Matialth
Good concept, poorly executed.
Geraldine
The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
Isbel
A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.
Nigel P
Events behind the scenes during the production of this Hammer project contain enough tragedy and intrigue to make a film of their own. Andrew Keir plays a role originally written (and partially recorded) for Peter Cushing, who had to abandon the project when his wife's health took a turn for the worst. Director Seth Holt died on set mid-way through production and Hammer bigwig Michael Carreras took the helm for the remainder (although Holt was still singularly credited).The result is sadly a bit of a mess, frankly. Much of the initial running time is filled with a flurry of characters experiencing strange and deadly events/coincidences often vaguely connected with a singular star system ('The Jewel of the Seven Stars' is the Bram Stoker story on which this is based). A pout-some, voluptuous and fully made-up Margaret is in bed dreaming of a pout-some, voluptuous and fully made-up Egyptian queen Tera (both played by Valerie Leon) having her hand removed by a group of priests. In more wakeful times, Margaret has a father (Keir) and a boyfriend, charmless Tod (Browning, believe it or not - namesake of the man who directed 1931's 'Dracula' and 1932's notorious 'Freaks' among others - played by Mark Edwards). There's creepy Corbeck (James Villiers), mad old Berigan (George Coulouris) and even madder Doctor Putman (Aubrey Woods). The least interesting Browning commands much of the running time leaving much of the rest of the cast under-written.'Blood from the Mummy's Tomb' eschews much blood and gore (and a traditional mummy) in favour of a more supernatural tale. That it is rather dull and talky doesn't help anyone: the most gruesome thing we see is Princess Tera's disembodied hand creeping around. It is admirable to see Hammer attempting a different telling of the story, but sadly this fails to deliver much in the way of horror.
kosmasp
A movie from the 70s ... for some that may seem like ancient stuff (no pun intended). And you can say that movies have come a long way. In many aspects not just effects, but in many regards. But the 70s began to point at things. We have a strong female character, that shows skin on one hand, but has all the power in her hand (seduction and otherwise).While the acting may seem ... wooden (and there is a lot of evidence pointing in that direction), the script has gaps as if it was Swiss cheese, there is a lot of fun to be had. If you just enjoy this romp for what it is, and consider the time it was made ... well I know this is a lot to ask for, but remember that this was stuff people ran and watched back then. And it has pretty good production values (again considering the time and the studio at the time) ... So sit back and get ... seduced
utgard14
Let's get it out of the way: there are no mummies in this movie. The story, based off of Bram Stoker's "Jewel of the Seven Stars," is about the spirit of an ancient Egyptian princess possessing the body of an archaeologist's daughter (Valerie Leon). And what a body it is! The highlights of the movie belong to Valerie Leon. Her bountiful bosom is a sight to behold and the rest of her is nothing to sneeze at, either. Anyway the possessed woman goes around killing the people who opened the tomb of the princess. So no mummy but basically the same motivation that previous mummies had.Andrew Keir plays the archaeologist. He replaced Peter Cushing shortly after filming began when Cushing left to care for his dying wife. As if that wasn't enough, director Seth Holt died before filming ended and Michael Carreras had to finish the movie. The atmospheric opening gives you the impression that this is going to be a spooky chiller, despite the lack of mummies. Unfortunately the rest of the movie doesn't quite live up to the strong start. The movie drags and needs a shot of adrenaline. The beauty of Ms. Leon could only do so much with this dry script and mostly lifeless direction. Another version of this story was made almost a decade later as The Awakening with Charlton Heston and Stephanie Zimbalist, who was a lovely woman but did not compare to Valerie Leon. That movie, like this one, is kind of dull. This is the last mummy movie Hammer made. Although they still had a few good movies to come, Hammer in 1971 was already on its way out. See this if you're a Hammer completist or if you just like beautiful Valerie Leon. Oh and tell me if you don't think that big ring that causes so much trouble resembles a Ring Pop.
GL84
Returning home from an excavation, an archeologist's daughter finds that her resemblance to a recently-unearthed Egyptian queen's tomb allows her soul to possess her in an effort to be unleashed in the world again, and must race to stop the ceremony from being completed.This is probably one of Hammer's most underrated features. One of its better features is that this effectively uses shadow and suggestion among the best that the studio ever tried and managing to bridge the gap between their Gothic start and the more exploitative side that was coming to the forefront. The first one is clearly the highlight, as a victim inside an insane asylum, straight-jacketed and held down, when a vicious wind begins to howl and starts blowing things around the room. He notices a snake sculpture on the wall is missing and he goes over to try to get out, but he is trapped inside when the snake sculpture's shadow on the side of the wall slowly approaches him and gets even more frantic and hysterical, and the wind picks up to hide the brutal murder that follows quite effectively. All of the shadows and other images in the film are nice uses of suspense to give the film a little something extra, just to spice up the action. The attacks at the end are the most fun with the full powers of the possessed queen put to display in a variety of locations against the attackers which allows for some frenetic action scenes to occur as the wild fight in the library, a further attack at her home and the finale which is just plain fun. The amazing sets are so eerie and striking that it really catches your eye. It also adds to the suspense of the scenes since the realism of them plays out incredibly well as they are so intricately made that it almost looks like they used ancient Egyptian props straight from a tomb and put them directly in front of the camera. The tomb is the most impressive, with the beautiful sarcophagus in the middle as the best example of this with the decorated head filled with colored jewels, the elaborate headdress, and the overall design it has is simply marvelous with the large hieroglyphics on the walls and looks very nice. It really does look like an actual Egyptian tomb inside up to Hammer's usual high standards. Even the kills were pretty good as always going for the jugular is a nice adaptation to give the killer, making for some nasty kills along the way even if it doesn't provide for any creativity. However, it allows for a lot of blood to flow, as this is one of the bloodier films from Hammer. There weren't a lot of kills in the beginning, but once this got rolling, they came fast and furious. Finally, Valerie Leon is one of the better and busty heroines of the Hammer staple, spending a lot of time in the film wearing negligee, and sometimes less, so this is something many red-blooded males will want to see. There's not a lot to dislike from this one, though it is probably one of the slower entries in the series so it takes a while to get going. Once it gets going, it's not that bad, but for a mummy film we don't see the mummy in the film all that often. Even more so, it isn't a mummy in the traditional sense that we know of, covered in layers of moldy bandages and shuffling about. Here, not only is it rarely seen, but it isn't the traditional mummy, so fans may be disappointed with it if it's a blind buy based on the title.Today's Rating/PG-13: Violence and Brief Nudity.
