The Curse of King Tut’s Tomb is a TV horror movie directed by Philip Leacock and released in 1980. The story is based on the novel by Barry Wynne, Behind the Mask of Tutankhamen. Starring Eva Marie Saint, Robin Ellis, Raymond Burr and Tom Baker, the movie tells the story of the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922 by Howard Carter and his team, and the alleged curse that befalls various members of the archaeological expedition, since a series of mysterious deaths starts after the finding of the infamous burial place.
The movie appears to be quite descriptive and accurate in the strictly historical part; while obvious fictionalised components and inaccuracies feature due to the fact that we are dealing with a cinematographic product and not a documentary, on the archaeological side the plot seeks to adhere fairly well to historical and attested facts (see, for instance, Howard Carter’s attempts to convince Lord Carnarvon to invest in a last campaign in the Valley; or the telegram the British archaeologist sends to his investor to inform him about the discovery of the tomb). In addition, the reconstruction of the funerary equipment and its positioning within the rooms of the burial place tends to be precise enough.
Since it is intended for entertainment, the movie also presents a conspicuous series of fictitious aspects, especially used as support elements to the main theme of the film: the curse of Tutankhamun.
While it would have been interesting if they had employed Harry Burton’s photographs to reconstruct some of the most emblematic scenes related to the discovery of the tomb (such as the famous picture that shows the analysis and cleaning of the innermost coffin of the young pharaoh), the movie is a good balance of descriptive and imaginary features, and emerges as a decent example of the pseudo-Egyptian suggestion that pertains to the mummy’s curse, which characterises many cinematographic works of art.

Author: Valentina Santini