Because of its grown-up characters, themes, and complex mythology, 1999's The Mummy provides
plenty of moments that adults will be thinking about long after the kids in the room have
moved on to the next thing.
In the film's prologue, the Medjai warrior Ardeth Bay explains that Anck-Su-Namun was
the Pharaoh’s mistress, and it was forbidden for any other man to touch her. To make this
point, Anck-Su-Namun wore very little clothes, and was instead covered in an elaborate body
paint design that ran over most of her body. When her secret lover, the high priest Imhotep,
touched her in a moment of passion, he smeared the paint. It's that smudge that reveals her
betrayal to the Pharaoh.
The smudged body paint is a clever shorthand that lets the audience in on the moment without
over-explaining it. But any adult who's ever put on makeup, body paint, or even a Halloween
costume has to wonder why that's the look the Pharaoh settled on.
It certainly let him know that someone touched his mistress, but it seems like Anck-Su-Namun
could have just as easily smeared the paint by bumping into a wall or laying down for
a nap. Plus, waking up and applying all of that paint everyday must have been the worst
morning routine ever. No wonder Anck-Su-Namun went looking for another man.
After the murder of the Pharaoh, and Anck-Su-Namun’s death, Imhotep launched a plan to resurrect
his beloved that involved a forbidden ritual at Hamunaptra, the city of the dead.
"Imhotep dared the gods' anger by going deep into the city, where he took the black Book
of the Dead from its holy resting place."
Unfortunately, the Pharaoh's bodyguards followed Imhotep, captured him, and subjected him to
the Hom Dai, a curse so cruel that the Egyptians had never performed it before.
After being mummified alive and entombed in a sarcophagus filled with scarab beetles,
cursed to remain the undead for all of eternity, Imhotep’s body was buried in Hamunaptra.
Then, a group of warriors called the Medjai begin their millennia-long effort to watch
over the city. They knew that if the high priest ever returned, he would become an all-powerful
being that could destroy the world.
It begs the question: Why did the ancient Egyptians need to use that particular curse
if it had such potentially devastating consequences? Why not just mummify him alive like they did
with the rest of his priests? It makes sense that Imhotep be punished for his crimes, but
this insane curse feels like an unnecessary risk.
Evelyn Carnahan and her brother Jonathan are the descendants of great explorers, and their
adventure begins when Jonathan unknowingly steals the map to Hamunaptra from explorer
Rick O'Connell. While investigating it, Evie's boss burns a part of the map. This convinces
Evie that they need Rick’s guidance if they ever hope to find the lost city.
She decides to spring Rick from prison with a little bit of bribery aimed at the warden.
"if you cut him down we will give you ten percent."
"Fifty percent."
"Twenty."
"Forty."
"Twenty-five!
"Ah! Deal!"
Once released, the small band of explorers head off in a race against a group of treasure
hunters who also want to discover the hidden Egyptian city of the dead.
Their journey is more than a bit bumpy. After their riverboat catches fire and sinks, the
gang takes to camels to make the rest of the trip. Eventually, they find themselves on
a desert plain, looking at the sunrise.
It’s then that Rick informs the group that they have to wait for the sun to hit an exact
point in the sky before the location of Hamunaptra is revealed to them. The treasure hunters
have caught up to them at this point, and as the city is revealed, it becomes a race
to see which group reaches their destination first.
The problem here is that Rick shouldn't need the sun to show him the way to Hamunaptra.
He's been there before after all. If he knew where to stand for the sun to reveal the city,
there's a good chance he could have navigated the rest of the way simply by memory. It would
have removed the need for a race. But then again, the race is a pretty great set piece
for the movie.
Over the course of The Mummy, the film lays out an elaborate mythology for the fabled
city of Hamunaptra. Though many believe it’s only a myth, various scholars have done research
on it, and the film establishes clearly that the city is a very real and very haunted place.
In fact, the Medjai have spent millennia guarding it and trying to keep it secret.
Despite the fact that not everyone in the movie believes in Hamunaptra, a lot of people
still seem to have a fairly easy time getting to it. A massive battle erupts amongst its
ruins near the beginning of the movie, and two expeditions travel back to its location
years later. Evie talks frequently about its layout, and Rick notes that tales of Hamunaptra
are so pervasive that his military unit defied orders to march to Egypt from Libya to look
for it.
So, while the Medjai are rather reactive once people make it to Hamunaptra, maybe they should
start branching out into more proactive efforts to keep legends of the city a little more
tamped down. It might make their job easier.
Though it draws inspiration from historical concepts like mummies and the Egyptian concept
of the afterlife, and it also mentions historical figures like Seti the First, The Mummy is
firmly based in the world of fiction. It's a big, fun, fantasy-horror adventure which
allows it to take a lot of liberties. Even with biblical history.
One of the warnings given by the Medjai about the horrible fate that would befall the world
should Imhotep rise from the dead is that he could bring the return of the plagues of
Egypt. And sure enough, as soon as he's back, things like swarms of locusts and fountains
of blood start to plague the world once more.
Despite Imhotep referencing "the language of the slaves" when he hears Beni speaking
Hebrew, there aren't any biblical references in the movie. Yet the plagues in question
are specifically drawn from the Book of Exodus. So, why does Imhotep get to use the plagues
that God devised to torment the Egyptians? It's probably because these days, the plagues
are more associated with Egypt in general, as opposed to the specific story of Moses
freeing his people from the oppression of the pharaoh.
The plot of The Mummy requires some very specific events to take place for it to make sense.
Some of these events rely on ancient Egyptian rituals that many of the characters must discover
and then perform correctly. In fact, the climax of the movie involves Evie, Rick, and Jonathan
battling the all-powerful Imhotep and relies on the recital of spells from a pair of mystical
books.
The Book of the Dead contains spells needed to resurrect people. And the Book of Amun-Ra
contains the spells that allow someone to command the dead or render the undead mortal
once again. Both of these ancient tomes are presented as extremely dangerous in the wrong
hands. And they even require a special key that unlocks the books and allows them to
be opened.
Unfortunately, locking the books doesn't seem to prevent some characters from using them.
Near the end of the film, Jonathan gets hold of the Book of Amun-Ra and manages to command
a group of mummy soldiers by reading an inscription on the cover.
Apparently, you don't need to understand what your reading to make the spells work, which
increases the danger posed by them. Combined with the fact that some of the spells are
written right on the cover of the books, it gives the impression that the Egyptians who
wrote these volumes probably should have taken a little more care before publishing, or at
the very least devised a more foolull-proof security system.
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus, even more Looper videos about your favorite
monster movies are coming soon. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so
you don't miss a single one.