Last summer’s abysmal The Mummy Returns introduced audiences to the character of the Scorpion King. In that film, he was a villain. Not really a willing villain, but a villain nonetheless. One of my main problems with that earlier film was that the Scorpion King wasn’t given much screen time. Now, one year later, that problem has been rectified.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson plays Mathayus, an Arkadian assassin. He is hired to kill a sorceress employed by Memnon (Steven Brand), a ruthless warlord who threatens to eradicate all of the free tribes in Egypt. The source of his power is the sorceress Cassandra (Kelly Hu,) who foresees Memnon’s victories and gives his soldiers the confidence they need to fight valiantly. When Mathayus is betrayed and the assassination plot foiled, he and the sorceress become unlikely allies in the battle to overthrow Memnon and free Egypt from his rule.
This movie is a prequel to The Mummy Returns, taking place thousands of years earlier, although there are no real connections between the films other than Mathayus. The future Scorpion King is still a hero and a do-gooder here.
Some have compared The Rock’s role to the first of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s action roles in Conan the Barbarian. While The Rock does wield a mean sword, this film isn’t as heavy-handed as that early 80s film. The Rock does seem like an “Arnold Lite” — cracking one-liners as he cracks some heads — but it somehow seems less corny with him doing it instead of Schwarzenegger. Maybe it’s the lack of an Austrian accent. The Scorpion King doesn’t take itself seriously at all and that makes it much more enjoyable. If it were played straight, it would be tedious and unintentionally laughable. Director Chuck Russell ought to know what makes Schwarzenegger tick. He directed him in Eraser, one of Arnie’s last big films.
This is not a cerebral film by any means. The characters are all paper-thin, the action is fairly predictable and the acting is just barely adequate. Still, The Scorpion King manages to be entertaining and fun thanks to the collection of personalities on-screen. The Rock definitely has screen presence and charisma. He’s not going to challenge Denzel Washington for any roles, but he’s action-film good. Steven Brand, who’s mainly been in TV roles, makes a decent, slimy villain. Michael Clarke Duncan (The Green Mile) plays up his role as a Nubian Warrior as much as he can. Kelly Hu, who’s previous claims to fame have been Surf Ninjas and Nash Bridges, serves up more eye candy than acting prowess, but, somehow, that’s okay. Maybe it’s the clever ideas the wardrobe people had to come up with to keep her from showing too much skin, but I didn’t mind her too much.
Overall, The Scorpion King isn’t going to win any awards for originality, acting, special effects or, well, anything, but it still manages to be entertaining in a summer movie kind of way. Since that’s what it is, it’s hard to fault it for delivering what it’s supposed to: a good dumb fun night at the movies.
3.0 out of 5.0 stars
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