Mummy, The (1959) (DVD)

Beautfully shot, very well acted especially by the two leads Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee (even if he is quiet and bandaged for most of his screen time), Lee manages to stir up some chills and even some sympathy for the creepy title character. (SPOILERS): Archaleogists open up the sealed tomb of Princess Anaka, despite the warnings of Mehemet Bey not to 'disturb the ever-lasting peace' of the dead as he puts it later in the film. They ignore him and do it anyway, thus encouraging the wrath of Mehemet and especially Kharis aka the Mummy. Stephen Banning, the father of John Banning (Cushing) is the first victim, losing his sanity and being placed in a retirement home. He regains a bit of it 3 years later, warning John that the Mummy is coming to kill all of them for opening the tomb of the princess. But Banning Sr.'s fears turn out not to unfounded as Mehemet Bey has come to England and reads the Scroll of Life that unleashes Kharis and carries out the Egyptian's orders to destroy the archaleogists who dared entered the tomb of Kharis' beloved. John's father is the first victim, as Kharis breaks through the bars and crashes through the window of his padded cell and without mercy, strangles him. John's uncle goes next as the mummy rips apart the doors of John's house and likewise chokes the life out of him. John is to be the third and last victim, and the mummy very nearly succeeds in killing him but is stopped when John's wife Isobel enters and Kharis sees her as the image of his beloved Anaka. When Mehemet orders Kharis to kill her, Kharis rebels against his Egyptian benefector and instead kills him and carries Isobel off. He carries her deep into the swamp, but fortunately, John and the police arrive to save her. Surprisingly (or maybe not) Kharis lets her go when she tells him too. But Kharis himself is destroyed in the end with the Scroll of Life in his hand after being shot down, he slumps into the swamp. This is my favorite version of the Mummy and in my opinion is the best. The 1932 version was okay, but it's not the kind of movie I'd watch over and over again. And the Hammer version definitely beats the newer Brendan Fraser versions by a long shot....they may have better effects but were real short on the emotional depth. Again I say Cushing and Lee are brilliant as always....you can't help but feel sorry for the mummy when he sees Cushing's wife...even with the muddled bandages covered all over him you can see the pain and longing in his eyes. And I loved how Cushing was just bating Mehemet Bey when he was somewhat confronting him (both very subtle like at times and outright daring in others) about his beliefs in the Egyptian religions and his disdain for archaelogists who go out opening tombs of those who are long dead. You can't go wrong with Cushing and Lee or with director Terence Fisher who also directed them in The Curse of Frankenstein, Horror of Dracula and The Gorgon. This is another winning combination and well worth viewing.

Classic hammer

This movie is a classic mummy at it's best! Best cast such as Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing together in this Hammer film horror! This film I could watch again and again on those rainy nights or late Friday nights for a creature feature. This film is way better than that Brendon Fraser film cause that one sucks and this is the real mummy movie that most of us grew up with and what it's supposed to look like. The blue ray version is an upgrade from it's previous dvd release and the picture is much better. Now do not expect a demo type picture quality of the movie cause you have to realize that this movie is decades old! But you will not be disappointed with it's current version on blue ray because it's a lot better than the last time you saw this film on a none HD format. The only complaint that I have is that the studios never seems to put the pamphlet or mini booklet inside anymore where you can read about the film and see the program track scenes! It's just the jewel case and cover and the disc is what you get. But yes do get this one if you are a true fan of 1950's mummy films. Don't get the Brendan Fraser version cause that one sucks!

This is the Hammer version of the story, with two major actors playing the lead roles. Not as exciting as the 1999 version (which is very much more of an action film than a Mummy movie), this does move the action to England, introducing some amusing locals. It loses nothing by this -- it is tense and scary.

This is, for my taste, the best mummy film ever made hands down (and you have to know that I am a big fan of the Charlton Heston movie "The Awakening" too). But Christopher Lee's performance is both moving and entertaining, and Peter Cushing is not far behind in his great role. These Hammer films were often masterpieces of occult and mystery fiction, and "The Mummy" might be the peak of this very memorable mountain of movies. The women are beautiful, the characters are involving, and the story moves quickly enough without sacrificing its studied pacing for idiot action moments to keep the peanut gallery munching. The Warner DVD is very nice, a bit shy on extras for such a classic film, but nice to have the trailer and a clean print of the film in any case. Only Karloff's 1932 Mummy movie could possibly compete with this one--if you are wise, you will avoid the 1999 remake travesty which didn't even have the smarts to understand that "The Mummy" was not a comedy. But at least we have this film to remind us of how good things can be when films are done right. Hammer, once again, saved the day.

La 3e pierre de taille, après The Curse of Frankenstein et Dracula, qui a fait la réputation de la Hammer... Édition très très riche et de très grande qualité avec le film en 1.66, mais aussi en 1.37, avec une image et un son au meilleur de leurs capacités. La section bonus est une fois encore méga-riche en documentaires, commentaire audio instructif, dossier pdf, galerie photos...+ un long métrage (1h10 env') signé Terrence Fisher ! de quoi ravir les fanas de la Hammer, de Peter Cushing et Christopher Lee... Attention cependant : aucun sous-titre, ni de V.F. Tout est en anglais.

In color too, I was really blown away by this 1959 classic movie when I was a little kid; with legends like Christopher Lee and Pete Cushing, it's the anticipation and the way the mummy moves that's scary!

Film definitivo sulla classica storia della mummia, basato sul film del 1932 con Boris Karloff. Il trio Fisher, Cushing, Lee ancora vincente come in molti altri film della Hammer. Qui Christopher Lee recita con gli occhi, un pezzo di grande bravura. C'è anche da ammirare una splrndida Yvonne Furneaux. Ottima sceneggiatura che rende il film dinamico ed emozionante dall'inizio alla fine. Video nitido, con i bellissimi ricchi colori tipici della Hammer. Altra caratteristica della Hammer è la estesa latitudine delle sue pellicole, grazie alla quale le scene buie o notturne sono sempre ben visibili .... nei film di altre case cinematografiche questo spesso non avviene. Buono il sonoro con il doppiaggio italiano originale dell'epoca. Film da cineteca.

Cuando Christopher Lee y Peter Cushing trabajaban juntos en una película de terror eran unos verdaderos maestros del genero.

European buyers, save your money because this is region 1 and will only play in USA or Canada. Not for European dvd-players! Unless you own a region free player that is.