THE MUMMY.

A team of archaeologists in Egypt discover the ancient tomb of the princess Ananka and return to England only to be pursued by a 3000 year old vengeance seeking Egyptian mummy.

Another stylish Hammer feature to find its way onto the bootlace. This one, a remake of the 1932 film of the same name, was made in 1959 and directed by Terence Fisher, the man behind such classics as 'The Curse of Frankenstein' (1957), 'Dracula' (1958) and 'The Devil Rides Out' (1968). Again the stars are Christopher Lee and the late Peter Cushing. The acting in this picture is a bit 'hammy' but somehow this fits in with the style of the film and in no way detracts from the enjoyment. It may not be quite as good as the other three films mentioned but is perfectly suited to the 8mm environment and having just seen it, it is hard to imagine viewing it on anything else.

Peter Cushing plays the lead and is laid up with a broken leg at his team's archaeological dig in Egypt. His father is in charge along with his partner. They have been searching for the lost tomb of Ananka for many years and now they have uncovered the entrance. Cushing has to remain in his tent and as his father enters the tomb something goes wrong... He awakens the Mummy of the title and is mortified to the point of losing his mind.

Three years after returning to England Cushing's father finally regains enough control to be able to speak. He is able to warn his son that the Mummy that attacked him in the tomb is coming after them. Not surprisingly, this warning is dismissed as the ramblings of a mad man, but then, when he is murdered in a padded cell within the asylum suspicions are aroused.

His partner is next on the hit list and during this slaying Cushing is present and manages to shoot the Mummy twice with no effect other than to blow a couple of holes in his lifeless body. The police are naturally dubious of his evidence, however, when Cushing is later attacked this time his wife is the witness. She just happens to be the double of the Princess Ananka and in life the Mummy was Kharis, the lover of the Princess. Upon seeing her he is confused and retreats to his hideout. The Egyptian keeper of the Mummy now believes all three of the desecrators have been eliminated but his relief is short lived when Cushing knocks on his front door, suspicious that an Egyptian has just moved into the area. A courteous encounter ensues during which neither divulges their true suspicions.

Kharis is unleashed once more to exact revenge and during the final encounter he kidnaps Cushing's wife and sets off with her in his arms, pursued by armed police. Will he succeed in taking her with him to his final resting place? You'll have to watch this release to find out.

I have already mentioned the excellent print quality of modern Super 8 prints in the T2 review elsewhere in this issue and you would expect that this, not being such a recent film, would not come up to those standards. Having said that, surprisingly it is not far off. Right from the opening Universal logo you know once again that you are in for a treat. Much has been said in home entertainment magazines recently of the picture quality of DVD's and their near 3D effect. in places. Well, forget that! Just wait until you see the first appearance of the Egyptian keeper of the Mummy. He wears a red fez and the colour is so vivid the darn thing almost pops out of the screen and comes to sit in your lap! Other sequences also 'look extremely impressive, in particular just before the Mummy meets his demise. We see a close up of the Mummy's face and the lighting combined with those steely eyes leaves a nightmarish impression.

The sound too is good; clear and on this review print at least, in perfect sync throughout.

A double bill trailer reel has also been released by Classic Home Cinema see The Mummy trailer.

Picture    
Sound      
Content   

This page was last updated 02 Dec 2002

©Copyright Info