Revealing mistake: Right before Rick grabs the half of the broken dagger, he is starting to stand up, only to be kicked by the Dragon Emperor and slide back about 8 feet. As he starts to stand again, you can see that the background is exactly the same as the first time he tried to stand up - meaning that both moments were taken from the same shot, despite the fact that the background should now be different.
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008)
Plot summary
Directed by: Rob Cohen
Starring: Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, John Hannah, Luke Ford
In ancient China during the reign of Emperor Han (Jet Li). Han and his companion General Ming (Russell Wong) consult the sorceress Zi Yuan (Michelle Yeoh), seeking eternal life. However, she betrays them, using her powers to transform Han into a terracotta warrior and bury him and his army in clay to contain their evil.
In 1946, British archaeologists Rick (Brendan Fraser) and Evelyn O'Connell (Maria Bello) have retired from adventuring. Their son, Alex (Luke Ford), uncovers the tomb of Han, mistaking it for the tomb of the first Emperor of China. Despite their initial reluctance, the O'Connells reluctantly join the expedition to transport the mysterious relic back to Shanghai.
Meanwhile, General Yang (Anthony Wong) of the Chinese military arrives to secure the tomb and recover Han's body. With his troops, Yang captures Evelyn, Alex, and Lin (Isabella Leong), a young woman with supernatural powers and protector of the tomb. Rick gathers a team, including Evelyn's brother Jonathan (John Hannah) and Mad Dog Maguire (Liam Cunningham), to rescue their family.
Arriving at Shangri-La, a hidden, mythical city, the group finds Zi Yuan, who is both immortal and Alex's mother. Zi Yuan explains that the curse killing Han can be lifted by an elixir of eternal life. However, they must retrieve the Eye of Shangri-La, a gem in possession of the Dragon Emperor, before midnight when the curse will be irreversible.
Rick and the team infiltrate the Emperor's palace and manage to steal the gem. During the escape, Lin sacrifices herself to distract the Emperor's forces, allowing the others to flee. They head to the Great Wall of China, where Jonathan decodes the location of the fountain of youth that can create the elixir.
As midnight approaches, the group makes their way to the hidden lake. However, they are intercepted by the Emperor and his army. The O'Connells fight valiantly, and Evelyn kills Yang, but Han captures Alex and forces him to speak the curse that will unleash his army on the world.
Rick confronts Emperor Han and impales him on the Fang of Shiva, a mystical weapon. However, Han transforms into a three-headed dragon, leading to a massive battle. Evelyn retrieves the elixir, and at the last moment, Rick drinks it, giving him temporary immortality.
The O'Connells successfully defeat the dragon and Han's army, destroying them with an avalanche. With the curse lifted, Han's immortality is undone, and he crumbles to dust. Alex, Evelyn, and Rick return to Shangri-La to use the waters of the pool to wish for Lin's revival, ultimately sacrificing Alex's immortal life.
Evelyn and Rick return to the Great Wall, with Jonathan and Lin accompanying them. Rick proposes to Evelyn, and they celebrate their victory, finally able to retire from their adventurous lives.
More mistakes in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Jonathan Carnahan: I hate mummies. They never play fair.
Trivia: The motorbikes with sidecars used in the chase are a playful homage to Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, in which Indy and his dad escape on a motorbike with almost the same configuration.
Question: Near the beginning of the film, in 1946, Rick and Evie are asked to take the Eye of Shangri-La to China as a peace offering from Britain, and a subsequent shot is them arriving in China in 1947. Since the task seems to be of extreme importance, why do they wait an entire year to deliver it?
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Chosen answer: For one thing, just because two different years are shown does not mean that a full twelve months passed before they arrived in China. Also, travel to an undeveloped third-world country in the mid 20th century was not like it is today. There were no jet planes, much pre-planning and preparation would have to be done before departure, different modes of transportation would have to be arranged, and there would be many stops, delays, and transfers along the way. This could cumulatively take many months.
raywest ★