The Mummy's Ghost (Reginald Le Borg, 1944, USA)

The Mummy's Ghost, directed by Reginald LeBorg, is the second of the three sequels that accompany 1940's The Mummy's Hand. LeBorg had a prolific career, directing 68 films between 1936 and 1974. The film notably featured John Carradine in the role of Yousef Bey, the accompanying figure to Lon Chaney Jr.'s mummy Kharis. The film follows a similar plot as many others in the Mummy franchise. Yousef Bey is attempting to kidnap a young American woman of Egyptian ancestry who bears a resemblance to Kharis's princess. This film gets deeper into the mummy mythos than some others in the mummy franchise, which is a welcome change. 

Another benefit of this film is the mummy action, which stays very high throughout. Regrettably, this entry in the franchise feels somewhat bland. The characters start to feel interchangeable, and the pacing is not dynamic enough. Thankfully the film does not resort to one of the irritating things about The Mummy's Tomb - all of the use of archive footage to pad out the time of the film. One of the highlights of the films is Ramsay Ames as Princess Ananka. Ames was of part Spanish descent, and she was known for taking on roles with an "exotic" look. 

Despite being only an hour, The Mummy's Ghost feels longer than it should. The film stands out mainly for its performance, specifically those of Carradine and George Zucco as the high priest. Zucco was another veteran character who appeared in an innumerable number of films over many decades. The film also has a very memorable closing line: "The fate of those who defy the will of the ancient Gods shall be a cruel and violent death." Overall, The Mummy's Ghost is silly fun, and worth watching maybe once, but not one of the best films in the Universal canon.

5/10