraser looks younger than him, and they bear no physical similarities whatsoever. The plot sees another Mummy break loose - this time, Jet Li's wrong sort emperor Han - who then goes on a rampage through 1940s China. Much CGI-aided scrapping and awful English accents ensue, but very little excitement. New franchise helmer Rob Cohen is known for his love of all things oriental, but his film never once feels like a love letter to the Far East. Sure, he delivers mildly on the action front; but that should really be mandatory on all films with budgets over $100 million. Maria Bello replaces Weisz and is the main culprit when it comes to the 'bad accent' scenario, while Spiderman 2 scripters Gough and Millar don't really give us anything new, other than a baddie with the personality of a headmistress at the wrong time of the month. Li's obvious abilities are wasted here, as with the exception of a handful of scenes, he's mostly played badly by a CGI character. John Hannah is supposed to be the comic relief, but his inclusion feels like an afterthought and his one-liners lack wit. The main gripe here, though, is the hackneyed attempt to start another franchise with a (slightly) younger model. Fraser, for the most part, has been the best thing about these films, and Ford doesn't have an ounce of his charisma. Easily the worst film of the franchise, which really is saying something.