Trust Hollywood to make the uncanniest of movies. And what better topic once again, than the mysteries of Egypt. WE have seen a lot of such movies in the past featuring the various curses etc for those daring to break into the burial chambers.
The film I am gonna talk about now, is one such movie, set in the early era (1930’s ), but made with the special effects of the millenium.
The movie understandably is ’The Mummy’. The film starts with the narrative of why u are gonna watch it. It tells the story of Imohtep (the high priest), his love who happens to be the Pharoah’s mistress. Together the two kill the Pharoah, making a pact, that Imohtep will resurrect her ( why else would he be priest? ).
Alas, the director..oops! the pharoahs’ bodyguards put a wedge into their plans, and Imohtep is unable to bring his girlfriend back to life. Then, Imohtep and his band of golden priests are mummified alive, of course Imohtep’s mummification is of the worst order..buried alive with beetle’s. ugh!
And so it is said, that if Imohtep is released from his sarcophagus, he’d bring with him plagues galore, that he’d have power over the sands..la de dah.
Now, what do we go from here..ah yes...a battle takes place on the same evil grounds of Hamunptra ( the place where Imhotep is buried). Many die - attributed to the evil, and it is here that our gun brandishing hero (B fraser), makes his appearance a la Rambo style. All of it just to get the audience to let go his earlier film image (george of the jungle).
And so the scene shifts, to a library and some scene’s attempting to raise humor, and we come to the tryst. Who else, but the heroine, a demure librarian and her brother..to discover a lost map in a box leading to where else, but Hamunptra.Unfortunately, the location of the map gets burnt in a fire. How else does the hero get in huh?
And so it is that, he is rescued from the prison (wonder how he got there in the first place?), by the gal, by bribing the warden.
And then they set off, and are met by more men ( to add to the body count in the end) who are off to Hptra. A wee bit of misadvenure of the ship, enabling more of gunplay, a dive into the river, a few wry one liners, and alls well.
Come morning, everyone heads for the cursed place. Ofcourse, the good guys make it there first. Then we have the frolicky 4some digging at one place, while the others, get to the cursed box (containing Imohteps girl’s parts in some jars). These and some mysterious black book - to bring him back to life.
The heroine, who happens to be well versed in the hieroglyphics, manages to read out an incantation, that sets Imohtep free. he is still a mummy, but knows that by destroying the jar bearers, and sucking them dry, he will get back his body. And the reunion with his gal, one step to immortality.From mummy to daddy..in 5 steps.
So how do you stop this evil priest? Aha, there is now a gold book, which can reverse the situation. But where is it? Time is running short, and the librarian is kidnapped.This so that she can be sacrificed to brin back his dead gal to life.
Finally , in the nick of time, the heroine, saves the hero from being beaten black n blue, but reciting another incantation, that makes imohtep mortal. And so, he is killed, but not before he warns u of a sequel to come...
All in all, the film was watchable courtsey, the special effects.The story was uninspiring. The cast was just so so.
All I can say, is that lucky me.. I did not spend money to see it in the theatre.