{"id":29667,"date":"2024-10-01T16:25:54","date_gmt":"2024-10-01T23:25:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=29667"},"modified":"2024-10-01T16:25:54","modified_gmt":"2024-10-01T23:25:54","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-blu-ray-review-the-mummy-and-the-curse-of-the-jackals-1969","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=29667","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! Blu-ray Review: THE MUMMY AND THE CURSE OF THE JACKALS (1969)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This \u201cSpecial Edition\u201d Blu-ray from Severin Films is\ncurrently available.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I know I often go on about the wonderful efforts of cult\nmovie distributors, who rescue movies from complete obscurity and give them\nincredible releases on disc, allowing these pictures to be discovered by new\naudiences, and even more importantly, saved from disappearing entirely. But\noften that is exactly what these people do, and they should be continually\npraised for it. Severin Films have gone above and beyond this week with their\nlatest release, which is essentially a lost film that has been rescued from the\nscrapheap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The film in question is The Mummy and the Curse of the\nJackals<\/em>, an ultra-low-budget effort that takes its title creatures and puts\nthem in an entirely new and strange environment\u2026 Las Vegas, Nevada. Despite\nhaving a notable face or two in its cast and an experienced, if past-his-prime\ndirector, this independent languished for some time. Apparently, it popped up\non VHS in the early 80s with a fuzzy picture that was pretty much unwatchable\nand has never been seen since. Over the years, the film has become the stuff of\nrumor and legend. But very recently, the original 16mm internegative was\ndiscovered, restored and scanned in 4K. Now, viewers can pick up and finally\nenjoy this cheesy horror feature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Set in Vegas, the plot follows archaeologist David Barrie\n(Anthony Eisley), who has recovered the very well-preserved 4800-year-old-plus\nsarcophagus of ancient Egyptian Princess Akana (Marliza Pons), along with a\nmummy (Saul Goldsmith) that was entombed with her. The details are all very\nsketchy, but after some research David discovers that she is expected to rise\nfrom the dead in 1969. He also learns there is a curse on the princess and that\nanyone who spends a night in her company when the moon is full may transform\ninto a jackal. With a big convention coming up, David looks forward to\npresenting a revived Egyptian princess to attendees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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After showing her body off to pal and chemical engineer Bob\n(Robert Alan Brown) as well as his girlfriend Donna (Maurine Dawson). Why is it\nimportant that Bob is a chemical engineer? Who knows? Anyway, David that night\ndecides to test out the jackal claim and see what happens. Indeed, he does\ntransform (into a wolfman, essentially) and goes on a rampage that very\nevening. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Soon, Akana has arisen and uses her charms to lure\/hypnotize\nmen with an impressive ring featuring an asp and jewel. The mummy also heads\nout to do her bidding on the streets. Before long, it is discovered that the\nEgyptian deities Akana serves want her to build a shrine for them and enable\ntheir return. Of course, a mummy and a jackal\/wolfman racing around Vegas\nraises suspicion with the police, who ask for assistance from Professor\nCummings (John Carradine) in solving the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is definitely an absurd effort that has much in common\nwith the work of Ed Wood Jr.. It doesn\u2019t make a lick of sense and features some\nhilariously silly moments. It\u2019s quite funny to see the main character turn the\nbasement of a house into a makeshift tomb-of-sorts with cobwebs and the like.\nWhen Akana awakens, she adapts to the modern world remarkably quickly, going to\ndinner shows with David, Bob and Donna. And when the Professor appears, he\nessentially tells the inept and inefficient detectives what to do and how to\npursue the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It’s absurd in the extreme and there is plenty of fun to be had watching the story play out. The practical make-up effects aren\u2019t very good but this actually adds to the endearing quality on display. And the final third, which features both the mummy and jackal hunting along Fremont Street in Vegas and, at one point, venturing into a casino carrying a body (surrounded by random people who either stare a bit at the camera or seem to have no interest in what’s occurring around them) only add to the picture\u2019s surreal quality. The final scuffle between the monsters isn\u2019t as enjoyable as it could have been, but there is so much wackiness on display that, in the end, it doesn\u2019t really matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This isn\u2019t a good movie, but it is amusingly daft. As you\nmight have guessed, the image being presented isn\u2019t reference quality for your\nhome theater system. The picture, sourced from the 16mm internegative, is\ngrainy throughout but is clear and, for the first time ever, you can actually\nsee what\u2019s going on in every shot. This is also a wonderful time capsule,\nshowing off the streets of the old Las Vegas from 1969. I believe that this is\nas good as the image can possibly look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is also more than 2 hours of bonus material. The first\nis an interview with horror film expert Stephen Thrower, who goes into the\nhistory of the production company, Vega International. This short-lived\nbusiness was formed in Las Vegas and aimed to produce these types of\nlow-budget\/drive-in pictures. You\u2019ll get a history of the brief number of\ntitles they were able to make, as well as their quick descent into financial\nbankruptcy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There are rumors that, after acquiring the services of\ndirector Oliver Drake and John Carradine, the production funds vanished and\nthat a large portion of the picture wasn\u2019t actually shot. Many participants\nweren\u2019t paid for their work as well. It is inferred that the mob was involved\nand were using the production to launder money for their own criminal\nenterprises, leaving no cash for the actual feature. After folding for a few\nyears, it is reported that Vega returned in the 70s and started scamming wannabe\nactors, setting up casting calls but charging $50 to performers to audition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A second interview with a film historian goes into detail on\nthe career of director Oliver Drake. Viewers hear about his work in westerns,\nand how he managed to become a producer at Republic Pictures. Eventually, Drake\nactually got his foot in the door at Universal Pictures and worked as an\nassociate producer on The Mummy\u2019s Curse<\/em>. Following his success there, he\nbegan directing for TV. He was quite old by the time this picture came around\nand a cast member suggested that he might have been senile, but the filmmaker\u2019s\ndaughter rebuked this rumor, stating that he did work afterwards and also\npenned an autobiography that was released in bookstores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, there is a fun interview with Garry Gassel,\nson of Milton R. Gassel and Judy Gassel, who invested in the picture. He\nrecalls spending years trying to track the movie down. After contacting a few\ncrew members, no one could locate the film. More than a decade later, he was\nthrilled to learn that the original materials had been discovered at a 2019\nestate sale of the late actor\/independent producer Ewing \u201cLucky\u201d Brown. It\u2019s a\nfun listen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Finally, this disc includes another picture made by Vega\nInternational that was thought lost but recovered at the very same estate\nclearance. Angelica: The Young Vixen<\/em> (1974) is a softcore feature about\na young woman who seeks out pleasure with older men. While the movie is\ncredited to The Mummy and the Curse of the Jackals\u2019<\/em> director Olver\nDrake, it is immediately apparent that he had nothing to do with the\nproduction. The picture quality is damaged and in poor condition, but at least\nit was recovered. A film commentary accompanies the picture, which goes into\ngreater detail about this remarkable estate sale and how the movies ended up in\nthe hands of Brown. You\u2019ll also learn that more explicit material was added\n(and shot on different film stock) in order to help sell the movie. Remarkably,\nthe Angelica<\/em> film was actually released theatrically in France, which is\nmore than can be said of the main feature on the disc. This \u201csexpoitation\u201d\nfeature is poor, but the accompanying commentary track is fascinating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was fun to discover The Mummy and the Curse of the\nJackals<\/em>, which only a short time ago was thought to be lost forever. While\nnot a cinematic classic, it does have its appeal, especially for those who\nappreciate campy cinema with a few uniquely eccentric elements. Severin Films\nhas done an excellent job salvaging the movie and making it available for all\nto enjoy. If you like Ed Wood Jr. pictures, then this Blu-ray should be right\nup your alley.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This \u201cSpecial Edition\u201d Blu-ray from Severin Films is currently available. I know I often go on about the wonderful efforts of cult movie distributors, who rescue movies from complete obscurity and give them incredible releases on disc, allowing these pictures to be discovered by new audiences, and even more importantly, saved from disappearing entirely. But […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":29669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[99,1582,3810,6758,9319,10129,10833,12096,13280,14386,18082,18083,21647,21648,21649,21650,24095],"class_list":["post-29667","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dvdblu-ray-reviews","tag-99","tag-anthony-eisley","tag-campy","tag-egyptian-princess","tag-horror","tag-jackals","tag-john-carradine","tag-las-vegas","tag-marliza-pons","tag-mummy","tag-severin","tag-severin-films","tag-the-mummy-and-the-curse-of-the-jackals","tag-the-mummy-and-the-curse-of-the-jackals-blu-ray","tag-the-mummy-and-the-curse-of-the-jackals-blu-ray-review","tag-the-mummy-and-the-curse-of-the-jackals-review","tag-werewolf"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29667","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=29667"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29667\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=29667"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=29667"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=29667"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}