Nigel P Events behind the scenes during the production of this Hammer project contain enough tragedy and intrigue to make a film of their own. Andrew Keir plays a role originally written (and partially recorded) for Peter Cushing, who had to abandon the project when his wife's health took a turn for the worst. Director Seth Holt died on set mid-way through production and Hammer bigwig Michael Carreras took the helm for the remainder (although Holt was still singularly credited).The result is sadly a bit of a mess, frankly. Much of the initial running time is filled with a flurry of characters experiencing strange and deadly events/coincidences often vaguely connected with a singular star system ('The Jewel of the Seven Stars' is the Bram Stoker story on which this is based). A pout-some, voluptuous and fully made-up Margaret is in bed dreaming of a pout-some, voluptuous and fully made-up Egyptian queen Tera (both played by Valerie Leon) having her hand removed by a group of priests. In more wakeful times, Margaret has a father (Keir) and a boyfriend, charmless Tod (Browning, believe it or not - namesake of the man who directed 1931's 'Dracula' and 1932's notorious 'Freaks' among others - played by Mark Edwards). There's creepy Corbeck (James Villiers), mad old Berigan (George Coulouris) and even madder Doctor Putman (Aubrey Woods). The least interesting Browning commands much of the running time leaving much of the rest of the cast under-written.'Blood from the Mummy's Tomb' eschews much blood and gore (and a traditional mummy) in favour of a more supernatural tale. That it is rather dull and talky doesn't help anyone: the most gruesome thing we see is Princess Tera's disembodied hand creeping around. It is admirable to see Hammer attempting a different telling of the story, but sadly this fails to deliver much in the way of horror.

GL84 Returning home from an excavation, an archeologist's daughter finds that her resemblance to a recently-unearthed Egyptian queen's tomb allows her soul to possess her in an effort to be unleashed in the world again, and must race to stop the ceremony from being completed.This is probably one of Hammer's most underrated features. One of its better features is that this effectively uses shadow and suggestion among the best that the studio ever tried and managing to bridge the gap between their Gothic start and the more exploitative side that was coming to the forefront. The first one is clearly the highlight, as a victim inside an insane asylum, straight-jacketed and held down, when a vicious wind begins to howl and starts blowing things around the room. He notices a snake sculpture on the wall is missing and he goes over to try to get out, but he is trapped inside when the snake sculpture's shadow on the side of the wall slowly approaches him and gets even more frantic and hysterical, and the wind picks up to hide the brutal murder that follows quite effectively. All of the shadows and other images in the film are nice uses of suspense to give the film a little something extra, just to spice up the action. The attacks at the end are the most fun with the full powers of the possessed queen put to display in a variety of locations against the attackers which allows for some frenetic action scenes to occur as the wild fight in the library, a further attack at her home and the finale which is just plain fun. The amazing sets are so eerie and striking that it really catches your eye. It also adds to the suspense of the scenes since the realism of them plays out incredibly well as they are so intricately made that it almost looks like they used ancient Egyptian props straight from a tomb and put them directly in front of the camera. The tomb is the most impressive, with the beautiful sarcophagus in the middle as the best example of this with the decorated head filled with colored jewels, the elaborate headdress, and the overall design it has is simply marvelous with the large hieroglyphics on the walls and looks very nice. It really does look like an actual Egyptian tomb inside up to Hammer's usual high standards. Even the kills were pretty good as always going for the jugular is a nice adaptation to give the killer, making for some nasty kills along the way even if it doesn't provide for any creativity. However, it allows for a lot of blood to flow, as this is one of the bloodier films from Hammer. There weren't a lot of kills in the beginning, but once this got rolling, they came fast and furious. Finally, Valerie Leon is one of the better and busty heroines of the Hammer staple, spending a lot of time in the film wearing negligee, and sometimes less, so this is something many red-blooded males will want to see. There's not a lot to dislike from this one, though it is probably one of the slower entries in the series so it takes a while to get going. Once it gets going, it's not that bad, but for a mummy film we don't see the mummy in the film all that often. Even more so, it isn't a mummy in the traditional sense that we know of, covered in layers of moldy bandages and shuffling about. Here, not only is it rarely seen, but it isn't the traditional mummy, so fans may be disappointed with it if it's a blind buy based on the title.Today's Rating/PG-13: Violence and Brief Nudity.

MartinHafer To quote "South Park", when the film begins it's obvious that the film will feature lots of "awesome boobage", as the film seems to VERY prominently display the very well-endowed ladies in the film--though there is no actual nudity. In a way, they are sort of the co-stars in "Blood From a Mummy's Tomb"! This AIN'T the sort of film grandpa used to watch back in the good ol' days of Boris Karloff! Archeologists discover a queen buried in an ancient Egyptian tomb. Oddly, she was neither skeletal nor mummified, but looks as if she's still alive--all regaled like an Egyptian queen. It gets weirder when they see a severed hand and the stump on the body begins to bleed! Pretty weird, but weirder still, the expedition's leader's wife has a baby at the exact moment the tomb is opened and the baby grows up to be an exact duplicate of the dead woman. Later, you realize it has the dead woman's soul as well, as it goes about do bad things...very bad things indeed.If you are looking for mummies, the film, despite the title, has none. Instead, an incredibly voluptuous lady who kills along with the help of a weirdo who LIKES the idea of her running amok! Frankly, this film is an excellent example for why Hammer Films was having financial problems by the 1970s--their horror films were becoming rather bereft of ideas. This film is a far cry from the studio's original mummy film (which was awfully good) or the Frankenstein and Dracula films. Few, if any chills here--just lots of awesome boobage and a rather silly story. I give the story a 2 and Miss Leon's boobage a 9 or 10.By the way, in the final scene, look closely at the queen's teeth. you can clearly see modern fillings in them! Not bad for an ancient Egyptian!

ferbs54 It's been many years since I read Bram Stoker's 1903 novel "The Jewel of Seven Stars," but what I mainly recollect is a feeling of great disappointment; the book is all buildup, with very little in the way of payoff. The 1971 Hammer filmization, renamed "Blood From the Mummy's Tomb," can be accused of the same unfortunate misdemeanor, but still has much to offer. It tells the tale of Tera, an ancient Egyptian sorceress who had been executed back when, had her hand dismembered and her body encased in a tomb. Centuries later, that tomb is discovered by a researcher named Fuchs, whose daughter is the very image of the priestess. It would seem that Tera is about to be finally reincarnated.... Taking place in an indeterminate year (the clothing and furnishings are modern, yet the automobiles are vintage), "Blood From" boasts some mild gross-out FX (that severed hand, and Tera's many throat rippings), an interesting enough story, adequate sets and--typical for a Hammer film--fine acting from its second-tier cast. In her dual role as the "slumbering" Tera and Fuchs' possessed daughter, Margaret, actress Valerie Leon literally stands out in this cast. A stunning-looking woman even today, her, um, mUmmarian protuberances are amply brought to the fore here in any number of negligees and low-cut gowns. As Tera, she is found completely unswathed; I suppose even the ancient Egyptian priests felt that her body was too impressive to be kept under wraps! In any event, Valerie's presence is reason enough to give this film a recommendation. The film's story line presents some unanswered questions (Just how does the Corbeck character plan to control Tera once she "awakens," for instance? And that ambiguous ending is anybody's guess!), but I must say that I enjoyed this film more on a repeat viewing, with lowered expectations. It's a fun latter-day Hammer flick, shown to good advantage on this great-looking Anchor Bay DVD.