7.4 | / 10 |
Users | 4.3 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.3 |
At an archaeological dig in the ancient city of Hamunaptra, an American serving in the French Foreign Legion accidentally awakens a mummy who begins to wreak havoc as he searches for the reincarnation of his long-lost love.
Starring: Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Arnold Vosloo, Kevin J. O'ConnorAction | 100% |
Adventure | 84% |
Fantasy | 52% |
Horror | Insignificant |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.36:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French: DTS 5.1
Spanish: DTS 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Bonus View (PiP)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Know this: this creature is the bringer of death. He will never eat, he will never sleep, he will
never stop.
Perhaps it is only my imagination, but has there been a movie made in the past decade that has
received more home video releases and more air time on television than The Mummy?
Right or wrong, there is no doubt the movie is ingrained in many a movie buff's minds, and for
good
reason. It's a wonderful action/adventure film with plenty of laughs, nonstop action, likable lead
characters, a dastardly villain, exciting special effects, and a love story (two, actually, one of
which is
the foundation of the story) for the ladies in the audience. The Mummy is slowly but
surely
working its way towards cinema classic status, but not in the same category of classics such as
Citizen
Kane, Gone With the Wind, or Bridge on the River Kwai. It's headed for
classic
status among easygoing, fun-loving, adventure-seeking film buffs who recognize The
Mummy as one of the finest popcorn adventures of our time, a movie that is perfectly
blended
with the aforementioned ingredients to satiate many a filmgoer's hunger for lighthearted yet
well-made and respectable adventure.
Brendan Fraser and company insist on a good review for 'The Mummy.'
Universal Studios presents The Mummy on Blu-ray high definition for the first time in a
simply stunning 1080p, 2.35:1 high definition transfer. The studio has certainly done
themselves
proud for this, their debut on the victorious optical disc high definition format, and color me
thrilled
if this is any indication of things to come. The opening, expansive shots of ancient city of
Hamunaptra are bathed in a golden hue. The clarity, detail, and color schemes on
every object in these shots, including the gold paint on faces and the gold-colored and trimmed
furnishings adorning the splendidly constructed palace, are terrific. The cloth in which the film's
villain, Imhotep, is
mummified, looks marvelous: this transfer shows off every fine detail, thread, and fray of the
cloth. While I was blown away by the opening shots of the movie, I was equally impressed by the
vast majority of what was to come. The Mummy remains impressive not only in its
foreground detail, but medium-wide objects and background information is handsomely rendered
as well. Human characters need not be up-close and center-framed to see the remarkable detail
present on them; medium-wide shots of faces show off every pore, facial hair and bead of sweat
with lifelike clarity. Detail in rocks, statues, façades, and even the sand on the desert floor is all
top-flight. Look at the lifelike realism in the textured appearance of Evelyn's hat in
chapter three. The mask worn by Imhotep as he and Beni meet up with one of the
American gold seekers in chapter 11 is just one more example of the nice detail that is present
throughout the
disc. The mask showcases every scratch, dent, nick, and other blemish and adds
a
realistic flair to the image.
The Mummy doesn't just excel at providing deep, realistic detail. Colors are absolutely
fantastic, too. Whites are true and natural, and the film's primary brown, tan, and golden hues
are stunning and rich. Colors never falter, and along with the fine detail, they are this disc's
undeniable strength. Flesh tones appear a bit warm and on the reddish side of the scale, but this
tone fits in with the warm, earthy look of the rest of the movie. Background images aren't
completely sharp, but there is very little softness nevertheless. I did note a few foreground shots
that exhibited some soft edges, but the vast majority of the picture is sharp, clear, well-defined,
and breathtaking. The print exhibits the occasional speckle and blemish, and I did note a bit of
shimmering on tightly-striped objects (Evelyn's scarf as seen in chapter four, for example), but all
in all, it looks
fantastic. Blacks are solid and true throughout, and detail is never lost in the shadows, either.
Look at the nighttime shootout on the boat in
chapter five as an example. A very fine layer of grain is
present over the image, and it adds to a perfectly cinematic, high quality, exciting visual
presentation of The Mummy. Universal has hit this one out of the park. It may not be a
completely perfect transfer, but for a film approaching ten years old, and one that has seen
countless releases over multiple home video formats, this is easily the best I've ever seen the film
look. If The Mummy looks this good, I cannot wait to review Doomsday to
discover how well Universal handles a brand new release.
The Mummy smashes onto Blu-ray with an excellent DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This audio track is a perfect compliment to the pristine video transfer, and it never misses a sonic beat. The film's score is powerful and engaging, even more so thanks to its presentation in a lossless format. Every speaker is utilized, and while the score is firmly entrenched up front, the rear channels are active and carry the soundtrack, too, completing the experience and oftentimes leaving me breathless with its wonder and power. The battle scene early in the movie features excellent dynamics and sound placement. Gunshots ring loud and true, and the chaos of the battle fills every speaker and rattles the subwoofer. More mundane sounds, like the flowing of the water over the side of the boat in chapter four, the slightest bit of audible music in the background as it is played from somewhere inside the boat, and the squeaking and squealing of an animal off to the side is all meticulously placed and adds a realistic atmosphere to the scene. Indeed, atmospherics are generally first-rate throughout the soundtrack. The film's music and action sound effects play in perfect harmony, both presented at the perfect volume one in relation to the other, and as fun and adventurous as the movie is by itself, the music and effects make it all the more entertaining. One of the plagues wrought on Egypt, the attack of the meteors, offers wonderful surround presence and the screaming flight paths and impact explosions flow seamlessly across the soundstage, making the experience both entertaining and all-encompassing. Arguably the movie's most famous scene, Imhotep's sand attack on the airplane in the final act of the film, offers deep, rattling bass, and consistent use of the surrounds, and amongst all the chaos and confusion is a fantastically clear and accurate meshing of various action scene sounds that is never too harsh or undefined. To top things off, dialogue reproduction is perfect throughout. This is an A-grade soundtrack in all regards, and I've never heard The Mummy sound so good.
The Mummy regenerates once again on home video, this time on Blu-ray, and it brings
with it a multitude of supplemental features, headlined by three commentary tracks. Track
number
one features writer/director Stephen Sommers and editor Bob Ducsay. This is an interesting but
ultimately standard commentary track that discusses various aspects of the film, beginning with
the
technical side of the making of the film's various early effects shots and drifting to ideas behind
introducing characters, pointing out various other effects shots, some scenes that needed
re-writes,
and so on. This one is worth listening to if you need some background noise. Track number two
is
a solo performance by actor Brendan Fraser. Fraser generally falls into the trap of discussing the
action on-screen (or laughing at it, when the situation calls for laughter). Plagued by random
moments of dead air, many none-too-insightful comments, and generally inconsequential
anecdotes, this track is only for most die hard of Fraser or The Mummy fans. The third
and final track features actors Oded Fehr, Kevin J. O'Connor, and Arnold Vosloo. This is a much
more lively and entertaining track, and I can only imagine that adding Fraser to this mix rather
than allowing him to run solo may have made more sense, but this track is probably the best of
the three. Vosloo in particular shares some interesting information into his character, various
stories from the set, and other interesting anecdotes. If you can only listen to one track, I'd
recommend this one.
A five-part feature, Visual and Special Effects Formation (480p), is next. Viewers can go
further in-depth into the various stages of the creation of some of the locales and effects
sequences seen in the film, accompanied by audio commentary. City of Thebes,
Scarab Burial, Serious Trouble, Imhotep Eats Scarab, and Rick
Rescues Evelyn are all broken down into four different stages of completion: "Plate
Photography," "Visual Effects Elements," "Composited Shot," and "Final Feature Sequence."
An Army to Rule the World, Part 1 (480p, 4:02) is a short feature that examines the use
of extensive special effects seen in the film, as well as homages and throwbacks to the original
1932 version of The Mummy. Unraveling the Legacy of 'The Mummy' (480p,
8:07) looks at the history of the classic Universal horror pictures of old, with an expected
emphasis on 1932's The Mummy, featuring interview clips with Stephen Sommers,
make-up effects artist Nick Dudman, and others as they look at the place of both The
Mummy and The Mummy Returns in Universal horror lore. Building a Better
Mummy (480p,
49:55) is an exhaustive examination into the film's CGI-laden villain that examines everything
from ensuring the character moves like a humanoid to the various layers of computer animation
that show a CGI character being chopped in half, for example. Any viewers with a thirst for
knowledge into the world of computer-generated effects will find themselves enthralled by this
feature.
A Storyboard to Final Film Comparison (480p), a feature that allows viewers to see
several
complete scenes played against the original storyboard, is next. Scenes included are as follows:
Anubis Chamber, Desert Sandstorm, The Sahara, Final Fight,
Hangman's Noose, Scarab Run, and Trouble in Cairo. Three deleted
scenes (480p, 2:21), a photograph montage (480p, 4:18), and a short promotional piece for the
new film, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor are included. The Mummy
also features Universal's excellent U-Control system. When activated (a tutorial is available in a
sub-menu), various behind-the-scenes footage, interviews, and more will appear in a
picture-in-picture box in the lower right hand corner of your screen. Effectively, this is a standard
extra implemented as an advanced feature. The integration into the film works perfectly, and the
information
contained therein is fantastic.
The Mummy is a pure adventure delight, replete with the unwilling but handsome, wisecracking, and capable hero, the smart damsel-in-distress, a few goofy sidekicks, and a fearsome, seemingly unstoppable enemy. What more could a movie fan want? This Blu-ray, of course. Universal's debut disc is a stunner, and puts to shame many discs released by studios with much more experience under their belts. Fans couldn't have asked for much more than this package, except, maybe, for high-definition extras. Nevertheless, with first-rate video and audio qualities and enough supplements to fill a sarcophagus, fans of the The Mummy and Blu-ray fans everywhere will want to add this disc to their collections. Welcome aboard, Universal. Keep up the terrific work! Your lead-off Blu-ray disc is highly recommended!
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