The Mummy’s Curse feels like a wasted opportunity. Once again Lon Chaney Jr. seems to get short shrift without much to do in this installment of the Universal Monsters series.

I have a couple of problems with this one. My first issue, this entry barely runs an hour and a good quarter of it is a recap of how Kharis (Chaney) became the Mummy and his love for the Princess Ananka.

My other issue is that the characters in this film refer to the events of the other films, that’s fine, I guess, but according to the characters, the previous film took place twenty-five years ago. Why they feel they need to mess with a timeline like that, and not update styles and social norms is confusing.

Anyway, this time out, doctors James Halsey (Dennis Moore) and Zardad (Peter Coe) arrive in Louisiana to recover the bodies of Kharis and the mummy of Ananka. They deal with a construction company whose clearing out a swamp, which is where the bodies are supposedly buried.

Halsey and Zardad are able to recover Kharis, and Zardad has his own plans for the Mummy. But when a bulldozer unearths Ananka (Virginia Christine) the sun seems to revive her. And after a quick wash in the bayou, she looks all made up and presentable when she is discovered by the locals who bring her to the attention of the doctors.

And this is my other issue, not only is Ananka resurrected (giving Kharis motivation to pursue her and those who are with her) she speaks perfect English.

Kharis goes stumbling after everyone who is in his way, while Ananka begins working with Halsey. who is an archaeologist, and Zardad, an Egyptologist. She has no memory of her prior life, but knows lots about ancient history.

There’s a lot of near misses and Kharis shambles after victims, but this entry feels very lacklustre. It’s short runtime doesn’t give any character an opportunity to develop, which is a missed opportunity especially in regards to Ananka.

Over too quick, and not enough story, this one is probably my least favorite entry in the collection so far. And that’s unfortunate, because I also see a lot of potential in the series and the character, which I think will never be realized.

Instead this entry just seemed to be made as a cash grab, ignorant of any real desire to make a strong entry in the series.

Next time, I’ll check in with the Invisble Man and see what he gets up to in The Invisible Man’s Revenge.