Movie Review: “Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” is likely to remind horror fans of better movies

MOVIE REVIEW: “LEE CRONIN’S THE MUMMY” (R)
Grade: C

For horror fans out there miffed at the very idea that Lee Cronin has somehow earned the right to put his name above the title of his latest project (something generally reserved for horror icons like John Carpenter and Wes Craven) even though he only has a couple of features to his credit (“The Hole in the Ground,” “Evil Dead Rise”), just know that this is the least of this movie’s problems. Also, let it be known that this wasn’t done out of arrogance. It’s been reported that producer Jason Blum made the suggestion to put Cronin’s name atop the title as to not confuse casual moviegoers. The last thing the team behind this gore-fest want is folks walking in thinking that this is a new entry in the Brendan Fraser “Mummy” franchise which this film most certainly is not. Fear not, though, as it’s looking like we’ll be seeing a new installment in that particular series sometime in 2027. As for “Lee Cronin’s latest, it’s an entirely different beast and in the end, it’s barely a “Mummy” movie at all. I mean, I’m all for liberties being taken in a modern reimagining of a familiar property but honestly, if you’re going to stray this far, maybe just call it something else.

In this blood-soaked take on “The Mummy,” journalist Charlie Cannon (Jack Reynor) and his loving wife Larissa (Laia Costa) relocate the family to Egypt for Charlie’s latest job and ultimately, they are plunged into every parent’s worst nightmare after their young daughter Katie (Emily Mitchell) goes missing. Shortly after the disappearance, the Cannon family, which includes Katie’s siblings Maude (Billie Roy) and Sebastian (Shylo Molina), do what they can to pick up the emotional pieces.

Cut to; 8 long years later. The Cannon family now reside in New Mexico, and they get the shock of their lives after receiving a call from the authorities informing them that Katie has been found but as the Cannon family quickly discover, she is not at all herself.  But then, I suppose spending an extended period of time trapped in a sarcophagus would have a strange effect on a person. 

Upon watching this film, one might speculate that Cronin approached the powers that be about doing a follow up to his own “Evil Dead Rise” but after getting turned down, he couldn’t take no for an answer, so he just opted to do a sort of repurposed version of “The Mummy” instead.  And that’s pretty much what this movie plays like; A fusion of “Evil Dead’ and “The Exorcist” with a little “Hereditary,” “The Omen,” and “Poltergeist” thrown in for good measure.

When it comes to bringing the gore factor, Cronin ain’t no slouch. Those with a pure love for carnage candy will find plenty to grasp on to here. That said, this take on “The Mummy” is dour, ugly, brutal, and often unpleasant and even though Cronin is perfectly adept at crafting the proceedings, it does get to a point where the movie feels like it’s simply more interested in making us squirm than anything else.

Of the performances here, Laia Costa has some nice moments as a mom who tries to convince herself that there’s nothing wrong with her daughter but Reynor (an actor I’ve suggested for quite some time would make the perfect James Bond) spends the majority of the film looking at the strange happenings around him in bug-eyed fashion. The standout of the cast is Natalie Grace whose work as the older version of Katie is fittingly terrifying.

As was the case with Leigh Whannell’s disappointing adaptation of “Wolf Man,” “Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” does attempt to say something about one’s fear of not being able to protect their children but here, it’s a somewhat meager attempt because any such subtext is all but buried in an endless sea of ick. This is to say nothing of a handful of plot points that are either underexplained or make very little to no sense. Take, for instance, the medical profession as presented in this film. These so-called professionals are pretty quick to send Katie home even though there’s clearly something wrong with her. Also, where exactly was this girl for the last 8 years? “Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” treats this aspect of the proceedings as an inconvenient afterthought.

Again, there’s very little here that feels like “The Mummy.” Yes, there’s a sarcophagus and an Egyptian locale, but these things feel shoehorned in. Beyond that, for all of Cronin’s abilities when it comes to crafting fittingly shocking set pieces and skillfully working with a barrage of creative practical effects, his take on a property made famous by a decades-old classic Universal monster movie starring Boris Karloff feels pretty darn deadite-heavy by comparison. What’s more, with a runtime of 2 hours and 14 minutes, it all feels awfully long-winded for a film of this nature. At the end of the day, while this isn’t a bad film (for all its flaws, it’s more effective than the 2017 Tom Cruise headlined-take), what “Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” is most successful at doing is reminding us of a handful of better horror movies.