Blood from the Mummy's Tomb (1971)

An archaeological expedition brings back to London the coffin of an Egyptian queen known for her magical powers. Her spirit returns in the form of a young girl and strange things start to happen.

Directors:

Seth Holt, Michael Carreras (uncredited)

Writers:

Christopher Wicking (screenplay), Bram Stoker (novel)

Stars:

Andrew Keir, Valerie Leon, James Villiers

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Andrew Keir	...	Fuchs
Valerie Leon	...	Margaret / Tera
James Villiers	...	Corbeck
Hugh Burden	...	Dandridge
George Coulouris	...	Berigan
Mark Edwards	...	Tod Browning
Rosalie Crutchley	...	Helen Dickerson
Aubrey Morris	...	Doctor Putnum
David Markham	...	Doctor Burgess
Joan Young	...	Mrs. Caporal
James Cossins	...	Older Male Nurse
David Jackson	...	Young Male Nurse
Jonathan Burn	...	Saturnine Young Man
Graham James	...	Youth In Museum
Tamara Ustinov	...	Veronica

Storyline

On the night before her anniversary, Margaret Fuchs receives an ancient Egyptian ring with a red stone as a birthday gift from her father, Prof. Julian Fuchs. Margaret has frequent nightmares about an expedition in Egypt with five members, including her father, finding the tomb of Queen Tera, an evil sorcerer with a severed hand. The members collect the sarcophagus with a totally preserved mummy, the severed hand with the ring with a red stone, and three relics. Margaret is possessed by the spirit of Tera and chases the expedition members to retrieve the objects and gives life back to Tera.

---

Plot Keywords:

sarcophagus | nightmare | relic | cleavage | death in childbirth | 

---

Taglines:

A severed hand beckons from an open grave!

---

Genres:

Horror

---

Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 May 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Blod från mumiens grav

Filming Locations:

EMI-MGM Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

EMI Film Productions, Hammer Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor ®)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Anthony Head (Rupert Giles of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997)' fame) makes a brief appearance in an uncredited role. His hair is long (a 70's shag cut) and blonde.

---

Goofs

Todd drives off to 'get help.' You see his car racing down the road. Margaret uses her ancient powers to raise a wind that flips the roof of Todd's convertible to vertical. As Todd reaches up to try to lower the roof, you can see grass around the car, and the car is clearly not moving! Next moment the car hits a tree.

---

Quotes

Corbeck: The meek shall NOT inherit the earth. They can't be trusted with it.

---

Crazy Credits

Sunbronze Danny Boy as Tod's Cat

---

Alternate Versions

The 1971 cinema version was cut and this seems to have become the definitive version for all videos/DVDs since (Region 1 and 2 releases). The cuts were: A shot of a hospital orderly striking an inmate was removed.

---

Connections

Featured in The World of Hammer: Lands Before Time (1994)

---

Soundtracks

The Temple
(uncredited)
Music by Monia Liter (uncredited)
Boosey & Hawkes Ltd

User Reviews

Understated horror in classic style, with fine performances

This difficult-to-find gem (my copy is a bootleg--sorry about that) sorts oddly with the kind of trash Hammer studios was churning out in the early 70s--Lust for a Vampire and that sort of thing. The production seemed to be under a curse of its own--Peter Cushing was involved for the first two days of shooting but then had to leave due to his wife's death; director Seth Holt had nearly finished the film and then died of a heart attack. The final film, finished by Hammer producer Michael Carreras, was described as barely coherent in magazine reviews of the time, but makes perfect sense to this viewer. It's in the style of Don't Look Now, Rosemary's Baby, or Night of Dark Shadows--a story of the supernatural slowly seeping into a modern day setting, with fine character performances, especially from Andrew Keir, James Villiers and Rosalie Crutchley. Leading lady Valerie Leon was dubbed--not sure by whom, but the voice is effective.

This is an unusual tale for those who like subtly constructed stories with a focus upon character and atmosphere. The occasional schlock element doesn't really detract at all from the sinister thrall of the film's design.