Well here's another Russell Mulcahy flick. I'm a bit of a fan of his HIGHLANDER and THE SHADOW, though I'm not head over heels for either of them. I'm one of those people that believes Russell is someone to keep an eye on, cause when you least expect it, he'll kick you on your ass. So here's his latest film. I have to admit I'm a bit against this film (for no rational reason I assure you, it's just there is only one TALOS and Harryhausen animated him), but hey, I'm willing to look with open eyes. There are some spoilers but over all, the fella liked it. So here ya go....
"Russell Mulcahy's Talos The Mummy" (1998)
Starring Jason Scott Lee, Louise Lombard, Sean Pertwee, Lysette Anthony, Michael Lerner, Christopher Lee, Shelly Duvall.
Written by John Esposito Jr., and Russell Mulcahy
THE STORY:
The film begins with the Wembley digs in 1948, where Christopher Lee and various cohorts (including Coen Bros. regular John Polito) unearth the tomb of sadistic Egyptian prince Talos. Being a "mummy movie", the tomb is eternally cursed, but the archeologists break the seal of the tomb anyway, and all die horribly ("shattered" is the word that comes to mind). As Lee crumbled, he detonates the tomb in an effort to reseal it forever.
Present day: The site is revisited with a new expedition, lead by Lee's later daughter (Louise Lombard). Again, once the tomb is entered (a stunning visual, with Talos' sarcophagus suspended over a cavernous chamber) and various expedition members either hallucinate, or in the case of Lombard's fiancée, die.
The wrappings of Talos are brought to a museum display in London. The ancient curse once again manifests itself, this time through these bandages, which come to life and embark on a bloody rampage through Londontown, as they attack various persons and reclaim his missing corporeal elements (eyes, jaw, spleen, etc.).
An American detective (Jason Scott Lee, as "Riley") is soon put in charge of the solving the murders. Along the way, the characters learn of the impending alignment of the planets, which will elevate the completed Talos to a level of immortal power. Basically, Talos is "replacing" the parts of his own body that were removed during his execution and burial!
ROBERTL'S REVIEW:
Fans of Mulcahy's "Highlander" and "The Shadow" will be impressed, once again, by the director's slick, music-video honed visuals and pacing. But the real surprise is the inventive, often witty script by John Esposito Jr., and Mulcahy himself, whom I never thought of as a writer before. There's a fun bit where Sean ("Event Horizon") Pertween tries to astral project into the body of Talos' next victim, only to land in the man's seeing eye dog instead! And Jason Scott-Lee's character begins as the cliched, by- the-numbers-tough-cop, but eventually softens, and is given some clever lines in his stance against believing in the paranormal (particularly memorable is his funny, Dennis Miller-style rant about "The Son Of Sam"). He's also given the opportunity, conveniently enough, during the climax at a construction dig to strip down from his detective outfit to a white muscle shirt. Levels the playing field, I suppose, for Lysette Anthony in the shower, and then later, tripping on stairs to damage her knee.
Mulcahy, in his introduction, expressed his adoration of the "Hammer" film series of the 50's, 60s, and 70s, and the film successfully emulates the Hammer "style" in its serious approach to the subject, stylish British locations, and relatively restrained gore (Christopher Lee's presence sure helps, too!). But don't worry gorehounds. The film's FX are by KNB (who also coproduced the film), and there's grue a-plenty!
Especially fun are Talos' ambulatory wraps. As they float and crawl and form around Talos' invisible limbs and body to do their nasty resurrection business, you might be reminded of Spiderman villain "Venom".
Shelly Duvall and Michael Lerner are also terrific in supporting roles as a flakey psychic and professorial Egyptologist, respectively. Blink and you'll miss a cameo from Honor Blackman, as Scott-Lee's boss!
The film screens at the Montreal Fant-Asia location this week on the 17th. Catch it if you can.
No word on a release date as of yet. Some of the film's CGI FX seemed unfinished to me, so perhaps there's still some tweeking to do.
