After the title has vanished, a strong masculine voice is heard revealing the story of Anak-su-Namuns love for the high priest Imotep whilst betraying the Pharaoh. The voice over creates striking anxiety and effect for the audience as the characters have just entered the most important scene in the film. Extreme close ups capture Anak-su-Namun as she walks to her lover Imotep. Both characters are wearing golds, purples and rich colours that suggest royalty and wealth to the audience.
The aspect of Imotep and Anak-su-Namun becomes connected with other characters in the film, as the relationship between Evie and Rick becomes important. The cameras show this by making sure they get close ups of the two when talking and flirting; the close ups show the love and desire for each other. This would make the audience feel the love that the two characters feel for each other.
An affectionate love theme soundtrack is created as both characters stare passionately into each others eyes about to kiss each others willing lips. Immediately interrupted though, the love theme is shattered as Pharaoh and his guards march through, changing the soundtrack to loud booming drums where instruments virtually take over the film as they are so powerful! At this point, the audience will be on the end of their seats grinding their teeth, wondering what Pharaoh’s reactions will be. Pharaoh appears wearing golds, purples and strong rich colours. Again these colours suggest royalty. A strong outburst is made as the forceful guards take Imotep away. Anak-su-Namun cries ‘Imotep, Imotep’, as she draws a dagger and stabs herself. The audience will find this shocking as they ask themselves ‘what is the worst Pharaoh’s guards can do to Imotep’?! After making the audience gasp, Imotep calls back ‘I will resurrect you’. At this point in the film the audience will be asking themselves ‘Now how is he going to do that when she is already dead’? Good question! That is what is keeping the audience in suspense, wondering whether Anak-Su-Namun will be resurrected. All action/adventure films create anticipation, even when the conventions of the genre are well known.
The next scene is rather deadly! The voice over appears as it booms out terrible curses that ‘The Mummy’ has been unleashed. Flesh eating scarabs making sharp scuttling noises begin to burrow into victims bodies as the audience bite their tongues and squirm at this ghastly scene! Computer generated images roar hysterically through speakers. Whether the audience are in a cinema or their front room, the effect of the spirits screeching so loudly in their own house will most definitely send ghostly shivers down their spine! Note to audience; this will seem life threatening if they have surround sound in their front room!
At the end of this scene there is a painful echoing ‘ah’, as the soundtrack changes from loud deafening drums, to a calm Egyptian library where a beautiful lady, Evie is filling shelves with books. The colour has changed in this scene from gold, purples and exciting shades to dull brown bookcases. The audience will find this a time to lean back and relax as the pace has changed from fast and eager to slow and convenient. There are many scenes in ‘The Mummy’ that have short and fast paces. The short paced sequences are created to build up tension towards the audience - whilst linking the short paced scenes onto the fast and exciting ones.
In the library where Evie is minding her own business, filling shelves with brown dreary books; being gullible, let me add clumsy onto that, as she manages to use the long ladders she is standing on as a pair of stilts! (Stupid idea), as she knocks the entire shelves of books onto one another causing them all to fall down! ‘Ah’ she screeches as she tumbles to the floor. The viewers will assume ‘argh, not another bimbo’! Well in fact she is more useful than she seems! Bad news for the librarians, but at least it provided the audience with a chance to laugh at this blameless woman!
Evie, bearing in mind she’s so gullible, thinks she hears a noise in the back room and decides to investigate. Panning shots follow Evie to a sinister room where she approaches a cobweb-covered tomb that seems almost ancient. A sharp soundtrack is created in the background leading to nervousness between the audience and Evie; with a shocking screech and a sudden stop to the soundtrack, a startling mummy springs out of its tomb. This shot has been combined with Computer generated images and photography. The extreme close up of the mummy/skeleton has been taken in the tomb to give the audience the affect they are there in the same place as the character. When Evie got a fright from the ghastly looking mummy, so did the audience, as they would feel they are close by in the film.
As the hideous mummy springs out of its tomb, Evie shrieks; wait a minute though; it was just Jonathon; Evies good for nothing, feeble brother! The audience will see Jonathon as a useless wimp unable to help Evie and friends on their quest. ‘What kind of loser would scare their own sister like that’, the audience mumbles, but how wrong they are! Jonathon, who usually finds and buys penniless items, has just purchased a secret treasure. To Evies amazement, this is a once-in-a-lifetime key, not knowing she is about to face an exceptional and daring adventure. This key will open the book ‘the Egyptian curse of the mummy’. The audience will find both the key and the book mysterious, as they begin asking themselves ‘what is so special about the ‘Egyptian curse of the mummy’. This is where brawny Rick O’ Connell comes along. He is the brave hero who has battled forcefully through ‘Hamunaptra’. The lady viewers can imagine him; extreme close ups of Rick galloping through scorching hot deserts with the sun blazing, while he’s showing off his muscular bare chest! Not forgetting the men - a female character for the men to gawp at has to undoubtedly be Evie! The beautiful, yet gullible damsel in distress, racing against Rick on her horse, managing to beat all the men! The jealous lady viewers on the other hand will be whining ‘Give me a break’, especially if the opposite sex is cheering for Evie!
So imagine Rick O’ Connell, (bright eyed and bare-chested), Evie (beautiful but skilful), and oh yes Jonathon (the annoying one) who, with a little help from their friends, are about to face one of the most adventurous journeys in their whole lives. The audience can just imagine, whilst clinging to the end of their seats with excitement, Evie about to be eaten alive by ‘the (vile) mummy’ when, like always, Rick, being big and strong yells ‘I’ll save you Evie’ with his sturdy accent as he battles ten men at a time to save her!
I believe like many other audiences that ‘The Mummy’ is an ultimate action/adventure film that will unquestionably get your heart pumping at full speed. I enjoyed ‘The Mummy’ mainly because of the extraordinary Computer generated images. Photography such as this seems real to an audience, especially the repulsive mummies. The audience would feel the mummies are very close by as extreme close ups zoom in on the horrid creatures staring the audience in the eye making them scared and almost un-comfortable!
Scenes that show Computer generated effects and images would have great audience appeal. The reason for this being; an audience would wonder how the makers of the film could make the mummies and surroundings so realistic. Another good example of computer-generated images is how the creators of the film have developed the interior and exterior of the pyramids. Beautifully hand carved with a blend of golds and sandy colours, the pyramids are impressive to any audience. This is because the audience would feel as if they were in the pyramids mainly by the camera angles; medium shots that show a characters top half with an outstanding background would allow the audience to almost experience what it is like to be in an ancient Egyptian pyramid; there is also a fearsome Computer generated effect that is the recreation from a skeleton, to regenerated human form of the High Priest Imotep. The audience would find this effect rather startling as bit-by-bit, his horrific human body pieces begin to structure into a regular body, yet he is still an unnatural human-being with mystic powers able to destroy any characters or surroundings in the film. This is worrying to the audience. ‘What happens if beautiful Evie or Handsome Rick was to die’…? Think again, all the action and adventure-taking place in their lives… Impossible!
The most important role in this film is the action and adventure. This film would be nothing without action and adventure as the title suggests ‘The Mummy’! The audience will know this by looking at the title that there is a sense of creepiness with ugly mummies, to action and adventure - trying to battle against these revolting creatures. ‘The Mummy’ contains high-speed chases where Evie, Rick and companions are being pursued through sinister tunnels about to be eaten alive by scurrying scarabs! This would have the audience griping tightly on any kind of furniture they can get their hands on, as the tension build up is at a hurried pace! (If the audience thought that was a scary scene, wait till Rick arrives head-to-head with the formidable mummy Imotep)!
Both men and women would enjoy this type of action film as it has everything they both may want. A section of romance for the ladies with the one and only hansom Rick; or for the male gender a bit of mind-strangling action to get their heart racing! ‘The Mummy’ is fantastic, out-of-this-world and unquestionably the best action/adventure film the human race has ever seen!