First, a bit of a left handed disclaimer.
This piece is going to be more of a downer than an upper.
And, yes, I know that Saturday’s piece wasn’t exactly Desiderata, okay?
But, those of you who know me personally know that I’m going through a bit of a time right now. And those of you who don’t know me and grace me with your visits will, hopefully, forgive me the current wave of self-indulgence.
What the hell, it’s my blog. And it’s a collection of those things that I am thinking and feeling.
So, stay and visit for a few minutes and read what I’m thinking and feeling or move on to Google or wherever your next web destination is today.
I understand, either way.
And I promise that I’ll be clever and funny again somewhere down the line.
My, he thinks a lot of himself, doesn’t he?
Lately, not so much, no.
I know just how Imhotep felt.
For those of you have made something of your lives and not spent a lot of hours staring mindlessly at the big or small screen (the tone there, by the way, is not meant to be sarcastic, but rather self-critical), Imhotep is the title character in “The Mummy” movies that were fairly recent remakes of the old Boris Karloff classics of the forties. I think they’re well made and a lot of fun, if you’re a fan of genre, but I’m not doing movie reviews this morning, I’m doing “relate to” stuff.
So, here’s all the back-story you’ll require.
Rick O Connell is the adventurer/hero and his archeologist wife is Evie. They met and fell in love in the first movie and are married with a kid in the second. Imhotep is the bad guy who was high priest to the Pharaoh of Egypt back in the way back before he made the unfortunate career choice of falling in love with the Pharaoh’s girl, Anuksunaman. Having gotten caught with their hands in each other’s respective cookie jars, Anuk does the old hari kiri and Imhotep is mummified.
Fast forward to the time of the film, O Connell and his wife end up unearthing Imhotep who goes on the quest to resume his eternal love affair with Anuk by raising her from the dead and using Evie’s life energy in the process.
Okay. Plot basics in place.
Fast forward one last time to the climax of the second film.
All four players are inside the temple, crashing down around them. Having battled each other royally, Rick and Imhotep are each now a few feet apart, hanging by their fingers, clinging to the edge of a huge chasm in the middle of the room, below them fire and brimstone and thousands of evil spirits waiting to suck them down into the depths.
Across the room, Evie and Anuk are a few yards apart, the ceiling crashing down around them, pillars falling, fires spouting, the whole nine yards. Each emotionally reaching out to their respective mates, trying to find the courage to brave the imminent collapse and rush to their aid.
Rick screams repeatedly at Evie to flee, to escape and save herself, insisting that she not risk losing her life in what seems a surely doomed to fail attempt at saving his.
Evie takes a couple of panicked looks around at all the collapse.
And does a masterful dance, jump, leap, dive to the edge of the chasm where she and Rick lock hands, she pulls him out and they rush, no time to spare, to safety.
Imhotep, seeing the power of salvation and redemption that true love brings, looks expectantly at Anuk.
Who takes a couple of panicked looks around at all the collapse.
Then turns and runs out of the temple.
At that moment, the camera cuts back to a close-up of the expression on Imhotep’s face.
The actor’s name is Arnold Vosloo. Not a household name, but a fairly accomplished South African actor.
I know that this movie is just your basic Saturday afternoon action adventure and is no Citizen Kane.
But, at that moment, for the expression on his face conveying the feeling he felt, they should have given an Oscar to the man on the spot.
For he truly was, at that moment, Imhotep, the former high priest of Egypt who had paid for his forbidden love with his life and dedicated the rest of his existence, however “bad guy/good guy” it might have been to giving life to his true love, only to find that when it was put to the test…
True love…wasn’t.
Because when fear and love came face to face with each other inside Anuk’s heart.
Fear won.
And, with an indescribable gamut of emotions crossing his face, this talented actor, taking his character to the end of the story, finally shows the pain that can only come from discovering that true love isn’t true, after all ,and lets go of the edge of the chasm, preferring to be swallowed into the depths rather than face living in a world where such hurt is possible.
The Mummy Returns is the name of the movie.
It’s billed as action adventure.
And that it is.
But I think it's the best love story movie ever made.
Because in that last five minutes, Rick and Evie and Anuk and Imhotep, show both, and all, sides of what true love really is.
And really isn’t.
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