'The Mummy' (1932) Movie Review

Hello, fellow moviegoers!
   The Mummy is directed by Karl Freund, and it stars Boris Karloff, Zita Johann, David Manners, and Edward Van Sloan. When a group of archaeologists uncover the mummified remains of the Egyptian priest Imhotep, people start mysteriously dying of “natural causes”. As the mummy searches for the reincarnation of his long lost love, the archaeologists try to unravel (Get it?) the mysteries behind the recent increase in death. 

   The Mummy was a good film, but of all the Universal monster movies that I watched, it was my least favorite. It just didn’t have the same sort of fun energy that was found in all of the other films.
   Boris Karloff did a decent job as Imhotep, the mummy, although he didn’t really feel like a mummy. He just seemed like an average guy who walked a little slow. I got what they were going for, a mummy that could be unnoticeable to the public when walking around, but they didn’t really explain that. They just expected the audience to buy into the fact that this extremely old reanimated corpse looked like anybody else, and it was a bit distracting. This isn’t really a mummy movie, it’s just movie about a dude that lived in Ancient Egypt, and now he’s in modern times (as in 80 years ago).
   In case you haven’t noticed, there is a pattern amongst many of these older films to completely forgo having any falling action. They just let the film end after the climax, and they don’t give any time for the audience to wind down. It’s a flaw that all of these old Universal monster films have had, but it’s a flaw nonetheless, so points docked.
   One thing that I noticed throughout the film as being extremely interesting were the sets. The whole Egyptian setting was a very interesting one. The backgrounds in all of the building and the rooms that they were in felt exquisite. You could almost feel how old they were through the screen, and in that aspect, the film excelled.
   The whole concept they were going for in The Mummy was an extremely interesting one, and the backstory told of Imhotep in his prime in Egypt worked really well, but overall I thought the story failed to meet its potential. It wasn’t bad by any means; it just wasn’t nearly as good as it could have been.

6.5/10

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   What did you think of 1932’s The Mummy? How does it compare to other classic horror films? Let me know by commenting on this post! Also, if you enjoyed this review, share it on Facebook and Twitter. It really helps! Don’t forget, I post every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so check back then for more movie reviews and miscellaneous movie thoughts!
 
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