The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (1964)

Creepy Mummy Make-Up, 4 February 2005

The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (1964) is Hammer's second venture into the world of ancient Egypt. Without giving too much away, the story is similar to all mummy films - an ancient tomb is opened and those who opened it must pay. To many, the film may seem slow to start, but once the mummy is released, things pick up. Terence Morgan, Ronald Howard, and Jeanne Roland are all adequate, but somewhat uninspired. Fred Clark is the brightest spot in the movie as the wealthy Alexander King. Clark's character, obviously inspired by PT Barnum, is a breath of fresh air to this otherwise predictable mummy story. He is looking to cash in on the mummy by presenting it as some sort of sideshow spectacle. The mummy make-up is good - the most obvious comparison would be to that of Kharis in the Universal mummy sequels. Also, like Kharis and unlike Christopher Lee in Hammer's first mummy film, this mummy walks and moves in a more "normal" pace. He is not the athletic mummy played by Lee.

After reading this it may sound as if I didn't like The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb. While not the best mummy movie or the best Hammer film, it's still fun - especially the final third of the movie.

6/10