The 1999 film, The Mummy, was written and directed by Stephen Sommers, who is also known for directing 1994’s The Jungle Book. Although the movie received high praise when it came out (especially compared to the most recent 2017 remake, which saw awful reviews), The Mummy has not aged well.
The Mummy from 1999 starts off in ancient Thebes with a high priest called Imhotep who betrays his Pharaoh, killing him and suffering a horrible death for offending the gods. Jumping to the 1920s, Rick O’Connell (Brendan Fraser) teams up with love interest Evelyn Carnahan (Rachel Weisz) to save the world from eternal doom when Imhotep is accidentally reawakened during their search for ancient Egyptian artifacts.
The Mummy is overdone. The ear-splitting shrieks and explosions are way too excessive, and the forced comedy really gets to you. I found myself cringing where I should have been laughing.
Brendan Fraser is an actor that everyone can relate to, and I don’t mean that in a good way. He demonstrates that anyone can do his job, which should not be true. He is a good example of the goofy, average man, but his fame in the film industry doesn’t feel justified. Although the ability for audiences to relate to him might be good, it isn’t exciting in this particular film. The Mummy is supposed to be thrilling, but because of Fraser and the scriptwriting, we get forced comedy that doesn’t quite fit.
The stale romance in the film is another area where the movie falls short. We have this great female character who is intelligent and capable, but when she first meets Rick it’s like an instant yearning ignites in her. She cannot get him off her mind, and she falls into the typical female role of a damsel in distress when she gets captured by Imhotep.
What The Mummy does do well is represent a value from the ‘90s: how an average guy, like Rick, can achieve the “American Dream.” He starts off with nothing, sentenced to death, but by the end of the film, he ends up with everything. He saves the world, and gets the treasure and the girl. That kind of storyline has an appeal. Many people today still strive for the American Dream because it means there can be equal opportunity for all. If ordinary people can become extraordinary, then the American Dream is possible to achieve.
Overall, The Mummy suffers from a lot of flaws but it redeems itself with the incorporation of the ’90s value of the American Dream and the special effects that still decently hold up today. The only issue is that when they start start raining down from the plagues that are unleashed by Imhotep, it feels as though it is attempting to distract the audience from utter boredom. The film does get more exciting, but at this point, it doesn’t really matter, your brain has already become mummified.
