DAWN OF THE MUMMY (1981)
Y'know, if this was the first mummy movie I had watched in February, I would have had more fun with it. Still, I would put it on top of the pile (that doesn't say much for the pile). Dawn of the Mummy works off of the blueprint drawn up by Italian zombie flicks. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was directed by Lucio Fulci. These mummies claw their way out of the earth just like the worm-encrusted undead. Nevermind the fact that mummies in horror films are zombies. Their faces are free of bandages, so yeah, you might as well call them zombies. Shot on location, Dawn follows fashion models and photographers as they try to take advantage of the pulchritudinous milieu (sorry, I fed my thesaurus after midnight) of sand dunes and pyramids. Naturally, they disturb the resting place of King...um, I'm sure he had a name. Should I have taken notes? Naaaah. Counting subordinates, there are close to a dozen mummies all told. I only noticed the one dawn.
The pacing is languid and almost rigid. It takes a solid hour for characters to begin dying, which is how you know this wasn't directed by Lucio Fulci. We do get embellished gore in the form of neck-chomping and gut-munching. Unfortunately, a lot of the detail is lost on account of rampant, unchecked darkness. Then again, the version I watched was on Amazon Prime. Maybe it's a different story on disc. Regardless, Dawn of the Mummy is a worthwhile sit once it gets rolling. I feel the need to repeat that this was my sixth mummy romp in a row. The viewing experience is going to suffer. I've said everything I can say about sand, gauze, leaves, and Ra (don't forget Ra). Recommended to fans of Zombie Holocaust, City of the Living Dead, and ill-advised skinny dipping. And R.L. Stine's Return of the Mummy.
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