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The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption is yet another low-budget direct-to-video sequel to the modern Mummy franchise. It’s directed and shot by Roel Reine, who previously helmed Death Race 2 with similar results. Regardless of the previews and the boxcover, the movie actually stars Victor Webster and Bostin Christopher as mercenary assassins who get involved in fight after fight until the movie finally grinds to its conclusion. If you think the movie stars Ron Perlman and Billy Zane, I’m sorry to dash those hopes – Perlman and Zane appear in cameo roles that take up a small amount of the running time. If you’re looking for the epic sweep found in the Mummy movies or even in The Scorpion King, this will unfortunately not be the place to find it. And don’t even think of looking for Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson anywhere in this vicinity.
THE SCORPION KING 3
BATTLE FOR REDEMPTION
Studio: Universal 1440 Entertainment/Alphaville/The Sommers Company/Misher Films
Release Year: 2012 (Direct to Video)
Length: 1 hr 46 mins
Genre: Action/Adventure/Low Budget
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
BD Resolution and Codec: 1080p, VC-1 (@ an average 30 mbps)
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (@ an average 3.6 mbps, up to 5.0 during big scenes), Spanish DTS 5.1, French DTS 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
Film Rating: PG-13 (Violence and Action, Sexual and Crude References)
Release Date: January 10, 2012
Starring: Victor Webster, Bostin Christopher, Temuera Morrison, Krystal Vee, Selina Lo, Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson, Dave Bautista with cameos by Billy Zane and Ron Perlman
Screenplay by: Brendan Cowles & Shane Kuhn
Directed by: Roel Reine
Review Rating: 1 ½/5
Are you tired of seeing all the high quality award-winning movies filling the theaters in January? Tired of seeing great writing, directing and acting? Are you just looking for a low budget direct-to-video sequel with a misleading trailer and boxcover? Then look no farther! The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption is just the thing to ease your mind. Filled with bad dialogue, bad acting and take-one direction, this movie is a model of direct-to-video goodness. (Or badness, depending on your point of view about it…) Directed and shot by dtv specialist Roel Reine (previously responsible for The Marine 2, and last year’s Death Race 2, and currently shooting next year’s classic, Death Race: Inferno), the movie is ostensibly a sequel to The Scorpion King, detailing the next chapter in the title character’s life after the 2002 movie with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Here the character is played by Victor Webster, who does the best he can under the limited conditions of this shoot and he’s paired for most of the movie with Bostin Christopher whose character distinguishes himself by constantly belching. The actual story of the movie is difficult to follow, particularly if you have not seen the 2002 movie. Even if you have seen that film, you’ll still be trying to figure out how the characters got from the end of that film into this situation. After about twenty minutes, I simply gave up and tried to follow the action forward – with minimal results. It’s not just that the plot is confusing – it’s that much of the dialogue is taken up with joke one-liners that usually precede Webster or Christopher hitting someone. Roel Reine tries to bring in some sweep in his HD photography, and he makes the most out of the Thailand locations seen in the movie, but in the end, it’s quite evident that this is an attempt to make a period epic on a fraction of the budget used even for the 2002 movie. (That film had about a $60 million budget, where the current movie was shot for less than $5 million)
I can’t honestly find anything to recommend this movie, but I do need to warn readers that the trailers and the boxcover here are more than a little misleading. This is not a movie starring Ron Perlman and Billy Zane, or even Temuera Morrison, regardless of the advertising. This is a movie starring Victor Webster and Bostin Christopher and most of the time is spent watching them beat other people or each other senseless while spouting one-liners about it. Perlman and Zane each make cameo appearances at various points during the movie, in much the same way that Sean Bean, Ving Rhames and DannyTrejo appeared in Death Race 2. And while Reine makes commendable efforts to make an interesting-looking movie in an interesting location, he can’t overcome the limitations of his budget – and his attempts to paper over the situation with low-budget CGI only exacerbate the problem. If readers are fans of fighters Dave Bautista or “Kimbo Slice”, there are some moments of on-camera mayhem they may enjoy – but they’ll have to sit through a lot of soggen material before they get there. As seen with Death Race 2, this is really sloppy writing, directing and acting.
The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption was released on Blu-ray and DVD last Tuesday. The Blu-ray edition contains high definition picture and audio of the movie and a collection of extras. The usual Blu-ray functionality is here, including pocket BLU and BD-Live. A digital copy and ultraviolet copy can be accessed via instructions found on an insert in the packaging. The standard definition DVD is also included in the packaging.
VIDEO QUALITY 3/5
The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption is presented in a 1.78:1 1080p VC-1 encode that works best for the non-CGI scenes. The HD cinematography, done by director Roel Reine, is of the same caliber as was seen in Death Race 2. The look isn’t as gritty here, which is appreciated, and the photography makes the most of the lush Thai locations and the greenery. When the CGI kicks in, however, the HD transfer is unforgiving – an early CGI pullback of Webster and Christopher on horseback in the dunes is cringe-inducing.
AUDIO QUALITY 4/5
The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption gets a solid English DTS-HD MA 5.1 mix, which packs a lot of punch during the many fight scenes, and which gives a good spotlight to Trevor Morris’ pseudo-epic score. Overall, the sound is the most effective element in the presentation. Unfortunately, the sound mix is clear enough that the bad dialogue is easy to understand – which makes things even more painful. DTS 5.1 mixes are also included in Spanish and French.
SPECIAL FEATURES 3/5
The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption comes with a brace of extras, including a director’s commentary, some deleted and extended scenes, a gag reel and a pair of featurettes. There’s also the usual Blu-ray functionality. Instructions for downloading a digital copy and obtaining an ultraviolet copy of the movie are included in the packaging. The standard definition DVD edition is also included in the packaging.
Commentary with Director Roel Reine – This scene-specific commentary with the Dutch director is the equal to his commentary on Death Race 2. Once again, he provides a lot of information about the shoot as he watches the movie, laying out not only the story elements but also the production difficulties. Reine explains that he was offered this movie while in post production on the other film, and that the low budget pushed him to shoot in Thailand, thinking that he could make use of cheap resources there while getting more visual bang for the buck. Reine describes a difficult 25 day HD shoot in fairly unforgiving terms, while marveling at what his team was able to accomplish under such limited conditions. To his credit, Reine also clarifies that a scene where an elephant is attacked with spears was actually accomplished using CGI so that the animal was unharmed. (Of course, Reine does not mention whether the animal was annoyed at having a bunch of wooden sticks taped to its side, but we won’t go there…) As with the earlier commentary, Reine comes across as an affable guy, essentially providing a low budget production service to Universal. He can’t answer for the sloppiness of the endeavor, or for the rushed takes or the bad dialogue – but he does understand that he was hired to bring in a dtv sequel for a minimal budget, and his continuing career at it indicates that he’s proficient at it.
Deleted/Extended Scenes (12:58 Total, 1080p) – Several deleted scenes are included, mostly expanding on existing scenes or presenting alternate takes. For example, an early scene establishing Victor Webster’s character is played out here where in the film it’s briefly seen under narration. The scenes may be viewed individually or via a “Play All” function.
Deleted Shots Montage (4:14, 1080p) – As with Death Race 2, Roel Reine presents a series of deleted shots to show some of the work that didn’t make it into the final cut of the movie. There’s nothing particularly earth shattering here – just some bigger masters and interesting camera moves that had to be left out.
Gag Reel (2:12, 1080p) – A quick gag reel is presented, featuring the usual blown takes and on-camera goofing.
Swords and Scorpions: A Making Of (13:18 Total, 1080p) – This featurette covers the making of the movie, including interviews with the cast and Roel Reine on location in Thailand.
Preparing For Battle (5:54, 1080p) – This featurette focuses on the stunt work and fighting done in the movie, and once again includes on-location interviews with the principals.
pocket BLU – The usual pocket BLU functionality is present here.
BD-Live – The usual BD-Live functionality is present, including a few online trailers that play as soon as you put the disc in your internet-connected player.
Digital Copy/Ultraviolet – Instructions for downloading a digital copy of the movie or obtaining an ultraviolet copy are included in the packaging. The copies must be accessed by December 31, 2012.
DVD Edition – The standard definition DVD of the movie is also included in the packaging. It presents the movie in standard definition with a Dolby Digital 5.1 sound mix (at 448 kbps), and presents the same special features from the Blu-ray, in standard definition.
The movie and the special features are subtitled in English, French and Spanish. The usual pop-up menu is present, along with a complete chapter menu.
IN THE END...
The Scorpion 3: Battle for Redemption is the kind of movie that causes people to not want to purchase direct-to-video sequels. It’s marked by a sloppiness of writing, directing and acting that reflects a low budget and a rushed schedule. Also, the marketing for the film would have you believe this is a Billy Zane or Ron Perlman movie when in fact they are only here for cameo appearances. I have no problem with low-budget films, when they are acknowledged as such and make the most of their resources. Beginners, for example, is a matter of a small-budgeted film that covers a lot of ground by focusing on its characters and developing them. But this film is trying to present itself as a big-budget period adventure with lots of effects and spectacle, when it is actually a significantly smaller affair. Adding insult to injury is the poor writing and creative work. Finally, it’s hard to think not only of what I could recommend in this movie for rental, but to whom I would make such a recommendation in the first place.
Kevin Koster
January 16, 2012.
Equipment now in use in this Home Theater:
Panasonic 65” VT30 Plasma 3D HDTV – set at “THX” picture mode
Denon AVR-3311Cl Receiver
Oppo BDP-93 Blu-ray Player
PS3 Player (used for calculation of bitrates for picture and sound)
5 Mirage Speakers (Front Left/Center/Right, Surround Back Left/Right)
2 Sony Speakers (Surround Left/Right – middle of room)
Martin Logan Dynamo 700 Subwoofer
