From PASTO, COLOMBIA-Via: L. A. CA; CALI, COLOMBIA+ORLANDO, FL ---------------------The ONLY Tony Kiss Castillo on Facebook!------------

In the '80s and '90s, Arnold Scharzennegar was the King of Hollywood action films. But nothing is forever. With the The Scorpion King, there seems to be a new pretender to the throne ...The ROCK! More charismatic and certainly a better actor (but then again, who isn't?) Than "AHNULD" was 20 years ago, The Rock, here appearing in his first title role, has had the good fortune that the film, and his participation in it, seems to have been relatively successful in every sense of the word!

"Scorpion" from beginning to end, is a roller coaster of action, adventure, intrigue, romance, magic and beautiful women. A Hollywood capsule of pure adrenaline. If there is anyone in the family who does not like movies of this genre, hard not to be entertained by this minor gem. But Be forewarned! Scorpian may not be the most suitable of films for kids under 9 or 10..... But for all thosewho are 12 or over.... Definitely 2 Thumbs UP!

7.5********STARS*......ENJOY!/DISFRUTELA!

Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most welcome!

From director Chuck Russell (The Mask, Eraser),this was the immediate spin off film made straight after The Mummy Returns, the film that introduced us to the title character, I suppose this one I had to watch as well. Basically, set in the days of the ancient Egyptians and pyramids, Memnon (Steven Brand) is the evil king who uses The Sorceress (X-Men 2's Kelly Hu) with her psychic powers to foretell his victories and take over the empire. The leaders of the free world have one last hope for freedom of the kingdom and to stop Memnon from taking over the world, that is sending mercenary assassin Mathayus (Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson) to kill the Sorceress and foil his plans. Meeting the Sorceress however Mathayus changed his plan and instead kidnaps her to make bargains or whatever, and he has trickster Arpid (True Lies actor Grant Heslov) and tribal leader Balthazar (The Green Mile's Michael Clarke Duncan) tagging along too. Obviously there are obstacles along the way, chases, battles and traps, but in the end Mathayus does manage to defeat the villain in the end, and fulfil his destiny becoming The Scorpion King. Also starring Bernard Hill as Philos, Peter Facinelli as Prince Takmet and Roger Rees as King Pheron. Johnson is fine as the lead character, and it is alright to see the character from The Mummy Returns good for the whole film, not just in the opening and later becoming a giant scorpion monster, the supporting cast are fine too, the story though could be a little bit fresher and original, it is almost same old same, cheesy and an only reasonably fun to watch action adventure fantasy. Okay!

For a film that's the prequel of a sequel to a remake, you can hardly go in expecting cinematic gold. Maybe a little fun and plenty of action, if you're lucky. Thankfully, that's exactly what I got when I sat down to watch this, the offspring of THE MUMMY RETURNS, set in the ancient Middle East and detailing a strongman's rebellion against an enemy army. On the face of it, THE SCORPION KING is another in a long line of sword-and-sandal epics, bearing a superficial resemblance to the Steve Reeves-starrers of the '50s and '60s, but at heart this is a cheesy romp more in line with '80s offerings like CONAN THE DESTROYER. It doesn't care much about plot, originality, or authenticity: it's a kid's film designed to entertain, and that's exactly what it does.

Now, I'm not a big fan of these movies. The Rock's first line is 'Boo' and we're immediately into muck-about action of the kind made popular in the two '90s TV shows, HERCULES: THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS and XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS. Then the wah-wah guitar music starts, and I was reminded unfavourably of KULL THE CONQUEROR, a film very similar to this except that it had a much smaller budget. Still, as I watched, I realised something: this wasn't actually too bad. A lot of the goodwill I was feeling comes from the presence of The Rock, here in his first leading role; he has an immense likability to him, and the ability not to take himself too seriously, just as Schwarzenegger was in the '80s. Okay, so he's no great shakes as an actor, but his physicality fills the screen and he adds a lot of energy to what plays out.

The rest of the film is so-so. The plot is average, and quickly becomes formulaic: escape from these guys here, chase there, recaptured here, a fight scene there, then a lead-up to the ending. The supporting cast is also utterly predictable: ruffian children tagging along; an Asian-looking sorceress (Kelly Hu acquits herself better than Tia Carrera in KULL THE CONQUEROR, but only just); a tough, handsome bad guy (forgettable Scotsman Steven Brand); an eccentric Bernard Hill (also starring in the excellent LORD OF THE RINGS movies around this time) and Michael Clarke Duncan, the only person who could conceivably give The Rock an ass-whupping; needless to say, the extended bout between the two is a highlight. The action is passable without being inspiring or well choreographed, but the budget – clearly lower than usual – is put to good use, especially for the explosive climax. Director Chuck Russell made one of my favourite B-movies, the '80s BLOB remake, but his creativity doesn't make much of an impact here. Still, I liked The Rock and the short running time meant I didn't get bored, so THE SCORPION KING must have something going for it.