Mummy-Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2-Disc Deluxe Edition) (2008)

"...succeeds largely through sheer excess: It's doubtful that any idea was thrown out for being too implausible.  Nathan Rabin, The Onion A.V. Club
"Now why did I like this movie? It was just plain dumb fun, is why. It is absurd and preposterous, and proud of it.  Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
"...exotic locations, epic cinematography, and much spectacular crash and bang...  Ty Burr, Boston Globe

Editor's Note Filled with spectacular action and sharp banter, THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR finds the dashing Rick and Evelyn O'Connell (Brendan Fraser and Maria Bello, who took over for Rachel Weisz) called upon for another world-saving adventure. The film opens in 50 B.C., when the ruthless Dragon Emperor (Jet Li) seeks to conquer one last enemy, death, and become an immortal ruler. But when the Emperor betrays an obliging sorceress (Michelle Yeoh), he and his army are cursed to spend an eternity in statuesque limbo. Fast forward to 1946, when Rick and Evelyn are struggling to adapt to their self-imposed retirement. But the fates have other plans, and soon the O'Connells are crossing paths with their somewhat estranged son, Alex (Luke Ford). While enthusiastically carrying on the family's tomb-raiding traditions, Alex has unwittingly brought the Dragon Emperor back to life. With the world in peril, the O'Connells must overcome their differences to prevent the Dragon Emperor from gaining immortality for himself and his army. Along the way they're joined by a mysterious young woman (Isabella Leong), a wily pilot, and a trio of Abominable Snowmen. Jumping from Shanghai to the Himalayas to the Chinese desert, director Rob Cohen (THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS) takes audiences on a breathless adventure that continues THE MUMMY's love of quick wits, close calls and big battles. The result is a spirited romp that proves evil is no match against a family united.

	Anthony Wong
	Luke Ford
	Maria Bello
	Isabella Leong
	Brendan Fraser
	Michelle Khan
	Jet Li
	John Hannah
	Chris Brigham - Executive Producer
	Simon Duggan - Director of Photography
	James Jacks - Producer
	Miles Millar - Screenwriter
	Bob Ducsay - Producer
	Randy Edelman - Composer
	Sean Daniel - Producer
	Stephen Sommers - Producer
	Alfred Gough - Screenwriter
	Rob Cohen - Director

Reel.com 5 of 10
In the classic movie monster hierarchy, the cloth-clad Mummy really scrapes the bottom of the scare barrel. Aside from his close kinship with the zombie--sadly, this is one Egyptian artifact that avoids the mandatory skin eating--there's really nothing inherently spooky about a reanimated corpse with limited super(natural) powers. This is especially true of the mummy's latest big screen incarnation. In Rob Cohen's horrid The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, the wrapped rascal is literally as menacing as an inert stone statue...A movie that tries this hard is bound to pull a good-time groin muscle or two, and when Sommers was directing the mayhem, one could at least make sense of the stunt work. Here, Cohen completely loses us in quick-cut action, his editing frequently ruining the rhythm of a fight. This is especially true when Li and Yeoh throw down. These amazing martial artists are known for their swordplay and physical grace. Now, the only evidence of said acumen resides in our memories of better Hong Kong movies past. When you long for the days of Arnold Vosloo and the endless machismo of Imhotep, you know something sucks. Oddly enough, at several points throughout the film, a character will take a moment and shriek "I hate mummies." Frankly, for the audience, the feeling is more than mutual. - Bill Gibron

ReelViews 5 of 10
It has been a bad year for Indiana Jones and his knock-offs. In the wake of the lackluster Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, we now have the second sequel to The Mummy, called Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. It is easily the worst of the three adventures starring Brendan Fraser as the Indiana-inspired Rick O'Connell. Like many third movies, this one exists purely to make some money from a familiar franchise. Tomb of the Dragon Emperor feels perfunctory and obligatory and, despite the return of several familiar characters, is more like an afterthought than an organic third piece of a trilogy puzzle...Strangely, for a movie that falls under The Mummy umbrella, there are no mummies to be found. By shifting the action to China, all we're left with are skeletons and zombies (although everyone insists on calling them "mummies"). More often than not, the undead resemble the Three Stooges, a choice that provides occasional moments of low-brow humor that are more funny than Fraser's one-liners. As the villain, Jet Li is considerably less imposing than Arnold Vosloo, a situation that had me hoping for an Imhotep cameo. A lot of Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is like that: inviting comparison to the previous two Mummy movies and not measuring up. Considering that neither of those films can be regarded as more than disposable entertainment, that's not a good thing. - James Berardinelli