The Mummy's Curse (1944)

An irrigation project in the rural bayous of Louisiana unearths Kharis the living mummy (Lon Chaney Jr.), who was buried in quicksand 25 years earlier.

Director:

Leslie Goodwins

Writers:

Bernard Schubert (screenplay), Leon Abrams (original story),

Stars:

Lon Chaney Jr., Peter Coe, Virginia Christine

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lon Chaney Jr.	...	Kharis, the Mummy (as Lon Chaney)
Peter Coe	...	Dr. Ilzor Zandaab
Virginia Christine	...	Princess Ananka
Kay Harding	...	Betty
Dennis Moore	...	Dr. James Halsey
Martin Kosleck	...	Ragheb
Kurt Katch	...	Cajun Joe
Addison Richards	...	Maj. Pat Walsh
Holmes Herbert	...	Dr. Cooper
Charles Stevens	...	Achilles
William Farnum	...	Sacristan
Napoleon Simpson	...	Goobie

Storyline

An irrigation project in the rural bayous of Louisiana unearths Kharis the living mummy (Lon Chaney Jr.), who was buried in quicksand 25 years earlier.

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Plot Keywords:

mummy | princess | swamp | louisiana | cajun | 

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Taglines:

New Thrills! New Terror!

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

22 December 1944 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Maldição da Múmia

Filming Locations:

Bayou, Louisiana, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

62 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The flashback sequence features footage of Boris Karloff and Tom Tyler from earlier films--thus Kharis is actually played by three different actors (more if stunt doubles are included).

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Goofs

When Kharis attacks Tante Berthe in her room, she gasps as he strangles her. The camera pans to the resurrected Ananka, who stands nearby. Tante Berthe's previous gasps are replayed as Ananka watches the struggle.

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Quotes

Cajun Joe: I know the swamp like my finger.

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Connections

Follows The Mummy's Ghost (1944)

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Soundtracks

"Hey, You!"
by Frank Orth and Oliver Drake
Sung by Ann Codee

User Reviews

Louisiana Mummy

My My, when I hear folks talk about how Universal never made a bad horror film, I hark to this short, rather mundane picture which serves as basically nothing more that a rehash of the former four mummy films. It is not a bad film really, but it is very far from being good. Seems that the mummy and his princess are buried in the mud of the Louisiana swamps. An industrial excavation is going on in the area, and mummy experts come down to give their aid as well. Well, surprise, surprise. The mummy is found, people start to die, and we have some short chase sequences, a final scene where mummy does his mummy thing, and of course the flashback scene. A mummy film would not be complete without going back to former films and explaining who the princess and Kharis were, and, in the process, chewing up the running time and saving on film and actors. Lon Chaney plays the bandaged one with what seems a total lack of interest. He stumbles from here and there, but has little to do and little motivation. The rest of the cast is okay. Peter Coe as the Mummy priest is not too good, but some good character acting does come from his henchmen(particularly Martin Kosleck) and a great comic performance by Napoleon Simpson as Goobie. The best scene is the scene where the princess comes out of her boggy grave covered with mud, then walks into the swamp waters and comes out a model for a hair commercial...her hair vibrant, bouncy, and not wet! Her dress also in great, fantastic shape. I should look so good after staying in a swamp bog for twenty five years. Despite the logic of the scene, it is wonderfully photographed. I also liked the humour, which I think was intentional, of the mummy continually coming close to getting his girl yet failing several attempts.