Quick Thoughts on 'The Mummy' 2017 (Spoilers Ahead)
- Jun 19, 2017
- 4 min read
A little less than two weeks ago, The Mummy reboot starring Tom Cruise, unleashed into theaters. With the film being offered as a reboot/start to Universal's Dark Universe, I was very excited to buy my ticket and sit down in the theater to see what the film had to offer. To sum up how I felt leaving the movie theater that night, it was meh. Here's a quick breakdown of what I enjoyed and what I disliked about the Tom Cruise-led reboot.
What I Enjoyed
1. A Female Mummy
We'll start off with what I enjoyed about the film. The number one thing that stood out to me the most is the fact that we finally have a FEMALE Mummy. With Wonder Woman still dominating the box office, 2017 makes it a perfect year for female-led films and, in this case, a female-led villain.
2. Russell Crowe as Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde
Russell Crowe has always been an A-class actor for me. I genuinely enjoy seeing this man when he pops up in films, regardless of the role. In this case, Crowe plays Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde, which happens to be one of my favorite stories, so this seemed like a blessing. I've seen various reviews all across the web of people disliking Russell Crowe as Jekyll/Hyde. To all who disliked his role in the film, ask yourself this: how can you judge such a minimal role? Similar to how certain folks negatively judged Jared Leto as The Joker when the man was barely in Suicide Squad's final cut. I'm choosing to give Crowe a chance to establish himself, whether it be in small doses across multiple films in the Dark Universe or his own solo flick. The only thing I will pick at is his Hyde form. I wasn't convinced that he was truly a different man/monster, so hopefully that changes as we move along.
3. Easter Eggs
Who doesn't love Easter eggs? From the Marvel Cinematic Universe to the DC Extended Universe, to Legendary Picture's MonsterVerse and now Universal's Dark Universe, the Easter eggs are endless. It's always fun spotting them and gives me the spark of excitement in what's to come next in the film's universe. For those who may not know, a few teases were placed in The Mummy, specifically, if not only, in the Prodigium sequences. Off the top of my head, I remember a vampire skull (pictured above), possibly a reference to Dracula, the unmistakable hand of The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Book of the Dead from Brendan Fraser's Mummy films (hinting at the films being set in the same continuity?), and possibly Frankenstein's Monsters' skull? I'll have to wait for the DVD to further examine that last one, but the other two are without a doubt there! Let us know if you spotted any other Easter eggs in the film that you'd like to share.
What I Disliked
1. The Forced Humor
There's nothing worse than that cringe-worthy, forced, and overall not funny type of humor. That's exactly what this film had to offer. Not once did I so much as crack a smile during this film. It was reported the other day that Tom Cruise convinced the production of the film to add in more lines for his character. Maybe that wasn't such a bold move. Perhaps there's an extended cut with less non-funny jokes? One can only dream.
2. The Film Doesn't Do Well in Setting Up the Rest of the Universe
Yes, the Easter eggs were there, and yes, they were cool and a nice nod to Universal's other monsters, but it still didn't properly set up the universe the way I hoped it would. Maybe I'm just used to Marvel's approach with post credit scenes, but would it have killed Universal to at least add a set up scene at the end of the film without it being after the credits? As confirmed recently, Bride of Frankenstein will be the next film in the Dark Universe, set to be released February 15, 2019. Walking into the theater knowing this, I would have loved to have seen a scene setting that film into motion. Maybe Dr. Frankenstein himself could have emerged, an old newspaper article about a mad scientist's monster running around (depending on if Frankenstein will be set in modern day or not), or even The Bride being revealed to be residing in the walls of Prodigium would have been great. I just thought the film could have done better explaining to the wider audience who may not know of the growing Dark Universe, that a cinematic universe was indeed unfolding before their eyes.
2. Dracula Untold
This is more of my issue with Universal than it is with The Mummy. In fact, this actually has nothing to do with The Mummy whatsoever. For those for aren't aware, back in 2014, Dracula Untold with Luke Evans as the lead role, was originally supposed to be the blueprint for the Dark Universe. But with the film under-performing critically and financially, Universal decided to scrap the film's ties to the Dark Universe and instead, as you know, use The Mummy as the stepping stone. To this day, despite what critics believe, I still enjoyed this film and definitely enjoyed it way more than I did The Mummy. As argued above, I wish The Mummy properly set up the Dark Universe better, but with Dracula Untold, the ending perfectly set up the universe. Dracula is seen in modern day after the film's main events, pursuing the reincarnation of his wife, with the demon-vampire whom he received his powers from, also being present, following Dracula. With the final words of the film being "let the games begin", setting the Dark Universe on it's path. This ending worked for me more than The Mummy's seemingly rushed ending.
Side Note
Phantom of the Opera and The Hunchback of Notre Dame reboots were recently added to the Dark Universe line-up! Phantom of the Opera is without a doubt one of my favorite musicals/opera works and I'm a huge fan of the 2004 film. Hunchback will no doubt be a money-grabbing film seeing as most people categorize the story with the Disney film. Regardless of it being Universal or Disney, I'm excited to see this film come back to life on the big screen.
What did you guys think of The Mummy? Was it a fitting beginning for the Dark Universe or should Universal once again backtrack to square one? And what future Dark Universe properties are you looking forward to? Let us know your thoughts!
All photos, characters and films in this article are owned by Universal.
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