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The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

(2008, Rated PG-13, Action/adventure, Starring Maria Bello, Brendan Fraser, Jet Li)
  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 12, age appropriate for kids over 14; suggested age 12.
  • Is it any good?

    2.0
  • Common Sense says

    Violent action sequel should've stayed buried.

Why We Rated This iffy for Ages 12–14

What to watch out for

  • Messages:

    The emperor is obsessed with world domination. Alex lies to his parents about attending college. Characters betray each other. Rick jokingly calls two Chinese people "Ying" and "Yang." The O'Connells act like their lives are only bearable when they're involved in some dangerous adventure.
  • Violence:

    Lots of action violence and implied gore: faces melt, a man is about to be quartered, several shots of near decapitations, limbs are dismembered, bodies are stabbed and shot. Huge Yetis appear as scary CGI panther-like creatures. There are hordes of skeletal warriors (a la Pirates of the Caribbean).
  • Sex:

    Evie appears in a nightgown to seduce her husband. Rick makes a joke about "inspiring" his wife in the bedroom. Two or three passionate kisses. A couple seems about to make love, but they're clothed.
  • Language:

    Words include "bastard," "ass," and "rot in hell."
  • Consumerism:

    Not an issue.
  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    Clubgoers drink champagne and cocktails; a character swigs straight from a liquor bottle; a couple has wine for dinner.
 

What Parents Need to Know

About The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

Parents need to know that this third installment in The Mummy series has plenty of action violence, which may be a big draw for kids. Only a few of scenes are actually gory -- faces melting off, men about to be decapitated or dismembered -- but most of the battle scenes involve explosions, sword fights, guns, and hand-to-hand combat. Be prepared for the vast hordes of skeleton warriors; they could be quite scary for younger viewers. There's relatively little swearing, although hero Rick does refer to two Chinese soldiers as "Ying" and "Yang." In addition to a few kisses, a woman appears in a long negligee, and two characters appear about to make love (passionate kissing lying down).

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Families Can Talk About

  • Families can talk about whether sequels are generally as good as the originals. Can you think of any that are? Does it matter when, as in this case, one of the main actors doesn't come back? Also, the bulk of the film is set in China: How is Chinese culture represented? How does that depiction relate to the time period in which the movie takes place? Did you learn anything about Chinese culture?

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Most Recent Reviews

  1. I rate this title on for age 8 and give it 5.0
    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages

    perfect for kids and teens

    i think it is good for kids and teens

  2. I rate this title iffy for age 12 and give it 4.0
    My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence

    Action-Packed, Funny, and Completely Enjoyable!

    The only things keeping THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRANGON EMPORER from being a 5-star movie are the length of a couple sequences that run too long and a couple of parts that are just too implausible. Other than that, it is an awesome film. Now, I haven't seen the second MUMMY film (just this and the first), but I can say that this is probably the best in the franchise. A witty script, perfectly timed action, impeccable humor and acting, and pervasive edge-of-your seat suspense make this film perfectly enjoyable. However, it is very violent. The violence is almost constant, and, while most of it isn't graphic, some of it it. People disintegrate into mud while burning alive, a man explodes in a pool of blood while melting, and people and mummies alike are shot, stabbed, and blown to high heaven. Language is frequent but mild: "a*s", "d**n", "h*ll", and "SOB". There are a few playful, harmless sexual innuendos between a husband and wife.

  3. Kid Reviewer Age 12
    Lives in West Virginia
    I rate this title iffy for age 10 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence
    • Inappropriate language
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use

    Good but its a little on the gory side with a mans face burnig until he looks like freddy krueger, some language though no f-word debutes and some drinking.

  4. Teen Reviewer Age 17
    Lives in Utah
    I rate this title on for age 17 and give it 3.0
    My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence
    • Inappropriate sexual content
    • Inappropriate language
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use
    • Negative message

  5. Teen Reviewer Age 13
    Lives in Hawaii
    I rate this title iffy for age 13 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence
    • Inappropriate language
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use

    gory but good

    Great movies gory a bit drinking and bad language but a good movie

  6. Adult Reviewer
    Lives in California
    I rate this title iffy for age 13 and give it 1.0

    Not good!!

    I think the first mistake they made was recasting the leading female. If for some reason the actress/actor who carried the roll in the first two movies can't or won't come back for a third....get rid of that character and introduce a new one. Death, divorce, whatever, but don't recast. We viewers aren't that dumb. Mind you, the actress is a great actress, so it's not her fault. Second, um, he wasn't even a mummy. Ok, it had it's violence, but if you saw the first two, it wouldn't be a surprise. Most of the special effects were very well done and always Jet Li is fantastic.

  7. Teen Reviewer Age 14
    Lives in Michigan
    I rate this title on for age 13 and give it 3.0

    Thankfuly, it's much beter than the second

    This is a much better movie than the second one, has some isues though: 1. violence including guns, swords, and hand to hand combat, some blood, chacters killed. 2. sexual inuendo and kissing 3. LAnguage includes: Ba--ard, son of a B--ch, and H--l 4. drinking So this is a much better movie than the second one, (witch if you saw may god have mercy on your soul) o.k for teens

  8. Kid Reviewer Age 11
    Lives in Maryland
    I rate this title iffy for age 9 and give it 1.0

    i laghed

    It had kissing it was vilonet

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