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  Directed by
  Starring
  Specs
  • Full Frame
  Languages
  • English: Dolby Digital Mono
  Subtitles
    Czech, Greek, Hungarian, Arabic, English - Hearing Impaired, Turkish, Romanian
  Extras
  • Theatrical trailer
  • Audio commentary - By film historian Paul Jensen
  • Featurette
  • Photo gallery

The Mummy (1932)

Universal/Universal . R4 . B&W . 70 mins . PG . PAL

  Feature
Contract

This is the original story that the 1999 release of the blockbuster The Mummy is based on. Of course in this 1932 version there are less special effects, much less makeup, and (as was common in that time) more of an emphasis on the love story.

Imhotep, the mummy, is played by the undisputed king of horror films in the '30s, '40s and '50s, Boris Karloff. Imhotep was an Egyptian high priest who was sentenced to be mummified alive for sacrilege. He had attempted to bring back a dead woman who he was in love with, Princess Anckesen-Amon (Zita Johann).

Nearly four millennia later his mummified corpse is discovered by a team of British archaeologists, along with a mysterious box that warns of a curse that will strike anyone who opens it. Whilst the two senior scientists leave to discuss what should be done, a young member of the team opens the box to find some scrolls inside. He begins to read them and unintentionally raises Imhotep from the dead. The young archaeologist becomes insane from what he sees.

A decade later, Imhotep, masquerading as an Egyptian man by the name of Ardath Bey, discovers Anckesen-Amon’s crypt. Almost at the same time he discovers Anckesen-Amon’s latest reincarnation, Helen Grosvenor. His ten year quest seemingly near its end, Imhotep’s plan is to resurrect the soul of Princess Anckesen-Amon and place it in the body of Helen Grosvenor.

The highlight of this film (as with most films he was in) is the acting of Boris Karloff. He absolutely steals the show with his masterful performance as Imhotep. He isn’t the stereotypical mummy, wrapped in bandages and making unintelligible moans, but rather a sophisticated man with a subtle but menacing demeanour. Zita Johann is also very good as Helen Grosvenor/Princess Anckesen-Amon. She supports Karloff well, and is quite convincing in her dual roles.

  Video
Contract

The video transfer is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.33:1 (full frame). Just like all the restoration work done in the Universal Classic Monsters Collection, this transfer is very nice.

It suffers from most of the irreparable problems associated with age, however. Film artefacts are present of course, although not in the vast amounts that would be expected from such an old film. The shadow detail has been fixed up brilliantly considering how bad the source material is. This is probably the biggest improvement, as without the improved shadow detail the picture would be very murky and ugly. The picture rarely loses focus; the level of sharpness is very good.

The disc is single sided and dual layered, with the layer change occurring at 52:46. It is placed in a good spot where the scene fades to black and is hardly noticeable. The subtitles available include English HI, Arabic, Greek, Hungarian, Czech, Turkish, and Romanian. The English subtitles are quite accurate.

  Audio
Contract

There is one audio track available on this disc; a Dolby Digital mono mix. Like the video, the restoration work done here is very good. The biggest improvement is the reduction of background noise. There is no hiss in the background that one would expect when watching such an old film. Also gone are any audio pops.

The dialogue mixing is good with everything that is said being understandable. The subwoofer comes to life now and again, mostly during the score. There aren’t any problems with audio synch.

  Extras
Contract

As with all the titles in the Universal Monsters Collection, this disc comes with a healthy set of extras.

Mummy Dearest: A very nice featurette presented in full frame and Dolby Digital 2.0. There is plenty of information about the film and actors, and an interview with Boris Karloff’s daughter Sara Karloff. Runs for 30:10.

Audio Commentary: Presented by film historian Paul Jensen, this feature length commentary is informative, but nothing to get too excited over. Jensen reveals many details about the production and actors, but a lot of the information would only be of interest to die-hard fans.

Theatrical Trailer: Running for 1:33, this theatrical trailer is presented in full frame and Dolby Digital mono. Only minimal restoration work has been performed on it.

Stills Gallery: A selection of posters and stills from the film.

  Overall  
Contract

The restoration work done on this title is very good. Karloff delivers one of the greatest performances of his distinguished career, with Zita Johann also chiming in with a good showing. One of the better films in the Universal Classic Monsters Collection, The Mummy is well worth the time invested to view it.


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      And I quote...
    "One of Boris Karloff’s finest performances, the 1932 version of The Mummy is certainly one of the better classic monster films."
    - Robert Mack
      Review Equipment
    • DVD Player:
          Sony DVP-NS300
    • TV:
          Sony 68cm
    • Receiver:
          Sony STR-DE475
    • Speakers:
          Sony
    • Centre Speaker:
          Sony
    • Surrounds:
          Sony
    • Subwoofer:
          Sony Active Superwoofer
    • Audio Cables:
          Standard RCA
    • Video Cables:
          standard s-video
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