The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor 2008
(will be released in most countries of Asia, America, Europe, ... in August 2008)

directed by Rob Cohen, written by Alfred Gough & Miles Millar

Cast: Rick O’Connell - BRENDAN FRASER, Emperor - JET LI, Evelyn O’Connell - MARIA BELLO, Jonathan Carnahan - JOHN HANNAH, Zi Yuan - MICHELLE YEOH, Alex O’Connell - LUKE FORD, Lin - ISABELLA LEONG, ....

Video: Official Trailer "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" (2008). The new supernatural action-adventure of explorer Rick O’Connell (Brendan Fraser) leads him from the catacombs of ancient China to the neon-lit streets of post-war Shanghai and high into the Himalayas. This time a resurrected 2.000 years old Chinese Emperor (Jet Li) makes trouble.

The Design recovers more than 2.000 years

For the movie designers have built armors, costumes, cities, ... for across 2,200 years. The final scenes of the shoot took place in the fantastic 1940s Egyptian-style nightclub, owned by the brother of Evelyn O'Connell (Maria Bello), Jonathan (John Hannah).

Rob Cohen, who has directed before movies like "The Fast and the Furious" (2001), "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story" (1993) or for exampel the music documentary "Rammstein: Lichtspielhaus" (2003) is addicted to the culture of China: “I have a deep love of Chinese culture and a complete fascination with the sweep and tumult of its 5,000-year history. Since high school, when my mother began painting Chinese watercolors as a hobby, China had occupied my imagination and reading time. I was intrigued by various dynasties, most especially the Tang and the Ming with their early explorers discovering Indonesia, India, Africa and the giant ‘treasure ships’ that may have circumvented the world long before Magellan, and might have reached the Americas long before Columbus.”

The Costume Designer

Sanja Milkovic Hays, born in 1958 in Zagreb, Croatia, is the costume designer of the movie. She graduated from the university in Zagreb. Everybody knows some of the movies where she was the costume designer; to name only a few: "Blade" (1998), "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift" (2006), "2 Fast 2 Furious" (2003), ... Her filmography starts in 1989 (www.imdb.com/name/nm0371648). Sanja collaborates with director Rob Cohen for the third time.

Sources for the Period Costumes

It was a challenge to create period costumes for a story that plays along 2.000 years. The first step was the most difficult.

“There was very little to go on,” explains Hays. “There was some reference to jewelry, a few drawings, a bit of cloth and discovered mummies. I based most ideas on research from museums and books. The most useful were findings from Xi’an; we went there to look at the Warriors.”

Hays and two sketch artists worked nonstop for four months to imagine the costumes for Cohen’s world. “After you have a sketch approved, the second part of the creative process starts,” she explains. “You look for fabrics and the details from all over the world—from Hong Kong, China, Thailand and India to New York and Europe. I used hundreds of yards of fabric, many which I bought in Montreal.”

Particularly, silks—which take dyes beautifully—were used to complement the film’s Asian themes. The designer supervised a large team on two continents. She created a huge workshop at Mel’s Cite du Cinema, where she employed craftsmen from every area of expertise: a sketch artist, cutter fitters, embroiderers and jewelry makers. She also outsourced to Film Illusions, a company that specializes in unique costumes for the film industry and was responsible for creating the Emperor’s armor.

The Costumes for the Actors

For Brendan Fraser costume designer Hays creates a new look; she calls it “John Wayne.” Luke Ford, who plays Brendan's son, starts with the "Marlboro man" style dressed in 1946 leather jacket. ”... Then, we clean him up and switch him into the white tuxedo, Bogart-style. Alex is more like a ’40s hip-hop, with the big, baggy pilot pants, big old shoes, big jacket. It all is very prop er period, but the silhouette is more modern and appealing.” explains Hays.

Inspired by the Tibetan National Costumes

Lin (Isabella Leong) gets the "Matrix Style". “For the scene in the museum where she tries to save Rick and Evy,” Hays explains, “I dressed her up for Chinese New Year in a coat—a little Matrix-style. She needed to be ready for action, so we added dress pants underneath. The coat is a long cut, so when she flies through the air, it flies behind her.” For Li’s long trek back to Shangri-la, the costumer provided her with a warm outfit inspired by the Tibetan national costumes.

The designer created nine costumes for Zi Yuan (Michelle Yeoh). The designs are not exactly determined by the period. Hays notes: “She is a sorceress, so it gave me more freedom. When Michelle put them on, they became alive. She is so graceful and wears the costume so beautifully. The way she moves and holds her neck…she almost floats.”

The Pleated Skirt

One of the most interesting costumes is the pleated skirt Zi Yuan (Michelle Yeoh) wears in her scene fighting with the resurrected emperor (Jet Li).
This costume was inspired by Chinese ethnic minority clothes.

“It was for the big sword fight with Jet Li where she wears a pleated skirt. I bought a knee-length skirt for myself in Shanghai; I swirled in it, and the way it moved was amazing. We made it in a long version, and one of the girls here, Malika, went through hell trying to figure out how they did it. Everything was hand-pleated, but we finally figured it out. The skirt is very straight when Michelle is standing, but when she kicks, fights and swirls in it, it flies out in a full circle. I can’t wait to see it on screen.” Sanja Hays

fig. below (right: detail of the pleated skirt): The vicious Emperor (JET LI) battles sorceress Zi Yuan (MICHELLE YEOH) in an all-new adventure that races from the catacombs of ancient China high into the spectacular Himalayas: "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor". Photo Credit: Digital Domain Copyright: © 2008 Universal Studios. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Check out the official site www.themummy.com

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