The Top 10 Best Mummy Movies
These Mummy Movies are a Bandage Salesman’s Dream Come True.
The past few years, I’ve been working my way through top 10 lists featuring classic movie monsters. So far I’ve tackled the big three: werewolves, vampires, and Frankenstein (yes, the monster). Today I’m taking on another classic monster by counting down the best mummy movies of all time. Hollywood typically presents these villains as bandage wrapped, cadavers reanimated by ancient magic, and on the warpath to regain what was once theirs. More often than not, they’re usually Egyptian, but mummies can be found in dozens of ancient civilizations from around the globe. Despite being one of the OG movie monsters, mummy’s really haven’t gotten too much screen time of their own. Because of that, I’ve opened this list up to films that feature mummy’s even if they aren’t the primary antagonist. However, I’m still going to stay as close as I can to the horror genre. So, get ready to go crying to “mommy” because these mummy movies are going to do more than put you in time out.
10. Wrestling Women vs The Aztec Mummy
If you’ve ever wanted to see masked wrestling women team up with a reanimated corpse, well, I’ve got a treat for you! I’ve always wondered why more mummy movies don’t look for inspiration outside of Egypt. As I said earlier, mummies have been found in dozens of civilizations around the world, as have pyramids. As you might surmise from the title, Wrestling Women vs. The Aztec Mummy heads to South America and features an Aztec mummy known as Tezomoc. What you might not surmise from the title is that Tezomoc is actually fighting on the side of the Wrestling Women to defeat an evil gang of Judo experts. Wrestling Women vs. The Aztec Mummy is as campy as you have probably guessed and was made with the sole purpose of exploiting the Luchador craze at the time (part of the Las Luchadoras collection of films). Still, I’ve seen nothing remotely similar to this flick, and I have to wonder why there aren’t more big-screen monster battle royals.
9. The Mummy’s Shroud
As terrifying as a bandaged corpse shuffling about might be, the really scary part of mummy movies is the curse that unleashes it. This stems from an urban legend that any archeologists who have disturbed ancient burial chambers in the past have met grizzly and inexplicable ends. Hollywood wasted no time pinning this legend on the concept of an avenging mummy seeking vengeance for his tomb being disturbed. The Mummy’s Shroud dusts off this trope as it follows a group of archeologists that ignore all warnings and open up the chamber of the boy Pharaoh Kah-To-Bey. Despite most of the group wanting to share their find with the world by showcasing the artifacts in a museum, a malevolent mummy appears to wreak havoc upon them. One by one, he picks them off using brutal methods of execution. Fortunately, this bag of bones ends up meeting his demise at the hands of a dashing young couple that take advantage of the fact that bandages are very, very flammable.
8. Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello have encountered their fair share of classic movie monsters over the years. This time the bumbling duo finds themselves in Cairo looking for work. They just happen to stumble upon an archeologist who is preparing to ship a mummy to a museum in America and leap at the opportunity to return home. What they don’t count on is an evil cult that wants to use the mummy’s medallion as a map to a tomb filled with treasures. Of course, this medallion ends up in the duo’s possession and once they learn that it might be cursed, they want nothing more than to get rid of it. Well, that’s not entirely true, because once a damsel in distress gets tossed into the plot, they turn into quite the inept heroes seeking to rescue her. Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy might not be much of a horror film, but when it comes to mummy movies, beggars can’t be choosers.
7. The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from mummy movies, it’s that they are definitely not morning people. Once more, we find a team of archeologists all too happy to ignore local warnings and go poking around undiscovered tombs in Egyptian pyramids. As it so happens, tucked in amongst the treasures is a sarcophagus, and inside is, you guessed it, a mummy. Despite what Indiana Jones might have you thinking, archeological digs cost a lot of money to fund and the ones backing those digs are hoping to make some of that back in the long run. The best way to do that is to get the public to pay top dollar to see “The Mysteries of the Pyramids!” Well, if there’s one thing that mummies hate more than getting woken up, it’s crowds of people. So, when all the artifacts get shipped off to London, they arrive with a pissed off mummy in tow. By this point, you should have a good idea of what happens to those who disturbed his slumber.
6. The Mummy (2017)
I argued with myself for quite a bit when it came to including 2017’s The Mummy on this list of mummy movies. Is it a great move? Nah, not really. However, it does have one of the best big-screen mummies of all time, thanks to Sofia Boutella. You might have noticed that it’s a bit of a sausage fest when it comes to mummy movies, which is why it was so refreshing to see a bandage clad woman rampaging after the ones who inadvertently resurrected her. Now, a lot of mummy movies do play up the curse aspect, but not many showcase the magical abilities of the undead villains. Boutella’s version though was a sorceress before she was locked away. Now that she’s back on her feet, she’s got a whole slew of wicked spells that she’s ready to throw at the film’s hero (Tom Cruise). Ultimately, The Mummy was a disappointing attempt to revitalize Universal’s Classic Monster franchise, but that was because Boutella’s villain was so much cooler than the hero. Here’s hoping we get to see more lady mummies in the future.