Yes, let’s just ignore that whole part in the middle where she was being hunted by a mummy who tried to use her body as a vessel for his dead lover.
I’ve seen a handful of comments like this and I just wanted to address it because I think it’s worth talking about. I realise my summation of the film is flippant; it was an attempt at irony because obviously the movie is full of gruesome death and dismemberment, and I fully agree that Evie is terrorized. But that’s not what the film is about. It’s not about Evie the human sacrifice – that’s something that happens to her but it isn’t who she is.
The point is, the whole plot of The Mummy literally could not happen without Evie pursuing the thing that she loves.
They go out to Hamunaptra because Evie is passionate about knowledge and discovery, and when they get there she is in her element – she is loving every minute of it and she is proud of herself and she is absolutely going to kiss Mr O’Connell. But once that thirst for knowledge and discovery inadvertantly raises Imhotep, and there is literally fire and brimstone raining from the sky, and everyone else is running and hiding, she never ever once despairs. She accepts responsibility, she owns her mistake and she refuses to believe there is nothing to be done. She follows her passions again and decides that more knowledge and more discovery is what’s required. And she’s right. She finds the answer and she takes triumphant pleasure in proving to herself that she is a greater scholar than the ones at Bembridge, the ones who have repeatedly found her lacking.
Do you realise how rare it is for a female character’s intellectual pursuit to be the thing that kicks off the action and the thing that saves the day, AND a source of ultimate joy in her life?
When Imhotep comes for her she goes without a fight, to save her companions’ lives, because she knows that’s the best chance they have. When Rick and Jonathan and Ardeth come to save her she is pivotal in her own rescue. She is never a Damsel, she is always part of the team.
And then Evie SAVES THE WORLD. She saves the world by doing the thing that she loves and is good at. She saves the world, she gets the guy, and they ride off into the sunset with some treasure. And really, that’s a pretty good end to a day.
Also, she is one of the very, very few cool librarians in fiction. And she is proud of that.
it is the most wonderfully made, historically inaccurate, giddily fun, perfectly paced, goofy horror movie romance novel bullshit bonanza that has ever blessed the silver screen.
i mean it is just so beautifully full of every genre without being overwhelming. we’ve got: comedy, action, suspense, horror, romance, adventure, ancient aesthetics, and it’s a period piece. all perfectly balanced and blended into one movie.
and the characters are so LIT
we got our main babe, evelyn “motherfucking” carnahan, a super-klutz librarian, total history nerd, and certified badass/damsel in distress. she raises the dead on accident, because she cannot resist books, and has the guts to put that motherfucker back where he came from and literally saves the world. evie’s greatest hits:
“what is a place like me, doing in a girl like this?!”
*after totally destroying the library* “i’ve just made a bit of a mess in the library.”
“no harm ever came from reading a book.”
evelyn:*upon opening the tomb* “i’ve dreamt about this since i was a little girl.” rick: “you dream about dead guys?”
“oops.”
then we’ve got rick“brendan fraser” o’connell, your not-so-typical battle hardened gun slinger with a heart of gold. he seems filthy, rude, and a complete scoundrel at first, but then he turns into a literal puppy, with massive heart eyes, that worships the ground evie walks on. rick’s greatest hits:
*screams at mummy*
*screams at sand*
*screams at things that are illogical to scream at*
*screams*
next is our Comedic Relief Character™, jonathan carnahan, who also rises above his trope. he’s there for the laugh sure, but is never useless. he actively helps to move the plot along and isn’t just there. he also is the farthest thing from brainless and annoying. jonathan’s greatest hits:
evelyn: “have you no respect for the dead?” jonathan: “of course i do, but sometimes i’d rather like to join them.” same.
oh and that time he was like “IMHOTEP” and saved his own ass like that was so smooth, y’all know what i’m talking about right??
then there is ardeth BAE. he is the audience rolling his eyes because *sighs* white people. he’s tired of these motherfucking mummies in this motherfucking desert. literally prettier than everyone. (he has a much bigger role in the mummy returns, but is still so fab here)
and of course THE MUMMY. imhotep. actual emo. literally carved some poetry into the back of his sarcophagus when he was buried alive with flesh eating bugs, because he is that Extra™. just wants to bring his girlfriend back to life so he can make out with her without it being treason.
and all the side characters are also gr8.
now i wanna take a moment to talk about the romance. because it is so BEAUTIFUL. like usually in action movies it’s macho man undermines girl and they bone. not here. no time for that shit.
rick and evie have such a great relationship based on mutual respect and affection. they both cater to each other’s strengths and cover each other’s weaknesses. they are the literally definition of: “those two. in a fight, they’re lethal. around each other, they melt”
what else, i could literally talk about this movie all day.
the special effects have held up pretty well. the music score is GORGEOUS. the costumes are amazing. the makeup, especially for anck su namun, OH WOW. the george of the jungle era brendan fraser sign me the fuck up. rachel weisz.
so many good things.
it’s just great.
#i secretly rate every action movie from 0 to the mummy
it’s a beautiful mess of a movie that can be enjoyed by people of all ages and transcends time and posterity as the alpha mummy movie, and to those who disagree i beseech you:
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