Movie Monday January 16: The Mummy (1932)

I’m kicking off a month long Movie Monday dedicated to my favorite franchise, The Mummy movies, with the original. I’d never seen the original with Boris Karloff, but I’m a fan of old films, especially pre-code Hollywood.

**Warning, mild spoilers ahead, so if you haven’t watched the movie yet, what are you doing?**

During a dig in 1921 Egypt, a group of archaeologists find the sarcophagus of Imhotep, a man buried alive for sacrilege. They also find a chest with the Scroll of Thoth, an ancient text containing the power to raise the dead. Dr. Muller (Edward Van Sloan) warns leader Sir Joseph Whemple (Arthur Byron) of the curse attached to the sarcophagus and scroll. Sir Joseph’s assistant Ralph (Bramwell Fletcher), however, reads from the scroll and awakens the mummy. He then goes mad from what he’s seen and later dies in an asylum. Over ten years later Imhotep, now disguised as Ardeth Bey, approaches Frank Whemple (David Manners), Sir Joseph’s son, with the location of the tomb of Ankh-esen-amun, a princess and priestess of Isis. The findings are then sent to the Cairo museum. There, Frank has a chance meeting there with Helen Grosvenor (Zita Johann), a half-Egyptian woman staying with Dr. Muller. She is called there in a trance by Imhotep’s magic. It’s later revealed she’s Ankh-esen-amun reincarnated. Imhotep is desperate to fully reincarnate the princess, his lost love who he once tried to bring back from the dead. He uses his magic to kill Sir Joseph, hypnotize a Nubian servant, and continuously mess with Helen’s mind. Frank, who’s fallen in love with her, and Dr. Muller vow to protect Helen at all costs. After a time, however, they must allow her to go to Imhotep in order to stop him. Once there she remembers more of her past life when Imhotep tries to kill, mummify, and revive her. Because of her memories, she’s able to call on Isis to stop Imhotep once and for all.

What Do I Think?

Though I enjoyed The Mummy, it’s a fairly slow paced film that jumps forward in time several times, making it hard to follow the story towards the end. There’s a lot less action than the remakes, but I can definitely see the influence the original had on them. The basic premise of the first remake is similar, albeit with a lot more shootouts, archeology, and CGI, but there is also a lot of the sequel in the original. Reincarnation, past lives, magic flashback sequences, I actually see more of The Mummy Returns in this film.

The plot itself reminds me of the famous Carter expedition and the superstition around ancient Egyptian curses. Though history would later prove it was all accidents, bad timing, and possibly fungus, the 1930s were still going with the theory of curses. The craze for and influence of Egyptian history and culture was still around at the time as well. Though stronger in the late Victorian era and early 20th century, stories about ancient Egypt, the Middle East, and the ancient world in general were only getting started in the film industry. 

Boris Karloff is a name synonymous with the original monster and horror movies, his most famous role being Frankenstein’s monster. This is his only appearance as Imhotep, the sequels of the original film focused on a different mummy and different actors. The Mummy is another entry in the later coined Universal Classic Monsters Franchise. Karloff plays this part very well, mixing the expressionless Ardeth with the fearsome Imhotep. The closeups on his face are especially effective in making Imhotep scary and intimidating. What’s different from the later Imhotep, however, is that the story paints him as a sympathetic villain. He’s not the Nosferatu type who’s barely human. The flashback shows that he was a man who only wanted to save his love from death. The remake version has some humanity, again mostly in the second movie, but is still very much a traditional villain.

The rest of the cast and story are interesting enough to keep me engaged, but the film tries to do a lot with a 73 minute run time. There’s mostly horror elements mixed with some action and romance. I kind of stopped caring about the romance almost as soon as it was introduced.  I really enjoyed Zita Johann’s portrayal of a woman possessed, but her character (like many from this era) is little more than a damsel in distress. In the end, though, she is the one to rescue herself with a little help from a goddess. The men around her do very little to help her affliction, other than confining her to bed. 

One thing about old movies that I love are the practical effects. As someone from a theater background, it’s nice to see movies without lots of CGI or special effects. Older movies don’t have that technology, so they have to rely on traditional stage craft. There isn’t a whole lot in The Mummy, but the moments they do have are seamless and don’t look super fake or like effects at all.

Though I enjoyed The Mummy, I agree it might not be for everyone today. It’s probably not a film I’d watch again and again, but it’s definitely a classic any film student or buff should watch. If you love black-and-white movies, old school horror, or Boris Karloff, this is the film for you.

One moment I would change:

Spoiler alert, but a dog dies in The Mummy. I’m not really sure why and didn’t fully realize it was happening (like much of the violence in this movie, it happens off screen). It doesn’t add much to the story, other than showing Helen’s memory gaps.

I’d give The Mummy (1932) 6.5 lucky pendants out of 10.