Egypt 1895.  As British archeological team begins to enter the lost tomb of Princess Ananka, high priestess of Carnic, when they receive a warning for a local (George Pastell), "He who robs the graves of Egypt dies".  Brushing it off as mere superstition, they enter anyway. While inside, Stephen Banning (Felix Alymer) reads from the "Scroll of Life" bringing to life the mummy, Kharis. Now frozen in a state of delirium, Banning is sent home and his son, John (Peter Cushing) is left behind to seal the tomb.

Three years later while recovering in a mental institute, the elder Banning awakens from his nightmares and warns that the mummy will be coming for revenge. Passing it off as delusions of a sick man, John neglects his father's warnings. He finally realizes the truth when he witnesses the mummy murdering one of his father assistants, Joseph Whemple (Raymond Huntley) and now knows that he is next.      

While studying Ananka, John discovers that Kharis (Christopher Lee) had been her servant and lover. He had been buried alive when he was  found trying to bring the Princess back from the dead. At the same time, he realizes that his young wife Isobel (Yvonne Furneaux), is the living incarnate of Princess Ananka. Could this be the weakness that John needs to defeat the indestructible MUMMY???

When Hammer acquired the rights to remake the classic monster movies from Universal, they quickly jumped on the Dracula and Frankenstein franchises. In 1959, they decided that "The Mummy" would be the next film to go before the camera and handed the reins over to their masterful director Terrance Fisher. This film succeeds on all levels and is rich in color, atmosphere, music and story. Hammer was able to take the best parts from the original film and mixed in the mythos of Kharis from the sequels to make a highly entertaining film. Both Lee and Crushing are excellent as always, and Hammer makes "The Mummy" a real winner!!!!