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The Scorpion King
- Review Date: April 28, 2003
- PG-13
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- 2002
Common Sense Media says
On the silly popcorn scale, it works pretty well.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this movie has a lot of action violence, meaning that it is not too graphic or gory. There are some vivid images, including attacking cobras, an impaled body, and a dead child. And there are very vivid sound effects making on- and off-screen violence more explicit with spurting and squishing sounds. There are sexual references and non-explicit sexual situations, including two women in a man's bed. There are no four-letter words, but there are some strong epithets.
What's the story?
Some very scary looking guys are about to kill a guy who would be even scarier-looking if he wasn't tied up. But then everyone steps back in awe of a guy who steps in looking scariest of all and as they hesitate, he cocks an eyebrow and says simply, "Boo." That is the Rock (WWF star Dwayne Johnson) and he plays Mathayus, the title role, in this prequel to the Mummy movies, giving us the background of the character who appeared briefly but memorably in the second one as half-man, half very large bug. In THE SCORPION KING, Mathayus and two others are hired by local tribes to kill the evil tyrant Memnon (Steven Brand).
Is it any good?
The Scorpion King doesn't pretend to having anything like the wit and charm of the Mummy movies, which were a loving tribute to Saturday morning serials. But it works pretty well, largely due to its star. The Rock has genuine screen presence. He even manages most of the material better than Michael Clarke Duncan who is just too much of an actor to deliver the cheesy dialogue with the right mix of sincerity and irony, and Peter Facinelli, whose thin-voiced delivery doesn't convey the necessary petulant malevolence.
There is one innovation worth mentioning. In action movies, the hero is almost always stoic, even when he gets hurt. Think of Rambo sewing up his own wounds. But the Rock, carrying over the conventions of professional wrestling, grimaces in pain when he gets hurt. It doesn't rise to the level of acting, but in a funny way I think that it adds some heart to the story.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about Memnon's claim that order was better than freedom. They may also want to talk about how the sorceress protected herself from Memnon.
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AGE
Bad mainstream flick aims at money and lacks... everything.
"The Mummy" was not something great, but at least it was funny. Then "The Mummy Returns" followed and was also funny. Then they decided to make a prequel/spinoff from TMR. The movie is boring, thinking it is original and epic, but fails at everything.
The Rock acts like he is a robot, the effects are pretty average, the plot is somewhat familiar, the script features no memorable quotes and it is just a bad movie.
That is all i can say. But at least it is better than "Scorpion King 2" which was literally the worst movie i have ever seen. But still, this is just bad.
The violence in this movie is not that strong. You briefly see a decapitated head, of which i think, that children under the age of 12 will not handle. But it is not a bloody movie or something.
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AGE
couple word explanation
sucked wasted time
this movie sucked i wuz disappointed
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AGE
Suggested MPAA Rating:
R for strong violence throughout and partial nudity.
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AGE
The Scorpion King
Cool movie. One of Dwayne's best films. Great action with a bit of humor thrown into it.
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AGE
Not that violent, in which it is. But it's too sensual and has a lot of nudity.
The sexual content was sort of graphic. In many scenes you can almost see her breasts.
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AGE
Great spin-off with nice acting
This was a great addition to the Mummy franchise. It might not compare to the first film, but it's definitely better than the second film, and it was good enough to start a franchise of it's own sequels (which were not as good). It's acting is very nice and the humor is well-balanced. But it seems not to fit the Scorpion King's description shown in The Mummy Returns: in that film, he was said to be evil and power-hungry, but here he is a hero and a good role model. I guess I like him better this way. It's not The Rock's type of movie, but he is nonetheless very dedicated and proves to turn the movie into a thrill ride of fun.
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| Studio: | Universal Pictures |
| Director: | Chuck Russell |
| Cast: | Dwayne The Rock Johnson, Kelly Hu, Michael Clarke Duncan |
| Genre: | Action/Adventure |
| Run time: | 92 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | April 19, 2002 |
| DVD release date: | October 1, 2002 |
| MPAA rating: | PG-13 |
| MPAA explanation: | violence and sexual situations |
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