The evolution of the mummy monster

1. Evolution of The Mummy

2. The beginnings
One of the first mummy movies was called
Robbing Cleopatra's Tomb (1899). The short
silent film was about a man who chops the
mummy of Cleopatra into pieces then
resurrects her, however this is a lost film.

3. Tutankhamun’s tomb
The main inspiration of
ancient Egypt coming into
the world of cinema was
the discovery of
Tutankhamun’s tomb in
1922. The popularity of the
tomb increased due to the
deaths of a few people who
opened the tomb. These
deaths made the public
believe that there was a
curse placed on the tomb.

4. Tutankhamun’s tomb
In ancient Egypt, a warning
was usually inscribed on
the outer walls of the tomb
to stop any robbers. Even
though the curse was an
urban legend, the media
publicity encouraged the
legend. This event was
after WW1 which gave
people a distraction from
the misery.

5. The Mummy Franchise
With the success of Dracula
(1931), the creator, Carl
Laemmle Jr., wanted to create
another supernatural movie.
He produced The Mummy
(1932) which gave the monster
its typical portrayal. The actor
Boris Karloff played Imhotep, a
high priest who was
mummified for falling in love
with the Pharaoh’s daughter.
After being revived, Imhotep
searches for the reincarnation
of his lover.

6. The Mummy Franchise
In The Mummy (1932), Karloff only appeared in
bandages for some minutes while throughout the
rest of the film he looks more human as well as
being able to walk and talk. However, the sequels
showed the mummy to be a nonspeaking brute
who is unable to walk properly. The movies in the
franchise are The Mummy’s Hand (1940), The
Mummy’s Tomb (1942), The Mummy’s Ghost
(1944), The Mummy’s Curse (1944) and a follow up
spoof called Abbot and Costello Meet the Mummy
(1955).

7. The Mummy Franchise

8. Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film is a British film production company
that are best known for their horror films. In the
late 1950’s, the production company created a
series of mummy films. The first was The Mummy
(1959) that was based on Carl Laemmle Jr.’s The
Mummy (1932). The film stared famous actors
Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. Other movies
that were produced are The Curse of the
Mummy’s Tomb (1964), The Mummy’s Shroud
(1966) and Blood from the Mummy’s Tomb
(1971). All films are unrelated to each other.

9. Hammer Film Productions

10. Remake
Universal Studios created The Mummy
in 1999 that was based off the film
of the same name in 1932. The
mummy in this movie was again
called Imhotep and was not a brute
like other mummies. In ancient
Egypt, Imhotep was the high priest
for Pharaoh Seti 1, who had a love
affair with the Pharaoh’s mistress,
Anck-su-Namun. Imhotep was
mummified alive and cursed. Set in
1926, Imhotep was accidentally
resurrected by the Book of the
Dead and he searches a way to
resurrect Anck-su-Namun.

11. Remake
The Mummy (1999) spawned
two more movies, The
Mummy Returns (2001)
and The Mummy: Tomb of
the Dragon Emperor
(2008). From The Mummy
Returns, a prequel was
created called The Scorpion
King (2002). This film also
produced another prequel
called The Scorpion 2:Rise
of a Warrior and a sequel,
The Scorpion King 3: Battle
for Redemption.

12. Remake
The Mummy: Tomb of the
Dragon Emperor did not
feature a mummy and
instead was centred
around a Chinese
emperor preserved in
terra cotta. A short
animated series called
The Mummy, was based
off the 1999 franchise
and ran from 2001 to
2003.

13. Controversies
Appropriation
The movies present Egypt in a manner that is not true. The audience learn
about the culture of Egypt with the lack of correct facts. Movies have
chosen what they want to take from history and presented it in a way
that only highlighted what they wanted you to see.
Historical inaccuracy
Ancient Egypt in films is always based on legends and superstitions. An
example of this is that there is no evidence to consider that ancient
Egyptians actually believed in mummies returning from the dead.
Cultural Division
Films constantly present British and Americans as being the heroes. For
example, in The Mummy (1999), the lead English heroine deciphers the
hieroglyphics instead of an Egyptian and its the American and British
that save the world.