The Scorpion King (2002)

User Rating:

5.3/10   

Director:

Chuck Russell

Writers (WGA):

Stephen Sommers (story) and
Jonathan Hales (story) ...

Release Date:

19 April 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Warrior. Legend. King.

Plot:

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.

Plot Keywords:

Desert | King | Sorceress | Warrior | Destiny

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. July 18

7:00 PM

SYFY

Cast

Dwayne Johnson	...	Mathayus the Scorpion King (as The Rock)
Steven Brand	...	Memnon
Michael Clarke Duncan	...	Balthazar
Kelly Hu	...	Cassandra
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

Also Known As:

The Scorpion King (Germany)

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA | Germany | Belgium

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Malaysia:18SG | Iceland:12 | South Korea:12 | New Zealand:M | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Finland:K-11 | France:U | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIA | India:A | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12 (cut) | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

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

Company:

Alphaville Films

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.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: One of the first times we see Balthazar, we can clearly see the adhesive for the fake scar on his right cheek which is coming loose.

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]

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Six Feet Under: Can I Come Up Now? (#4.4)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

I Stand Alone

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!