You won't be disappointed!

Thanks for the memories!

Such a frustrating disappointment

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

1940's "The Mummy's Hand" was not a sequel to Karloff's 1932 "The Mummy," but a reworking of certain elements, creating the enduring image of the murderous mummy stalking victims on a bad leg, and strangling them with its one good hand. By far superior to its three followups, we begin with the introduction of George Zucco's Prof. Andoheb, secret High Priest of Karnak, whose duty is to protect the resting place of the Princess Ananka by maintaining the existence of the 3000 year old mummy Kharis, through a serum brewed with a specific amount of now extinct tana leaves. There are two basic reasons why none of the sequels measured up, first that this title was set in Egypt, utilizing stock footage from the 1932 original (which only reappears in the last, "The Mummy's Curse"), and second that Tom Tyler's mummy is actually scary, his eyes and mouth effectively blacked out in chilling closeups (poor Lon Chaney always wore a mask). George Zucco enjoys his most indelible role, repeated briefly in the following two entries, and veteran Charles Trowbridge endures the series' best remembered murder, unable to escape the grasp of the death dealing monster. With all the mayhem, the upbeat spirit never flags, with Dick Foran and Wallace Ford repeating their roles in the direct sequel "The Mummy's Tomb," set 30 years later. Included in Universal's popular SHOCK! package of classic horror films issued to television in the late 50s, "The Mummy's Hand" made five appearances on Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater- Feb 12 1966 (following 1955's "Bride of the Monster"), Mar 1 1975 (last of a rare triple bill, following 1966's "Cyborg 2087" and 1945's "Captain Mephisto and the Transformation Machine"), July 24 1976 (following 1969's "Daughter of the Mind"), July 29 1978 (following 1935's "Bride of Frankenstein"), and Jan 22 1983 (solo).

The first in Universal's fun Kharis the mummy series. The plot is about a couple of archaeologists (Dick Foran and comic relief Wallace Ford) teaming with a magician and his daughter (Cecil Kellaway, Peggy Moran) to search for the tomb of the Egyptian princess Ananka. But George Zucco is entrusted to guard the tombs of Egypt and uses the living mummy Kharis (Tom Tyler) to try and stop the outsiders. Often referred to as a sequel to The Mummy, it's really not despite the use of stock footage from that film. The mummy character and his lost love are given different names in this one. Instead of Imhotep we now have Kharis and instead of Ankh-es-en-amon we have Ananka. Also, now instead of the mummy himself being in control of his actions, he's now controlled by George Zucco through use of tana leaves.The cast is great, with Foran and Ford surprisingly likable heroes. I say surprisingly because both men were hit or miss with me in some of their earlier work in the 1930s. Cecil Kellaway is always enjoyable. Peggy Moran is lovely and has a badass moment or two before becoming the damsel in distress. Tom Tyler is no Boris Karloff but the role really requires very little that a stuntman couldn't do. Tyler would go on to be in the Captain Marvel and Phantom serials, which are great fun. The real star of the film is horror legend George Zucco. He's one of those great old stars that made movies better just by his presence. He's awesome in this.While none of the Kharis series ever matched the original Mummy's quality, they do bring more action and humor to the table. Oh, and more mummy as well since Karloff's bandaged mummy only appears briefly in that film. In this series, the mummy is front and center throughout. This first film in the series is the best. It's a fantastic, old-fashioned horror-adventure film that young and old alike can enjoy. If you're a fan of Universal horror films like me, movies like this are a real treat and have immense rewatchability.

"The Mummy's Hand" is more or less a remake of "The Mummy", with a few different twists. As always, some ancient Egyptian priest tried to resurrect a princess, got caught, and got buried alive (minus his tongue) as punishment. They never learn! A few thousand years later, some archaeologists dig up the tomb and before you know it, there's a human-shaped pile of bandages killing anyone who stands in its way. Should've left the poor sucker buried.Yes, it's a really predictable movie, but very fun also. The part about the tana leaves added some extra neatness. After this, there were some sequels, and then the Hammer movie with Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, and then the more recent, sillier movies with Brendan Fraser, and even a movie focusing specifically on Howard Carter. But like I said, this movie is really fun.I would like to see a movie told from the mummy's point of view.

We again return to Anaka and Kharis, and even have Zita Johann and Boris Karloff shown archive footage from their 1932 roles.But, they don't recreate the same story here. First, they bring in Dick Foran and Wallace Ford to ham it up. We'll likely find more comedy than horror.Secondly, without the CGI and stupendous special effects of the 1999 story, it was still enjoyable. Sometimes those things just get in the way.Lastly, there was a very good story here, and the acting was not bad. After all, you had a twice nominated Oscar actor here in the person of Cecil Kellaway.Worth the time.