Blood From The Mummy's Tomb (1971)

Directed by Seth Holt (with Michael Carreras uncredited)

Produced by Howard Brandy

Starring Andrew Keir, Valerie Leon, James Villiers, Hugh Burden, George Coulouris, Mark Edwards, Rosalie Crutchley, Aubrey Morris

Film Review

For fans of 'old school' horror such as myself, Seth Holt's "Blood From The Mummy's Tomb" harkens back to an era where the power of suggestion played havoc with the subconscious, and the genre was a more prosaically, and better scripted and acted, place to dwell. With the advent of the seventies, and the fevered reaction to the Vietnam War taking centre-stage in the collective consciousness, the output of Hammer Studios was threatening to wither and die against much of the more promiscuous and provocative works flooding abroad from the United States. Lifting its premise from Bram Stoker's "Jewel Of The Seven Stars", "Mummy's Tomb" has since gone on to garner something of a cult reputation, as well as proving to be one of the studio's final stabs at true Gothic horror before it caved in to the whims of public demand. Troubled from its outset, with the loss of lead actor Peter Cushing, and completed under another director (Michael Carreras) when Holt succumbed to a heart attack during shooting, it's a surprise the film wasn't simply abandoned and left shelved indefinitely. Thankfully, the final result is an adventurous step left-field for Hammer into grim psychological terror that stands as a fitting ode to an age where a strong script was common place, and gory theatrics were not the motivating force behind the production.

Egyptologist Professor Julian Fuchs (Kier), along with his collaborative team of explorers, Corbeck (Villiers), Geoffrey Dandridge (Burden), Berrigan (Coulouris) and Helen Dickerson (Crutchley), unearth the tomb of evil Egyptian queen Tera. At the moment of his discovery, Fuchs' is borne a daughter at home in London, losing his wife in delivery. Returning to the British Isles with both the perfectly preserved queen and her unholy artifacts, the excavation team vow never to speak of their discovery, and all remains silent for two decades. Come Fuchs' daughter, Margaret's (Leon) 21st birthday, the Professor imparts to her a mysterious, though beautiful, ring requesting that she always wear the gift. As time passes, members of Fuchs' expedition begin to turn up dead, the victims of grisly ritualistic murders, leading Margaret's boyfriend Tod (Edwards) to believe that she is implicated in something far more sinister than she is aware. Only Fuchs' partner, Corbeck, is privy to the truth, as well as the magnitude of the cataclysmic consequences of their collective secret. What lies within Fuchs' feverishly guarded basement? And what is his daughter's connection to their unholy discovery?

Holt (and Carrera's) film is a marvelously subversive work of finely styled British horror that only could have ever emanated from the illustrious vaults of Bray Studios. I hardly expect such a staid, and virtually bloodless, dramatic thriller to set the modern horror community alight, but students of older, more suggestive horror will surely be thrilled with what "Blood From The Mummy's Tomb" has to offer. It is undoubtedly head and shoulders above the stultifyingly dull reworking of Stoker's novel, Mike Newell's "The Awakening" (1980), that would follow it a decade later. Working from a finely crafted script by Christopher Wicking, Holt imbued his work with a richly textured atmosphere literally brimming with the seductive power of all-encompassing evil. In retrospect, Wicking seems finely suited to the film's predominant theme of the 'seductive face of evil', having previously explored similar themes in Gordon Hessler's "Cry Of The Banshee" (1970), and again in Peter Sykes' successive "Demons Of The Mind" (1972) and the oft-overlooked "To The Devil A Daughter" (1976).

But evil never looked so seductive as it did in the form of the glamorous Brit screen icon, Valerie Leon. Leon dominates the film with her sheer physical presence and bombshell good-looks. Even though reportedly dubbed by another voice actress, I doubt the screen will ever see another actress with the physical grace, or striking beauty, of Ms. Leon again, and "Mummy's Tomb" captures the eloquent magnificence of her beauty at its prime. It's hardly a stretch of the imagination to comprehend why the plot's main characters strive to possess her, and hold themselves in awe of her. Offset against the charming attributes of Leon, Kier is relegated to a peripheral presence, while Villiers takes foreground as the enigmatic and malevolent Corbeck, with only noted character actor Aubrey Morris left to shine amongst the remaining cast as the Fuchs' faintly eccentric physician. However, Coulouris and Burden acquit themselves with dignity, whereas Australian Edwards is instantly forgettable.

What does surprise is the notable fact that it is virtually impossible to detect where Carreras' work begins, and Holt's work ends. Twin directors often clash stylistically, but perfect balance is achieved herein, executing a work that remains solely the credit of Holt. Of additional bonus, Tristram Cary's score is indicative of much of Hammer's work, without being as intrusively bombastic as some of the studio's musical accompaniment, working well within the structure of Holt's gradual build to the film's shock climax. Perhaps most surprising, considering the film's 'PG' classification, is its often grisly death scenes which, although largely 'after the fact', are awash with gaping throat wounds and spouting blood. However, I expect these gruesome sequences to largely be dismissed by modern splatter-fans, as they are not the central focus of the narrative. What is though, is a pervasively mounting aura of impending evil, some fine performances, and an intelligently constructed script that trades on its strengths rather than its weaknesses. I, for one, would trade "Mummy's" cumulative strong points for a dozen cookie-cutter splatter flicks anyday. As it stands, it is a strong transition of the Gothic formula to a (then) modern setting, albeit without any concessions to the 'swinging seventies' that would cause to overly date it. For myself, a rapturous trip down memory lane and a fine ode to what Hammer may have been had they not bowed to public pressure. Sadly, such joyous days are gone…

Disc Review

Anchor Bay, once again, turn out a superb disc transfer of a Hammer film that displays a marvelous eye for Eastmancolor cinematography in all of its glory. Letterboxed at the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85 and anamorphically enhanced, "Blood From The Mummy's Tomb" looks dated in its colour schemes, but richly and nostalgically so. There is virtually no print damage visible to the naked eye, and the image shows obvious signs of a complete digital clean-up and restoration. Colours are rendered true to their Eastmancolor origins, detail is crisp and clear, and shadow detail & blacks are equally well rendered. In a word, "Mummy's Tomb" now looks as strikingly gorgeous on disc as it did back on original cinema release. Audio is similarly overhauled well, with a pleasing Dolby digital 2 channel monaural mix that smoothes out and improves the fidelity of the analogue source. Based upon the respectful treatment afforded this Hammer horror by Anchor Bay (my first purchase from their range), you can be assured I will be delving into their back catalogue of Bray Studios classics with much haste!

Additional features are inclusively rewarding, commencing with "Curse of Blood From The Mummy's Tomb", a short (9m) interview segment with star Valerie Leon and writer Christopher Wicking. This featurette shows both parties recalling the film with some affection, and mapping out the film's troubled history with sometimes surprising frankness. Also included are the film's original Theatrical trailer (1.85), a US TV spot (from video source materials), and a brief selection of Radio spots accompanied by a variety of international poster art. Rounding out the extras is a Stills gallery that encompasses number production & publicity shots, as well as some wonderful publicity clips of Ms. Leon. Dig not too deep and you might also discover an Easter egg that unearths rare stills of Peter Cushing's single day of shooting on set before his wife's illness prevented him from continuing in the role that was later filled by Andrew Kier. Lastly, as well as the mandatory 4pp booklet, the initial pressing of 10,000 discs includes a bonus Hammer trailers disc, showcasing the existing Anchor Bay catalogue, clocking up 20 trailers & approx. 60m.

If you are at all a fan of this film, one of Hammer's more adventurous forays into unsettling psychological horror that has been much overlooked & unfairly maligned, then Anchor Bay's disc is the ONLY way to see it. It truly breathes new life into an underrated classic.

Review by Mike Thomason

© 2001, Icon In Black Media