ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET THE MUMMY (1955)
This was a chore. I'm already regretting Mummy Month, but I'll soldier on. After all, I only have myself to blame. I don't think I fall in the target demographic for this film. Now that I mention it, I'm wondering who these goofballs would have appealed to in the mid-50's. Children maybe? By this point, their run in the spotlight was just about over. Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy was their last picture for Universal. Their act feels stale, but I should recuse myself. Again, it's 2025, and I'm not sure what I was supposed to take away from this skylark. The titular duo plays a pair of "adventurers" tasked with escorting the mummified remains of Prince Klaris back to America. Nerdy trivia! The mummy in Universal's horror sequels was named Prince Kharis. Of course, there is a sacred medallion involved, and of course, it reveals the location of a tomb loaded with untold treasures.
One of the reasons why I don't collect comedies is that there are too many of them that rely on a single joke. The joke here is that Costello is an idiot. That's it. For some reason, it's easier for me to buy a walking mummy than it is to buy a full-grown adult so ignorant, he eats jewelry. To be fair, I cracked a smile here and there. By and large, Meet the Mummy's shtick did not click with yours truly. Ah, but what about the mummy? Our embalmed monster...wait a second. Mummies aren't embalmed, are they? Regardless, the role of Prince Klaris is downplayed to the extent that we don't see much mummy action until after the hour mark. I do like the fact that the mummy snarls. Small victory? I haven't seen it in years, but it seemed that the horror elements were more pronounced in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. This flick shortchanges the viewer when it comes to overt spookdom.
Recommended to obsessive-compulsive completists, which doesn't explain how I own a copy.
No comments:
Post a Comment