THE SCORPION KING 3: BATTLE FOR REDEMPTION – Movie Review

BATTLE FOR REDEMPTION is the second direct-to-DVD sequel to THE MUMMY spin-off THE SCORPION KING. I enjoyed the first theatrical film in the franchise which starred Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and I even found the 2008 home video sequel/prequel RISE OF A WARRIOR to be fairly entertaining. The new film which follows the further adventures of the Akkadian warrior Mathayus (this time played by Victor Webster) is so horrendous that it’s hard to believe it was directed by Roel Reiné, who did a fairly good job with the direct-to-DVD sequel DEATH RACE 2 and just wrapped DEATH RACE: INFERNO.

THE SCORPION KING 3 is in fact so truly terrible that I can’t think of one positive thing to say about it. The plot makes almost no sense and having just watched the movie a couple hours ago, I can’t seem to even come up with a way to describe what was happening on screen. Webster is completely wooden as Mathayus. Ron Perlman who plays King Horus seems to be reading his lines off a cue card and the film’s bad guy Talus, played by Billy Zane seems to belong in a completely different movie. Hamming it up in a way that he knows he is in a crappy movie.

The 1 hour and 45 minute running time of THE SCORPION KING 3 feels like it’s more than 3 hours. It just drags on and on. I realize that studio’s don’t seem to care to much about scripts for direct-to-video movies because they are just quick cash grabs on established franchises, but seriously, they could try a little harder and make it entertaining, or at the very least, have things make sense.

Avoid THE SCORPION KING 3: BATTE FOR REDEMPTION at all costs. There is no fun to be had here.

By: Marc Ferman