THE MUMMY RETURNS     CERT  12

You can tell Summer's nearly here when the first blockbuster of the season arrives at your local cinema and `The Mummy Returns' has definitely arrived with a vengence.
Set during the 1930's, this is the sequel to the amazingly successful `The Mummy' in which legionnaire Rick O'Connell, played by Brendan Fraser, and egyptologist Evelyn Carnahan played by Rachel Weisz, accidently awoke the mummified remains of Imhotep, the most powerful mystic of ancient Egypt and then had one dickens of a job sending him back to the underworld.
Eight years later, Rick and Evelyn are happily married, have a son Alex, live in a stately home on the outskirts of London and make their living from a spot of recreational tomb-robbing.
However, dark deeds are a-brewing in the antiquities dept of the British Museum. Imhotep has been brought back to life and is now searching for the bracelet  of The Scorpion King - A supposed mythical being who promised his soul to the evil god Anubis in return for vanquishing his enemies over five thousand years ago. Needless to say, though, The Scorpion King wasn't as mythical as everyone previously thought and so the bracelet and it's mystical powers are the first thing on Imhotep's mind.
Now as luck would have it Rick and Evelyn have recently found the bracelet and brought it back to England but their son Alex, who's played by Freddie Boath and is definitely a star of the future, tries it on for size and in return the bracelet gives him the visionary ability to see where The Scorpion King and his armies are entombed.
Unfortunately for Alex though, Imhotep and his henchmen are hot on the trail of the bracelet and before you can say Tutenkamen  they've kidnapped him, got the bracelet and are half way back to Egypt.
Well, as you can imagine Rick and Evelyn aren't exactly the types to stand idly by and so the film develops into a race to save their son from the diabolical clutches of Imhotep and the unspeakable evil of the Scorpion King.
The Mummy Returns really is a rollercoaster of a ride and whilst the intensity of the action scenes often leaves you breathless the narrative of the story does sometimes descend into pure cartoon. Still having said that what do expect from a summer blockbuster.
So if you're looking for action, comedy and incredible special effects do yourself a favour and check out The Mummy Returns, it really is a Daddy of a film.