The Mummy's Ghost
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''The Mummy's Ghost'' is a 1944 American
horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...
directed by
Reginald Le Borg Reginald Le Borg (11 December 1902 – 25 March 1989) was an Austrian film director. He was born in Vienna, Austria with the surname Groebel and directed 68 films between 1936 and 1974. Le Borg made a series of low-budget horror films at Un ...
. It is the second of three sequels to that company's ''
The Mummy's Hand ''The Mummy's Hand'' is a 1940 American black-and-white horror film directed by Christy Cabanne and produced by Ben Pivar for Universal Studios. The film is about the ancient Egyptian mummy of Kharis (Tom Tyler), who is kept alive with a brew o ...
'' of 1940. The film is the sequel to ''
The Mummy's Tomb ''The Mummy's Tomb'' is a 1942 American horror film directed by Harold Young and starring Lon Chaney Jr. as Kharis the mummy. Taking place 30 years after the events of ''The Mummy's Hand'', where Andoheb (George Zucco) has survived and plans reve ...
'' (1942).
Lon Chaney, Jr. Creighton Tull Chaney (February10, 1906 – July12, 1973), known by his stage name Lon Chaney Jr., was an American actor known for playing Larry Talbot in the film '' The Wolf Man'' (1941) and its various crossovers, Count Alucard (Dra ...
again takes on the role of
Kharis Kharis () is a character featured in Universal Studios's ''Mummy'' series in the 1940s following their original 1932 film ''The Mummy'', which starred Boris Karloff as a different mummy character, Imhotep, though their backstories are practicall ...
the
mummy A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the recovered body does not decay fu ...
. The story was continued in the 1944 sequel ''
The Mummy's Curse ''The Mummy's Curse'' is a 1944 American Universal Pictures horror film, directed by Leslie Goodwins. It is the third and final sequel to that company's ''The Mummy's Hand'' of 1940. The film is the sequel to ''The Mummy's Ghost'' (1944) and the ...
''.


Plot

Andoheb, the aging High Priest of Arkam, has summoned Yousef Bey to the Temple of Arkam to pass on the duties of High Priest. Meanwhile, in Mapleton, Massachusetts, Professor Matthew Norman, who had examined one of Kharis' missing bandage pieces during the mummy's last spree through Mapleton, also explains the legends of the Priests of Arkam and Kharis to his history class, who are less than believing. After the lecture ends, one of the students, Tom Hervey, meets up with his girlfriend Amina Mansori, a beautiful woman of Egyptian descent. However, a strange, clouded feeling in her mind occurs whenever the subject of Egypt is mentioned. Back in Egypt, Andoheb informs Yousef Bey that Kharis still lives and that Yousef's mission is to retrieve Kharis and the body of Ananka and return them to their rightful resting place in Egypt. Yousef Bey pledges his devotion before Andoheb explains that during each full moon, Yousef Bey is to brew the fluid from nine tana leaves. Kharis will sense this and find the leaves wherever they are. On performing the ceremony, Kharis heads toward them but passes the home of Amina who follows Kharis in a trance-like state. Kharis arrives at the home of Professor Norman, strangles him, and drinks the fluid of the tana leaves. Amina sees Kharis, which snaps her out of her trance and causes her to faint and forms a strange new birthmark on her wrist. The next morning, the Sheriff and Coroner discover a strange mold around the dead professor's throat – a sign they both know to mean that the mummy stalks Mapleton again. Later, Yousef Bey, who has arrived in Mapleton, calls on Amon-Ra to aid him in his quest and begins to brew the tana leaves to summon Kharis. Kharis heads towards him, killing a farmer along the way. As the sheriff soon arrives on the scene and organizes a search party. The next day, at the Scripps Museum, Yousef Bey emerges after hours from a hiding place as Kharis breaks into the museum. Kharis attempts to touch the mummified body of Anaka, but it disintegrates. Yousef Bey realizes that Ananka's soul has been reincarnated into another form as Kharis begins destroying the exhibit, killing the museum security guard. Police Inspector Walgreen and Dr. Ayad arrive later and decide to use the tana leaves to attract and trap Kharis in a pit. Meanwhile, Tom disregards the Sheriff's warning and decides to elope with Amina to New York. She agrees and the two make plans to leave early the next morning. Yousef Bey calls upon Amon-Ra to lead him to the new home of Ananka's soul and then sends Kharis in that direction to find Ananka. As Inspector Walgreen sets the trap by for Kharis, Kharis immediately heads toward the Norman home. Amina is awakened by his approach and hypnotically wanders into the yard where Kharis recognizes her as the carrier of Ananka's soul. Amina faints as Kharis carries her away. Amina's guardian Mrs. Blake phones Tom and tells her story to Inspector Walgreen, Sheriff Elwood, and a large group of volunteers. Kharis arrives at the mill and presents Amina to Bey. Bey recognizes the birthmark as the symbol of the priests of Arkam. Amina awakens and the priest informs her that she is the reincarnation of Ananka. Yousef Bey falls for Amina's beauty and desires to keep her alive as his bride with the tana leaves. This plan enrages Kharis, leading to a fight where Bey falls out a window to his death. Tom enters and after failing to stop Kharis, finds him leaving with Amina. A mob pursues Kharis into a swamp where both he and the rapidly aging Amina sink.


Cast

Cast sourced from the book ''Universal Horrors'':


Production

''The Mummy's Ghost'' was directed by
Reginald Le Borg Reginald Le Borg (11 December 1902 – 25 March 1989) was an Austrian film director. He was born in Vienna, Austria with the surname Groebel and directed 68 films between 1936 and 1974. Le Borg made a series of low-budget horror films at Un ...
who began his film career in the mid-1930s as an extra at
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
and
MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
. Le Borg staged opera sequences in a number of musicals and worked on second unit for MGM eventually working at Universal on a short musical ''
She's for Me ''She's for Me'' is a 1943 American musical film directed by Reginald LeBorg and starring Grace McDonald and David Bruce. Plot Two attorneys are attracted to the same client Cast * Grace McDonald as Jan Lawton * David Bruce as Michael Reed ...
'' (1943). According to Le Borg, he was set to do a comedy following this film but associate producer Ben Pivar had him read the script for ''The Mummy's Ghost'' after Le Borg stated that the original director for the film had to be replaced. ''The Mummy's Ghost'' began filming on August 23, 1943. According to LeBorg, actress
Acquanetta Acquanetta (born Mildred Davenport; July 17, 1921 – August 16, 2004), nicknamed "The Venezuelan Volcano", was an American B-movie actress during the 1940s and 1950s. Acquanetta was most known for her "exotic" beauty. Early years The facts o ...
had the co-starring role in the film as Amina, but she had a fainting spell, collapsed during filming and struck her head. This led to her being replaced with
Ramsay Ames Ramsay Ames (born Ramsay Phillips, March 30, 1919 – March 30, 1998) was a leading 1940s American B movie actress, model, dancer, pin-up girl and television host. As a dancer, she was billed as Ramsay D'el Rico. She appeared in the film ''T ...
. Acquanetta stated that she fell on set on rocks that were supposed to be papier-mache, but were actually rocks painted white and that all she remembered was "I fell and struck my head ..I woke up in the hospital". Frederick C. Othman visited the set of ''The Mummy's Ghost'' and talked with Chaney who openly discussed his discomfort in his outfit of the mummy Kharis, stating that "I sweat and I can't wipe it away. I itch and I can't scratch". Le Borg spoke of difficulty working with Chaney on set, stating that in the scene where Kharis attacks Professor Norman, Chaney seized Frank Reicher's throat and "squeezed so forcefully that Reicher nearly fainted". Filming ended September 1, 1943.


Release

''The Mummy's Ghost'' was first shown in New York on June 30, 1944. It was distributed by the Universal Pictures Company. The film was followed by a sequel also released in 1944, ''
The Mummy's Curse ''The Mummy's Curse'' is a 1944 American Universal Pictures horror film, directed by Leslie Goodwins. It is the third and final sequel to that company's ''The Mummy's Hand'' of 1940. The film is the sequel to ''The Mummy's Ghost'' (1944) and the ...
''.


Reception

From contemporary reviews, William R. Weaver noted that the film had "considerable polish" and that it "sticks to its premise well enough" and that Chaney's performance in the film "advances his claim to a large following". Other reviewers commented on its relationship with the rest of the series with ''
The New York World-Telegram The ''New York World-Telegram'', later known as the ''New York World-Telegram and The Sun'', was a New York City newspaper from 1931 to 1966. History Founded by James Gordon Bennett Sr. as ''The Evening Telegram'' in 1867, the newspaper began ...
'' stating: "The Mummy always has been the least impressive of movie monsters and he is doing nothing to enhance his reputation in his latest incarnation". A review in ''Harrisons's Reports'' declared the film as "mediocre" and the weakest of ''The Mummy'' series. From retrospective reviews, the authors of the book ''Universal Horrors'' stated that ''The Mummy's Ghost'' was "arguably, the best of ''
The Mummy's Hand ''The Mummy's Hand'' is a 1940 American black-and-white horror film directed by Christy Cabanne and produced by Ben Pivar for Universal Studios. The film is about the ancient Egyptian mummy of Kharis (Tom Tyler), who is kept alive with a brew o ...
'' three sequels" and was "easily e Borgs best horror film, possibly his best film, period", noting that "despite all its shortcomings, ''The Mummy's Ghost'' shapes up as one of Universal's better Bs from this era of decline", praising elements such as Kharis having some sympathetic qualities which helped expand the series. Hans J. Wollstein of
AllMovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was founded by popular-cult ...
gave the film a two out of five rating, finding that series was suffering "from a bad case of battle fatigue by 1944" and that the film was "arguably the weakest entry in the four-picture series".


References


Sources

* *


External links

* * *
Review of film
at Variety {{DEFAULTSORT:Mummys Ghost, The 1944 films 1944 horror films American black-and-white films American supernatural horror films American sequel films Ancient Egypt in fiction Films directed by Reginald Le Borg Films set in Egypt Films set in Massachusetts Mummy films Universal Pictures films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films