The Scorpion King (2002)

A desert warrior rises up against the evil army that is destroying his homeland. He captures the enemy's key sorcerer, takes her deep into the desert and prepares for a final showdown.

Director:

Chuck Russell

Writers:

Stephen Sommers (story), Jonathan Hales (story),

Stars:

Dwayne Johnson, Steven Brand, Michael Clarke Duncan

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dwayne Johnson	...	Mathayus (as The Rock)
Steven Brand	...	Memnon
Michael Clarke Duncan	...	Balthazar
Kelly Hu	...	The Sorceress
Bernard Hill	...	Philos
Grant Heslov	...	Arpid
Peter Facinelli	...	Takmet
Ralf Moeller	...	Thorak
Branscombe Richmond	...	Jesup
Roger Rees	...	King Pheron
Sherri Howard	...	Queen Isis
Conrad Roberts	...	Chieftain
Joseph Ruskin	...	Tribal Leader
Esteban Cueto	...	Third Akkadian
Nils Allen Stewart	...	Torturer

Storyline

In an ancient time, predating the pyramids, the evil king Memnon is using the psychic powers of his sorceress Cassandra to fortell his great victories. In a last ditch effort to stop Memnon from taking over the world, the leaders of the remaining free tribes hire the assassin Mathayus to kill the sorceress. But Mathayus ends up getting much more than he bargained for. Now with the help of the trickster Arpid, tribal leader Balthazar and an unexpected ally, it's up to Mathayus to fufill his destiny and become the great Scorpion King.

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Plot Keywords:

desert | king | sorceress | destiny | scorpion | 

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Taglines:

Warrior. Legend. King.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action violence and some sensuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA Germany Belgium

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 April 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

El rey escorpión

Filming Locations:

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park - 200 Palm Canyon Drive, Borrego Springs, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$60,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$880,633 (France) (10 May 2002)

Gross:

$90,341,670 (USA) (21 June 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Alphaville Films, BT Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Early in the production the villain role was written for Yun-Fat Chow. But Chow's manager Terence Chang vetoed this saying that Chow never plays villains and that doing so would betray his fans.

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Goofs

When Arpid is arm-wrestling a lady at the camp, they are both using their left hands. In the next shot they are using their right hands.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[the barbarian chieftain is holding up a skull]
Barbarian Chieftain: We have killed Babylonians!
[the barbarians cheer, he holds up another]
Barbarian Chieftain: We have killed Mesopotamians!
[the barbarians cheer]
Barbarian Chieftain: But we have never had the pleasure of killing... an Akkadian.
Jesup: [Tied up] May the gods have pity on you, for my brother will not.
[Mathayas storms in and kills the Barbarians]

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Connections

Referenced in Adam & Eva (2003)

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Soundtracks

"Marching-In"
Written by Sho Kosugi
Performed by The Taiko Drummers

User Reviews

An enjoyable film that got action, comedy and a love story…

Dwayne Johnson plays a natural-born hero called Mathayus… He starts off as an Akkadian mercenary crossing the ancient lands looking for his brother who is slain before his blazing eyes by a Nordic barbarian horde whose name is Memnon…

What has kept the vicious tyrant as the absolute conqueror of the land is the fact that he has a visionary sorceress by his side who knows when he should attack his enemies… Mathayus finds out that she's a sexy gorgeous woman who looks amazingly beautiful (Surely the audience is teased ceaselessly by her cleavage-revealing…). So Mathayus forgets his commission to kill her, and a kind of romance begins to flourish between the two as he tries to carry out his assignment…

Kelly Hu plays Cassandra, the female sorcerer who had beauty, charisma, cleverness, and enigma… In the beginning of the film, we're not quite sure where she stands… But when she first sees Mathayus, she's interested in the well-mannered warrior who's strong, brave, loyal and sincere… She realizes that he might me the future king who can save her from her power-mad jailer…

As the ruthless conqueror, Memnon (Steven Brand) has got all of the skills needed to attain global domination… He has also got the force and the will to accomplish it… The combination was pretty scary…

Michael Clarke Duncan plays the fearsome Balthazar, the Nubian King, the strong ally of Mathayus…

Chuck Russell's "The Scorpion King" is a visual feast, and an entertaining action film… It has sexy harem girls, poison arrows, quicksand, an army of red ants, black scorpions, cobras, explosions, and a lot of fun… So don't miss it!