Hammer Films Double Feature: The Revenge of Frankenstein / The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		2.5
Audio		2.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.0

Hammer Films Double Feature: The Revenge of Frankenstein / The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 31, 2016

Mill Creek's double feature is currently the only way to own these films. For individual reviews and additional screenshots, please click through the appropriate links below:

• The Revenge of Frankenstein
• The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb

The Revenge of Frankenstein
Score: 3.5/5.0

Dr. Frankenstein, sentenced to death for the murders committed by his creation, escapes fate at the end of a guillotine and flees to Carlsbruck where he continues his work but also spends his time aiding the sick and poor. However, he is recognized by Dr. Hans Kleve who, rather than expose him, finagles his way to work beside him in the task of brain transplants (which doesn't sound as far-fetched as it once did).

The film is well versed in its world. It leaves behind much in the way of serious, detailed science and focuses more on characters, personalities, and the psychological driving forces of its players. Performances are strong from the venerable Peter Cushing (of Star Wars fame) and the supporting cast, which shows positive command of their roles in the film and the larger themes around them. The film leaves behind the quicker pace and slicker production values of some other Frankenstein pictures but manages to craft a dimmer, more disturbing story that builds on lore, not simply reworks it. This is a welcome addition to the Frankenstein collection and one of the better films in it.

The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb
Score: 2.0/5.0

The year is 1900. The place is Egypt. Several archeologists (played by Jack Gwillim, Ronald Howard, and Bernard Rebel) discover a find of a lifetime: a sarcophagus containing a mummy. The American who financed the expedition (played by Fred Clark) orders the find returned to London in order to monetize public displays. But things begin to go awry when it seems the mummy inside has returned to life, bent on killing those who have interrupted its slumber.

The movie banks on real-world mythology, anticipation, fear of the unknown, and general horror to terrify, and entertain, audiences. It works to an extent. The movie is a crude -- sometimes limp, lame, and tired, but usually halfway enjoyable -- entertainer with a few tricks up its sleeve. It's not particularly scary, at least not by today's standards, though a few boundaries are pushed and several squeamish moments pop up on the screen. It's a bit slow out of the gate and on through the beginning parts of the second act, but it picks up rhythm and even some intensity as it moves forward. Production values are fair and performances are solid enough given the relative dearth of legitimate characterization. Hardly the jewel of the Hammer collection, the film nevertheless makes for passable, lazy day throwback entertainment and serves as a decent lower-rung baseline for what to expect from the company.

Hammer Films Double Feature: The Revenge of Frankenstein / The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Revenge of Frankenstein
Score: 2.0/5.0

The Revenge of Frankenstein's 1080p presentation leaves quite a bit to be desired. It's solid enough at the core, with adequate, though never finely revealing, details. Attire, rougher stone and wood surfaces, various odds and ends in labs, and skin textures hardly stretch the format's capabilities, never mind film's inherent resolution. Grain retention adds a filmic texture, but the image suffers from some serious wear and tear, heaviest during the opening title sequence but remaining through. Pops, splotches, speckles, scratches, all variety of imperfection creep up with regularity. Colors aren't particularly revealing, either. Saturation is dull, leaving the palette appearing bland and fatigued. The transfer showcases basics nicely enough, but this is, overall, a rather flat, low-grade presentation that barely scrapes by for Blu-ray quality.

The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb
Score: 3.0/5.0

The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb doesn't look particularly bad on Blu-ray...nor does it look particularly good. Mill Creek's middling 1080p presentation handles the basics well enough. Color saturation is fair, even if the image lacks real, serious punch. Gold plated and colorfully jewel-adorned sarcophagi look nice enough, sparkling rather nicely and revealing the punchiest colors the movie has to offer. Otherwise, the palette is rather straightforward, maybe a hint bland, but with enough vitality to scrape by. Details fare just ok as well. Definition holds firm enough for the duration, with those historical artifacts and sarcophagi showing off a good bit intimate texturing, while rougher surfaces around the frame show enough raw definition to please. Faces and clothes aren't insanely complex, but the image presents them well enough. A light grain structure hovers atop the image, but so too does noise and occasionally heavy macroblocking. Skin tones appear neutral and blacks occasionally, but not detrimentally, push a little light. Overall, this is a fair image, but nothing to be too terribly excited about.

Hammer Films Double Feature: The Revenge of Frankenstein / The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Revenge of Frankenstein
Score: 2.0/5.0

The Revenge of Frankenstein features a Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack, par for the course for Mill Creek's double features. The presentation is unsurprisingly devoid of much effort or definition beyond the basics. Dialogue delivery is fine, with a good, effortless front-center imaging. Otherwise, the track struggles to offer the listener much reason to be excited. Sound effects are crude but clear enough to discern the basics. Musical delivery lacks all but the most simple of structural definition, and range is severely limited. Everything pushes to the center with no sense of width to any single element. The track is good enough to carry the audience through the film, but listeners shouldn't expect anything more than a nuts-and-bolts presentation.

The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb
Score: 2.5/5.0

The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb arrives on Blu-ray with a sonically unremarkable Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack. The track gets the job done, embraces the basics, and never stretches itself in any way. Basic clarity is adequate. Dialogue is delivered intelligibly with a commendable center placement. Sound effects are rather crude but serviceable in defining the simpler elements that unfold throughout the movie, including various crashes and moments of action-mayhem. Music plays with simple definition, little range, and no real stretch in the speakers.

Hammer Films Double Feature: The Revenge of Frankenstein / The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This double feature Blu-ray release contains no supplemental content.

Hammer Films Double Feature: The Revenge of Frankenstein / The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mill Creek's featureless Blu-ray double feature lacks technical polish. However, the movies are relatively good (Frankenstein) and relatively entertaining (Mummy). Worth a purchase on sale.