Excellent, Without a doubt!!

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Copyright 31 December 1943 by Universal Pictures Co., Inc. New York opening at the Rialto: 30 June 1944. U.S. release: 7 July 1944. U.K. release: 2 June 1947 (sic). Australian release: 6 July 1944. 6 reels. 5,499 feet. 61 minutes.SYNOPSIS: Sequel to The Mummy's Tomb starring Chaney junior as the mummy. Since Turhan Bey failed in the previous movie, Egyptian priest Zucco sends John Carradine to New England to help the mummy find his princess. This time a young college co-ed played by Ramsay Ames is the Ananka look-alike.NOTES: Number four of the seven-picture "Mummy" series.COMMENT: The story continues on from The Mummy's Tomb (1942). The mummy it appears was not destroyed in the fire after all, but only disfigured - if you can imagine a mummy being disfigured, though his one eye is rather frightening. Lon Chaney is so completely swathed in bandages as to be unrecognizable - any stuntman or cheap double could have done just as well. Robert Lowery is a rather wet hero, though Ramsay Ames makes a rather fetching heroine and there is a solid cast of character players.Le Borg's direction is much, much more stylish than his usual humble standard. Some of the sequences are compellingly stated and good use is made of natural locations at the climax. The film looks well-produced though Sickner's photography lacks the atmosphere that Woody Bredell would have brought to the film. The eerie effects are mainly achieved through Jack Pierce's skilled make-up and Salter's well-thumbed musical compilation of standard Universal "B"-picture themes.There is more than a hint of blasphemy in the script's adaptation of King James-type prayers to pagan identities such as Amon-Ra and it's odd that this was deemed acceptable by the supposedly strict censors of 1944.

1943's "The Mummy's Ghost" was third in the Kharis series, second to star Lon Chaney in the title role, and was, like all its predecessors (including Karloff's 1932 original), included in Universal's popular SHOCK! package of classic horror films issued to television in the late 50s. An improvement on the listless "The Mummy's Tomb," Chaney's Mummy sports a different mask but actually shows more range, whether stalking a helpless victim like Frank Reicher (also back from "Tomb"), or recklessly shattering a glass museum exhibit, which resulted in a visible gash on the mummy's chin. John Carradine lends his exquisite sepulchral tones to Yousef Bey, High Priest of Arkham (Karnak having retired from shame), who leads Kharis to Manhattan's Scripps Museum to recover the mummy of the Princess Ananka, only to see the body disappear from its wrappings before their very eyes. Incredibly, by returning to Mapleton, they're able to find the girl now possessed by Ananka's reincarnated soul, who proves to be too much for Yousef to resist, forcing Kharis to eliminate the competition in typical fashion (apparently, Egyptian priests were never taught about the birds and the bees). Once again, we get stuck with a belligerent, unsympathetic 'hero' in Robert Lowery, so the climactic twist actually makes sense, the reincarnation theme successfully revived from Karloff's 1932 classic. Director Reginald Le Borg, a recent graduate from short subjects, worked well with Lon Chaney, continuing with "Calling Dr. Death," "Weird Woman," "Dead Man's Eyes," and "The Black Sleep." Deputising for the injured Acquanetta, Ramsay Ames proves sadly lacking, her Amina Mansouri registering as a total blank (she was little better as Chaney's unfaithful wife in her Universal finale, "Calling Dr. Death"). George Zucco contributes another welcome cameo (his last in the series), but Barton Mac Lane is woefully out of place in his only Universal horror, the dead end investigation trailing behind Lowery (this time, Kharis scrupulously avoids crowds). Look fast in the opening reel for Martha Vickers ("The Big Sleep"), previously seen in "Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man" and "Captive Wild Woman." Next up for Chaney was the final entry, "The Mummy's Curse," which amazingly continued the upswing from the previous two, now set in the Louisiana bayous. "The Mummy's Ghost" made five appearances on Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater- May 7 1966 (following 1959's "The Angry Red Planet"), Feb 3 1968 (following 1956's "The Undead"), Mar 31 1973 (following 1969's "Attack of the Monsters"), June 19 1976 (following 1967's "Island of the Burning Doomed"), and Aug 13 1977 (preceding 1934's "The Man Who Reclaimed His Head").

Lon Chaney Jr. returns as Kharis the mummy, once again brought back to murderous life by another young priest(played by John Carradine) who was sent by a dying Andoheb(George Zucco for the last time). The mission this time is to retrieve the body of Princess Ananka, but upon breaking and entering into the Scripps Museum, they find that her body has disintegrated, meaning she has since reincarnated, quite conveniently in a local college student played by Ramsey Ames, though her boyfriend is determined to save her from her inevitable fate. Frank Reicher returns as a college professor from the previous film, who is now dispatched by Kharis after brewing a batch of the life-sustaining Egyptian leaves that keep Kharis alive. Only the quicksand finale distinguishes this contrived and ineffectual entry in any way.

Mummy's Ghost, The (1944) ** 1/2 (out of 4) A high priest (John Carradine) travels from Egypt to America to locate the bodies of Kharis (Lon Chaney, Jr.) and Princess Ananka. Once in America the priest seems to think that the princess has had her spirit lifted into another body so Kharis must get to her and kill anyone who stands in his way.THE MUMMY'S GHOST is perhaps the weakest mummy film in Universal's series, although fans of monster movies will probably still find it mildly entertaining. I think there's a lot more that could have been done with the film but it's clear that the studio wasn't interested in anything fresh or original but instead they were just trying to deliver a quick "B" picture and that's pretty much what they've done. The film manages to have a few decent ideas scattered throughout but when you really think about it, the story doesn't add much that the previous two didn't do.Once again we've got a high priest bring the mummy back to life who once again goes out looking for his long lost love. This time out I found the mummy make-up to be the least attractive and perhaps this was due to its star Chaney simply refusing to wear more. It's well-known that Chaney and make-up artist Jack Pearce weren't exactly on the best terms. Carradine is good in his brief role and it's also fun seeing George Zucco back on hand. The supporting players are also decent.The biggest problem with the film is the rather bland direction and even at 61-minutes not too much happens. I think it doesn't help that the quality is obviously a lot lower than the previous three films so the decline is right there in front of you. I think the best thing working for the picture is the climax, which ends in a way that you really don't expect it to. THE MUMMY'S GHOST isn't classic Universal but fans of the series will still want to check it out.