Watching this film recently, after not seeing it for many years, I couldn't help but be struck by the opening scene of the scientists exploring a mysterious tomb and think that this must have been a big influence on Woody Allen's Purple Rose of Cairo.
It's a bit slow, but the location shots of Egyptian backgrounds are fun, and the whole horror movie atmosphere of curses and dreadful secrets, obviously borrowing from Universal's 1932 The Mummy, is great.The movie has plenty of atmosphere, with some genuine suspense and a clever mystery that provides some real surprises.
The controversial element of Stepin Fetchit's character Snowshoes has been written about by nearly every poster. Though very politically incorrect by today's standards, I have to admit laughing at some of his lines and actions, as the fact is simply that he is often very funny, even if we're not supposed to find him so today. I cringed often at the demeaning way he is treated by most of the other characters except Charlie Chan, and at times he is down right embarrassing, but like it or not, he does add something to the entertainment value of the picture, even if only for historical reasons.
This is a pretty entertaining movie, if you can manage to keep an open mind about the various ethnic stereotypes involved. When you get right down to it, most of the white characters in it don't come off looking too good, either, especially the neurotic heroine, played shrilly by Pat Paterson.
It's a bit slow, but the location shots of Egyptian backgrounds are fun, and the whole horror movie atmosphere of curses and dreadful secrets, obviously borrowing from Universal's 1932 The Mummy, is great.The movie has plenty of atmosphere, with some genuine suspense and a clever mystery that provides some real surprises.
The controversial element of Stepin Fetchit's character Snowshoes has been written about by nearly every poster. Though very politically incorrect by today's standards, I have to admit laughing at some of his lines and actions, as the fact is simply that he is often very funny, even if we're not supposed to find him so today. I cringed often at the demeaning way he is treated by most of the other characters except Charlie Chan, and at times he is down right embarrassing, but like it or not, he does add something to the entertainment value of the picture, even if only for historical reasons.
This is a pretty entertaining movie, if you can manage to keep an open mind about the various ethnic stereotypes involved. When you get right down to it, most of the white characters in it don't come off looking too good, either, especially the neurotic heroine, played shrilly by Pat Paterson.