The Mummy (1959 film)

The Mummy

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Terence Fisher
Produced by Michael Carreras
Anthony Nelson Keys
Written by Jimmy Sangster
Starring Peter Cushing
Christopher Lee
Yvonne Furneaux
Eddie Byrne
George Pastell
Music by Franz Reizenstein
Cinematography Jack Asher
Edited by Alfred Cox
James Needs
Production
company
Distributed by Universal-International
Release dates
 25 September 1959 (UK)
Running time
 88 minutes
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Budget £125,000[1]
Box office 857,243 admissions (France)[2]

The Mummy is a 1959 British horror film, directed by Terence Fisher and starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. It was written by Jimmy Sangster and produced by Michael Carreras and Anthony Nelson Keys for Hammer Film Productions.

Though the title suggests Universal Pictures' 1932 film of the same name, the film actually derives its plot and characters entirely from two earlier Universal films, The Mummy's Hand and The Mummy's Tomb, with the climax borrowed directly from The Mummy's Ghost. The character name Joseph Whemple, the use of a sacred scroll, and a few minor plot elements are the only connections with the 1932 version.

Plot

In Egypt in 1895, archaeologists John Banning (Cushing), his father Stephen (Felix Aylmer) and his uncle Joseph Whemple (Raymond Huntley) are searching for the tomb of Princess Ananka, the high priestess of the god Karnak. John has a broken leg and cannot accompany his father and uncle when they open the tomb (According to Cushing's diary, he had twisted his leg before the filming, so the script was adapted to let him recover). Before they enter, an Egyptian named Mehemet Bey (George Pastell) warns them not to go in, lest they face the fatal curse against desecrators. Stephen and Joseph ignore him, and discover within the sarcophagus of Ananka. After Joseph leaves to tell John the good news, Stephen finds the Scroll of Life and reads from it. He then screams off-screen and is found in a catatonic state.

Three years later, back in England, Stephen Banning comes out of his catatonia at the Engerfield Nursing Home for the Mentally Disordered, and sends for his son. He tells him that when he read from the Scroll of Life, he unintentionally brought back to life Kharis (Lee), the mummified high priest of Karnak. He was sentenced to be entombed alive to serve as the guardian of Princess Ananka's tomb as punishment for attempting to bring her back to life out of forbidden love. Now, Stephen tells his disbelieving son that Kharis will hunt down and kill all those who desecrated Ananka's tomb.

Meanwhile, Mehemet Bey, revealed as a devoted worshiper of Karnak, comes to Engerfield under the alias of Mehemet Akir to wreak vengeance on the Bannings. He hires a pair of drunken carters, Pat and Mike, to bring the slumbering Kharis in a crate to his rented home, but the two men's drunken driving cause Kharis' crate to fall off and sink into a bog. Later, using the Scroll of Life, Mehemet exhorts Kharis to rise from the mud, then sends him to murder Stephen Banning. When Kharis kills Joseph Whemple the next night, he does so before the eyes of John Banning, who shoots him with a revolver at close range, but to no effect.

Police Inspector Mulrooney is assigned to solve the murders but, because he is sceptical and deals only in "cold, hard facts", he does not believe John's incredible story about a killer mummy, even when John tells him that he is likely to be Kharis' third victim. While Mulrooney investigates, John notices that his wife Isobel bears an uncanny resemblance to Princess Ananka. Gathering testimonial evidence from other individuals in the community, Mulrooney slowly begins to wonder if the mummy is real.

Mehemet Bey sends the mummy to the Bannings' home to slay his final victim. However, when Isobel rushes to her husband's aid, Kharis sees her, releases John, and leaves. Mehemet Bey mistakenly believes that Kharis has completed his task, and prepares to return to Egypt. John, suspecting Mehemet Bay of being the one controlling the mummy, pays him a visit, much to his surprise.

After John leaves, Mehemet Bey leads Kharis in a second attempt on John's life. The mummy knocks Mulrooney unconscious, while Mehemet Bey deals with another policeman guarding the house. Kharis finds John in his study and starts to choke him. Alerted by John's shouts, Isobel runs to the house without Mulrooney; at first, the mummy does not recognise her, but John tells her to loose her hair and the mummy releases John. When Mehemet orders Kharis to kill Isobel, he refuses; Mehemet tries to murder Isobel himself and is killed instead by Kharis. The mummy carries the unconscious Isobel into the swamp, followed by John, Mulrooney and other policemen. John yells to Isobel; when she regains consciousness, she tells Kharis to put her down. The mummy reluctantly obeys. When Isobel has moved away from him, the policemen open fire, causing Kharis to sink into a mire, taking the Scroll of Life with him.

Cast

Production

Originally the scenes of Kharis' tongue cut out, and shotgun demise were more graphic, but were trimmed for the British censor. [3]

In the video, Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Heritage of Horror, Peter Cushing claims that he suggested the scene in which he drives a spear through the mummy. He was inspired by the pre-release poster (see image above) which shows the mummy with a shaft of light passing through it. [4]

Critical reception

The Mummy was a success with critics. The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films wrote of the film: "Structurally little more than a string of picturesque and nice-lit killings, The Mummy's melancholic presentation and romantic undertow grants it a certain atmosphere which elevates this bandaged brute far beyond its cinematic predecessors."[1] It currently holds a very positive 100% "Fresh" on film review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes with a rating average of 7.9/10 based on 8 reviews.[5]

In other media

The film was adapted into a 12-page comic strip for the July 1978 issue of the magazine Hammer's Halls of Horror.[6] It was drawn by David Jackson from a script by Steve Moore. The cover of the issue featured a painting by Brian Lewis of Christopher Lee as Kharis.

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 Marcus Hearn & Alan Barnes, The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films, Titan Books, 2007 p 43
  2. ↑ Box office information for Terence Fisher films in France at Box office Story
  3. ↑ A History of Horrors: The Rise and Fall of the House of Hammer Denis Meikle, page 79.
  4. ↑ Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Heritage of Horror (DVD). 1994.
  5. ↑ "The Mummy (1959) - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes.com. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  6. ↑ Hammer's Halls of Horror (Top Sellers Limited) 2 (22). Missing or empty |title= (help)

Bibliography

External links

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