The Mummy

Plot synopsis:
In 1921, an archaeological expedition led by Sir Joseph Whemple (Arthur Byron) finds the mummy of ancient Egyptian priest called Imhotep (Boris Karloff). When an inspection of the mummy by Whemple's friend Dr. Muller (Edward Van Sloan) reveals that the viscera were not removed, Muller deduces that Imhotep was buried alive for sacrilege. Imhotep had been mummified alive for attempting to resurrect his forbidden lover, the princess Ankh-es-en-amon. Despite Muller's warning, Sir Joseph's assistant Ralph Norton (Bramwell Fletcher) reads aloud an ancient life-giving scroll – the Scroll of Thoth. Imhotep escapes from the archaeologists, taking the Scroll of Thoth, and prowls Cairo seeking the modern reincarnation of Ankh-es-en-amon.
10 years later, Imhotep is masquerading as a modern Egyptian named Ardath Bey. He calls upon Sir Joseph's son, Frank (David Manners) and Prof. Pearson (Leonard Mudie). He shows them where to dig to find Ankh-es-en-amon's tomb. The archaeologists find the tomb, give the mummy and the treasures to the Cairo Museum, and thank Ardath Bey for the information.
Imhotep encounters Helen Grosvenor (Zita Johann), a woman bearing a striking resemblance to the Princess. Believing her to be Ankh-es-en-amon's reincarnation, he attempts to kill her, with the intention of mummifying her, resurrecting her, and making her his bride. She is saved when she remembers her past life and prays to the goddess Isis to save her. The statue of Isis raises its arm and emits a beam of light that sets the Scroll of Thoth on fire. This breaks the spell that had given Imhotep his immortality, causing him to age rapidly and then crumble to dust. At the urging of Dr. Muller, Frank calls Helen back to the world of the living while the Scroll of Thoth continues to burn.

Tags: revenge

Review:
Starring Peter Cushing (John Banning), Christopher Lee (Kharis/The Mummy), Raymond Huntley (Joseph Whemple) and Yvonne Furneaux (Isobel Banning/Princess Ananka), the film is written by Jimmy Sangster and was filmed at Bray & Shepperton Studios in England.
I mention the latter because Eastman Color has a different hue to it, something that makes this movie all the more affecting as a horror piece.The plot sees three archaeologists (Stephen & John Banning & Joseph Whemple) desecrate the tomb of Egyptian Princess Ananka.
After the success of "The Curse Of Frankenstein" (1957) and "Horror Of Dracula" (1958), two true Classics which revolutionized British Horror cinema, Hammer's dream-team, Horror-icons Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, screenwriter Jimmy Sangster and director Terence Fisher reunited for "The Mummy" (aka.
And while this is not quite as brilliant as the two aforementioned films, in my opinion, "The Mummy" is definitely a great and wonderfully picturesque Horror film that can easily be considered a Hammer Classic.When British archaeologists, one of them John Banning (Peter Cushing) discover an ancient Egyptian tomb, they open the grave of a priestess who died 4000 years earlier.
And what could be more entertaining for a lover of Gothic greatness than seeing a vengeful Egyptian Mummy haunt a Hammer-style Victorian England, even more so if this vengeful Mummy is played by none other than the all-mighty Christopher Lee?
All things considered out of Hammer's three original re-tellings of stories that had already been told in Universal Pictures in the 30s, "The Mummy" is not quite as essential as "Curse Of Frankenstein" and "Horror Of Dracula".
Peter Cushing is superb as always (and was it a deliberate decision to make his character's lameness a wry twist on the fact that Kharis the mummy was always lame in the old Universal movies?), as is Hammer semi-regular George Pastell in the stereotypical mummy-controller-in-the-fez part.
It is a curse that follows the men back to England, where they are stalked to their deaths one by one.Director Terence Fisher and cinematographer Jack Asher worked a number of Hammer films, including the earlier HORROR OF Dracula and REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN.
The cast plays it out extremely well, with the lovely Yvonne Furneaux a classic Hammer beauty, Peter Cushing as her archaeologist husband, and (yes, the posture and bearing really is unmistakable) Christopher Lee under wraps for the title role.The DVD contains no extras beyond the original trailer, and although the transfer is not pristine it is nonetheless very good indeed.
In1895, in Egypt, the British archaeologists John Banning (Peter Cushing), his father Stephen Banning (Felix Aylmer) and his uncle Joseph Whemple (Raymond Huntley) discover the tomb of Princess Ananka (Yvonne Furneaux).
Lee's Mummy is spectacular; he's goddamn huge, and it's very impressive to watch him crashing through doors and French windows, absorbing shotgun blasts as if they were pinpricks (I hear Lee actually got injured several times making this movie; I can't say I'm surprised!)My favorite scene is the ideological debate between the Egyptian badguy (a very cool performance by George Pastell) and Peter Cushing's snooty archaeologist character.
Ignoring warnings, a team of British archaeologists open the tomb of Egyptian Princess Ananka and set loose the mummy Kharis (Christopher Lee).
And there's excellent support from character players like Michael Ripper and Raymond Huntley.THE MUMMY, along with (HORROR OF) Dracula and CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (and to a lesser extent CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF), is one of the key movies of the Hammer canon.
His performance in this film isn't his finest ever (or even his finest under Terence Fisher), but it's more than solid and, to be honest, Peter Cushing is one of the few actors that could just spend the running time doing nothing and still have this horror fan riveted, such is the power of his screen presence.
By the time they made 'The Mummy' two years later some kind of understanding had been entered into and this movie, though it isn't credited as such, and the characters names have been changed, is pretty much a remake of the 1932 Universal classic which starred Boris Karloff.
The very deadly mummy (Christopher Lee) takes avenge on some archaeologist (Felix Aylmer and his son played by Peter Cushing) who desecrated the tomb of his beloved princess (Ivonne Furneaux in double role ) .
However , the mummy attacks and suddenly stops when believes Furneaux is reincarnation of ancient sweet heart .Horror Hammer classic with effective atmosphere , sense of awe and wonder along with fine performances .
It's followed by ¨Mummy's shroud¨(1967) also produced by Hammer Films, directed by John Gilling with Andre Morell and Elizabeth Sellars.Other pictures about Mummy character are the following : the Universal classic (1933)¨The mummy¨ by Karl Freund with Boris Karloff and David Manners , that ahead many follow-ups as sequels as ¨¨Mummy's hand (1940) with Dick Foran and Cecil Kallaway .
This remake of the remake is a Hammer Horror affair and the beginning of their own "The Mummy" franchise.Starring horror legends Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee it brings The Mummy tale into bold colour and it does the story many favours.Essentially it tells exactly the same story as the 1932 original but blends several moments from the 1940 and beyond remake franchise including a tweek on the part three very dark finale.With strong performances, a highly improved mummy and the usual Hammer Horror charm this is the best "The Mummy" film since the 1932 original.This has now wet my appetite for the other 3 movies.The Good:Couple of well made scenesThe mummy looks greatThe Bad:Very sudden endingA few of the negative Hammer Horror tropesThings I Learnt From This Movie:Mans best friend is a horseDrink driving wasn't a thing when it came to horse and cartsFez's are still a sign of evil.
And one more thing: I never knew that Christopher Lee was a horror film actor back then.The film is about a man name Stephen Banning, who with his father and uncle were on archaeological expedition, and had excavated the lost tomb of the long-dead, Egyptian princess Anaka.
Hammer Films continued its streak of monster movies with "The Mummy", featuring Christopher Lee as an ancient Egyptian priest who comes back to life after his tomb gets disturbed.
Sure enough, there's a woman (Yvonne Furneaux) in Victorian England who looks exactly like an Egyptian princess from 3,000 years ago.The Hammer movies were some of the most fun from this era.
This version of "The Mummy" was made back then and, in my opinion, is the best version of the revengeful reborn Egyptian high priest story ever made and a very good horror sample too.Terence Fisher, and experienced and talented director of the genre, brings a very simple and at the same time entertaining and enjoyable movie.
As far as the old Universal cycle goes, I assume most horror fans agree that the "Karloff" version is the superior one, but the films with Kharis--mostly the ones with Lon Chaney Jr., are a lot of fun as well.
Hammer remakes Universals' "Kharis" series of 1940s mummy movies, with engaging results, in standard tale of "profaners of the tomb" and the consequences that they must face.
In the late 19th century, elderly Stephen Banning (Felix Aylmer), his brother Joseph Whemple (Raymond Huntley), and Stephens' son John (Peter Cushing) lead an expedition that discovers the Egyptian tomb of the Princess Ananka.
The mummy watching over things is Kharis (Sir Christopher Lee), who is brought back to England three years later to dispatch Joseph and the Bannings."The Mummy" is not as thickly atmospheric as the best Hammer films, and those Egyptian scenes do look pretty artificial, but it still delivers quite a bit of fun.
The very gorgeous Yvonne Furneaux doesn't show up until around the one hour mark, but as the wife of Cushings' character, she does play a rather important role, since Mrs. Banning coincidentally bears a resemblance to the Princess.Aylmer and Huntley are joined by other top British character players like Eddie Byrne (as the police inspector), George Pastell (a Hammer repertory player who often specialized in ethnic roles), the ubiquitous Michael Ripper (in a funny comedy relief role as a drunken, frequently frightened poacher), George Woodbridge (as a police constable), and Willoughby Gray (as Dr. Reilly).
Even better is the atmosphere created, the film is beautifully moody, but the scares that any scene with the Mummy creates makes one's hairs stand up on the back of their necks even from a young adult perspective.Peter Cushing plays his mild-mannered role with marvellous crispness, Yvonne Furneaux is beauty personified and George Pastell is a cool "villain" without falling into cartoon territory(for a character that was in danger of doing so).
But Christopher Lee walks away with the film, he oozes with imposing authority as the high priest and is just terrifying as the Mummy, even the look of him freaks you out, a brilliant performance that ranks among his best in a Hammer horror.
Along with uncle Raymond Huntley, Felix Aylmer and Peter Cushing play the rather demonstrative father and son scientists responsible for the desecration of the tomb all of whom the rather energetic mummy Christopher Lee is programmed to kill.
There's nice economy scale production values with an atmospheric use of colour and brooding ancient Egyptian music to go with the mainly convincing serious acting and dialogue; and no cgi cartoonery taking it all over.It's an excellent and engrossing fantasy for all kinds of reasons and I thoroughly enjoyed it yet again (maybe the tenth time now) and recommend it - although for perspective I better own up and state here I preferred the Karloff original and thought the four sequels to it pretty good too while Fraser's sterile updatings were all watchable but far too mechanical..
Here, an archaeological team led by Stephen Banning(played by Felix Aylmer) discover the tomb of Princess Ananka, but also accidentally revive the mummy of Kharis(played by Christopher Lee) driving Stephen into a catatonic state.
Three years later, an Egyptian high priest(played by George Pastel) brings Kharis to England to avenge the tomb desecration, first by killing Stephen, then by going after his son John(played by Peter Cushing) who was also present at the dig.
With the likes of Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, who was rather relentless and grand in appearance as the Mummy/Kharis, they make a film like this watchable, but also add a touch of professionalism.
The script was quite close to the original and starred what was rapidly becoming the greatest team of horror actors Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. They had already been together in Dracula and Frankenstein movies as well as a remake of Conan Doyles "Hound of the Baskervilles" This is a stylish telling of the mummy story, with outstanding performances by the entire cast but especially Lee as Kharis.
Who can ever forget when the mummy does appear, his ripping off of the bars and protective screening and breaking through the window to attack his helpless victim.A classic horror film from the folks at Hammer.If you liked this and the 1932 original, avoid the 1999 remake..
Lee, too, is thoughtful in what is a character with no spoken lines (if Lee does speak, I don't remember it, and I just watched the film), and he is remarkable perhaps due to limitations with his costume or injuries on set or what have you, and he makes him as memorable as the Karloff Mummy; you feel his presence in a room and his eyes do a lot of good work as well.There is a point midway through the film when Cushing reads from the history of this Karras character from thousands of years prior in Egypt when everything went down, and this is the one part of the movie that dragged for me.
I'm a huge fan of Hammer horror, but the mummy has long been my least favourite 'classic' monster and this Technicolor revamp of the Universal series does little to change that fact.The story is run-of-the-mill mummy guff: Mehemet Bey (George Pastell), a devotee of Egyptian god Karnak, revives mummy Kharis (Christopher Lee) to exact revenge upon the archaeologists who desecrated the tomb of high priestess Ananka.
John Banning (Peter Cushing) attempts to defeat the crumbling creature, which has designs on his wife Isobel (Yvonne Furneaux), who, for some unexplained reason, bears an uncanny resemblance to Ananka.With such a creaky script (from the usually reliable Jimmy Sangster), there is precious little director Terence Fisher can do to bring the story to life, and the film offers very few thrills, with only the attack on John Banning's father (Felix Aylmer) in a locked padded cell generating any excitement.
A pretty good mummy movie about John Banning (Peter Cushing) and Kharis (Christopher Lee) - fun to watch.This is NOT a remake of Universal's The Mummy 1932 with Boris Karloff.
There is also the issue of mimicking: Lee has a largely silent role as the Egyptian mummy, save for a flashback scene set in the past where his enduring love for Princess Ananka (Yvonne Furneaux) is revealed.Shot in lurid color, this version of THE MUMMY emphasizes the story's Gothic elements.
I'm going against the majority of views expressed here and not raving about this movie although its certainly better than the 1999 remake.Not one of Hammers best despite good performances by Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee - it never really develops any tension until late on.
The Hammer horror films of the '50's - '70's hold a special place in the hearts of those who love the classic genre, but the reality is that they truly are outdone by the original Universal Pictures predecessors in every way.With this version of The Mummy (1959) we are treated to a "re-imagining" of the story of the eerie, and macabre love story of an ancient Egyptian priest who will sacrifice everything for the forbidden woman of his desires, ultimately becoming the undead creature that is the (movie) Mummy.
He did not have in mind Christopher's Lee lithe athletic performance as the Mummy a world away from Boris Karloff's lumbering monster.Hammer's remake of the Mummy might be low budget which you can tell from the studio bound shots supposedly set in Egypt but comes across more of a mystery adventure film than horror.
Hammer Films' "The Mummy" was released in 1959 and stars Christopher Lee in the eponymous role stalking an archaeologist, played by Peter Cushing, because he was part of the party that desecrated the Egyptian tomb of his beloved, Ananka.If you're a fan of Hammer's horror line, like I am, you'll naturally want to see (or own) this one, but it's definitely one of their lesser films.
For me it is almost sacrilege that British Hammer would attempt to remake the film with Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. Even these two talented gentlemen don't come close to what Karloff and the rest of the cast did not only creating a horror film, but a film of almost unyielding sadness.Some aspects of the Karloff classic are retained, but Hammer also used material from the later Mummy films that Universal did.
Peter Cushing gives a wonderful performance here and his character is very well written and he is also really likable and plays a good hero Christopher Lee is AMAZING as the Kharis the Mummy his walk is quite creepy and he is very convincing he is just astonishing here Yvonne Furneaux is okay here as Banning's wife she is very pretty and gets the job done George Pastell is great here he creep me out  several times Eddie Byrne is great as the inspector and i found him likable there SPOILERS!!!!!
Hammer's behind the scenes crew were truly amazing, making relatively low budget films look like top-whack A pictures for many years.It's Christopher Lee this time who walks away with the acting honours in the title role.
Three years later an Egyptian transports the mummy to England to seek revenge against those who desecrated the Princess' tomb.Another camp Hammer movie, and although it has many flaws, its very scary in parts, and tramples all over Stephen Sommers effects mess.Cushing and Lee prove they are a force to be reckoned with when it comes to tally ho British horror, and though Lee looks like a New Romantic in hi human form, it's his titular character that really shocks on screen.It's probably the best incarnation of the Mummy legend, more exciting than the 1999 version, and just the right side of camp to better the Karloff version..
"Curse of Frankenstein" director Terence Fisher teamed up again with Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee in the Hammer Films' remake of the Boris Karloff classic "The Mummy" (1932) that surpasses it in terms of sheer terror.
Nevertheless, Bey refuses to let the crime of their tomb robbing to go unpunished, and he brings the mummy, Kharis (Christopher Lee of "Curse of Frankenstein"), to England with him to exact revenge not only on Stephen and John Banning, but also on Joseph Whemple.
A Combination of Several Films Rolled Into One. This movie begins with an archaeological expedition headed by a man named "Stephen Banning" (Felix Aylmer) who is looking for the tomb of an ancient Egyptian princess by the name of "Ananka" (played by Yvonne Furneaux).
For me, the best of Hammer's Mummy cycle is the first - The Mummy from 1959, directed by the ever-reliable Terence Fisher, featuring yet another collaboration of the studio's favoured star duo Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee.Egyptologists Stephen Banning (Felix Aylmer), Joseph Whemple (Raymond Huntley) and John Banning (Peter Cushing) discover the long-lost tomb of of the ancient Queen Ananka.
Cushing is crisp and charming as the archaeologist who goes against the threat from Ancient Egypt, and Lee is creepy both in the flashback pharaoh look and bandaged up and limping around, it is a simple enough story, you can tell the 1999 remake borrowed elements of the same storyline, there are only mildly bloody moments and the good old fashioned talkative scenes, it may not be as great as the other Hammer films, but it is a worthwhile classic horror.