The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is a 2008 American action horror fantasy film directed by Rob Cohen, written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, and produced by Stephen Sommers (director of The Mummy and The Mummy Returns), Bob Ducsay, Sean Daniel, and James Jacks. The film stars Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, John Hannah, Luke Ford, Anthony Wong and Michelle Yeoh.
Plot[]
In ancient China, a brutal and tyrannical warlord unites the country's kingdoms into an empire and becomes the Dragon Emperor. He orders the construction of the Great Wall of China to bury and curse his dead enemies, eventually learning power over the traditional Chinese Wu Xing elements of fire, water, earth, wood and metal. Emperor Han soon grows fearful that his death will end all he has accomplished and summons Zi Yuan, a sorceress who is said to know the secret of immortality. She seemingly casts a spell on Han in Sanskrit, before he executes General Ming, his trusted friend and Zi Yuan's secret lover. He stabs Zi Yuan with a dagger, but having foreseen this event, she immolates and imprisons the Emperor and his soldiers in clay, transforming his army into the Terracotta Army, and flees.
In 1946, Alex O'Connell, Rick and Evelyn O'Connell's son, and his archaeology professor Roger Wilson locate Han's tomb. Though attacked by a mysterious woman, they succeed in bringing the coffin to Shanghai. Meanwhile, the British government entrusts the O'Connells to take the Eye of Shangri-La back to China. However, they learn that Wilson works for a rogue military faction led by General Yang, who had provided the financial backing of Alex's expedition. Yang believes that Han is the one who can lead China out of the chaos following World War II and plans to resurrect the Emperor using the Eye, which contains the Elixir of Life. They open it, but it accidentally lands on the statue of the carriage driver, which is revealed to actually be Han's mummified body. He accepts Yang's service but kills Wilson and escapes.
Along with Evelyn's brother Jonathan Carnahan, the O'Connells and the mysterious woman, Lin, travel to a stupa in the Himalayas that will reveal the path to Shangri-La when the Eye is placed on top of it. With the help of Yetis summoned by Lin, the group hold off Yang's soldiers but Han discovers Shangri-La's location. Alex attempts to trigger an avalanche. Han throws a dagger at him, but Rick shoves Alex and is stabbed instead. Lin takes the group to Shangri-La, where Zi Yuan still lives and heals Rick's wound. The group discovers that Lin is Zi Yuan's daughter, both rendered immortal due to the power of Shangri-La's waters. As Rick heals, Alex and Lin have grown attached to each other, but Lin refuses due to her immortality, unable to bear falling in love with Alex only to watch him grow old and die, just as Zi Yuan mourned for General Ming.
Han and General Yang eventually arrive and attack them in Shangri-La, and Han bathes in the mystical waters, which restores his human form and youth, and gives him the ability to shapeshift. Transforming into a dragon, Han kidnaps Lin and flies back to the tomb, raising his Terracota Army, planning to cross the Great Wall, where they will be invincible. The O'Connells and Zi Yuan pursue Han to the Great Wall where she sacrifices her and Lin's immortality to create an undead army from beneath The Great Wall, led by a revived General Ming. As Alex rescues Lin, Zi Yuan fights Han and is mortally wounded, but secures the dagger. Zi Yuan gives the dagger to the group before dying. Meanwhile, Han goes into the Great Wall to use his elemental powers to negate the undead spell. Rick and Alex fight off Han while Evelyn and Lin fight and kill Yang and Choi. Han gains the upper hand over Rick, but Rick and Alex manage to stab Han in his heart with the dagger, killing him and defeating the Terracotta Army. Ming's army briefly celebrates before finally moving on to a peaceful afterlife.
The O'Connells return to Shanghai while Jonathan decides to move to Peru with the Eye of Shangri-La, as he wants to go somewhere with no mummies. However, in postscript, it is revealed that upon his arrival, mummies were discovered in Peru.
Cast[]
- Brendan Fraser as Rick O'Connell
- Maria Bello as Evelyn C. O'Connell
- John Hannah as Jonathan Carnahan
- Luke Ford as Alex O'Connell
- Jet Li as Emperor Han
- Michelle Yeoh as Zi Yuan
- Isabella Leong as Lin
- Russell Wong as General Ming Guo
- Anthony Wong as General Yang
- Liam Cunningham as Mad Dog Maguire
- David Calder as Professor Roger Wilson
- Jessey Meng as Choi
- Tian Liang as Li Zhou
- Albert Kwan as Chu Wah
- James Bradford as Butler Jameson
- Daniel Giverin as Benjamin Fry
Advertising and Marketing[]
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