THE MUMMY 3D

THE MUMMY 3D:  Yes, it's another reboot (or re-imagining) of this classic monster pic.  This time we have Tom Cruise as the star and the mummy is a woman.  While most of the earlier genre tended toward chills and scares, this fits firmly into the action/adventure slot, perhaps because Mr. Cruise was on board. (Can you say "Mission Impossible: The Mummy"?) At any rate, it does have that going for it along with a few jolts and the supporting cast is talented and easy on the eyes.  Unfortunately, the narrative is so farfetched that it borders on the ridiculous. (We have Russell Crowe playing a character called Jekyll who ultimately turns into Hyde.)  It all becomes just a bit too much.
This is the first in a series of planned reboots of monster flicks under the "Dark Universe" banner from Universal Pictures.  (The Creature From the Black Lagoon, Bride of Frankenstein, The Wolf Man and The Invisible Man are in store) Let's hope they do better next time around. Where is Boris Karloff when you need him!

WONDER WOMAN

WONDER WOMAN:  Part Greek mythology, part "Raiders of the Lost Ark," Gal Gadot plays the title role in this telling of how it all began.  She started out as Diana, Princess of the Amazons, trained to be a warrior.  Upon rescuing a crashed American pilot, Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), she learns of the conflict (WWI) in the outside world far from her island paradise. Determined that it is the work of one of the Gods, she convinced Steve to take her with him and we soon find them in London and then the trenches of Belgium.  And the story unfolds. The two stars have a likeable chemistry and at times the film almost seems like a "screw-ball" comedy of the 30's (which is not a bad thing.)  The banter between them is fresh and new but too far and few between. One of the faults of this outing is the length (2 hrs, 21 mins) It could have use a merciless editor to pick up the pace.
The performances are fine (a nice ensemble of character actors fills out the cast) and there is the requisite orgy of CGI effects in the last battle scene but, all in all, it turns out to be just another in the long line of super-hero flicks.  Hey,  Summer is coming and there will be more.  I will also say that young viewers will have a little trouble following the plot so best take them to something else.   For fans of the genre, this will do, for now.   And Wonder Woman will be back in "The Justice League" this November.