The Mummy Review

     Universal has officially kicked off their Dark Universe of monsters and gods with The Mummy. Directed by Alex Kurtzman with leading man, Tom Cruise, Universal hopes to launch their newest shared universe off to a good start. When this universe was initially announced many were hesitant because it seemed like a desperate attempt by the studio to get into the shared universe craze. However when they stared to sign grade A talent for their projects such as Russell Crowe, Tom Cruise, Javier Bardem, and many others, I was very interested to see where this universe goes. Unfortunately, The Mummy is not only a dull kickoff with under utilized characters but a very forgettable story.

     When Nick Morton (Tom Cruise) accidentally awakens an ancient, evil princess known as the Ahmanet (Sofia Boutella), he will soon realize that his world is not only in danger but there is a larger world of monsters at hand. With the help of Dr. Jekyll (Russell Crowe), Morton will have to find a way to take down this monster.
     So this movie is not necessarily terrible. I do not believe audiences will leave the theater thinking, "Man, that was so cringe worthy." The story is just incredibly forgetful. Kurtzman tries to make Morton this slick, cunning character much like Nathan Drake in the Uncharted games. Unfortunately though audiences will ultimately end up disliking this character. He's a jerk and it's really difficult to get on board with his actions. The character development in this movie is very much under utilized. The relationship between Morton and colleague Jenny Halsey (Annabelle Wallis) is all over the place and poorly written.

     One aspect the script does get right with character development is the origin of Ahmanet. Sofia Boutella is really solid in the role and genuinely creepy. There are great horror elements in this movie. At times it feels like a prologued episode of The Walking Dead and delivers in that area. Unfortunately, the tone is all over the place. The jokes in this movie fall very flat and the action pieces are incredibly average.
     Again this is not the worst movie of the year but will probably be the most forgettable. This is a kick off for a new, shared universe and Universal it seems as though they've not quite landed on the tone they want to go with. This isn't the summer blockbuster you have to rush out to see.

Rating: 4.0 out of 10