Egypt On Screen - The Mummy Returns Movie

IN THE CINEMA

The Mummy Returns, Cash!

No matter that The Mummy Returns wasnt the celebration of Egypt that it could have been, the entertaining action-adventure thriller hit the $200 million mark at the end of June. The sequel to Universal Pictures The Mummy (1999), opened May 4th, 2001 and has, since hit the international markets, spreading its special effects over Europe, Asia, Latin America, the south Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.

The Scorpion King

The third film in this franchise will be The Scorpion King, starring Dwayne The Rock Johnson, is currently filming. The success of these Mummy movies should add up to increased revenues for the Egyptian film Commission, but they dont. The Egyptian sequences of the Stephen Sommers directed films, and the Sommers produced film (The Scorpion King were filmed in Morocco.

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Morocco for Egypt?


So, close and yet, so far away from the Egyptian wonders. It seems Morocco is the focus of a North African film boom. No less than six major studio productions (The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Gladiator and the upcoming The Four Feathers, Spy Game, and Black Hawk Down) have or are currently filming in the tiny, desert country. Imagine how film production revenues could benefit the Egyptian economy! Well, were confident, someone in Hollywood will get a brilliant idea--film Egypt, in Egypt. Until then, well have to depend on the documentary filmmakers who still flock to the wonders of the ancient land.

Farewell to an Icon of Egyptian Cinema


If you've ever scanned an Egyptian television station, beamed the signal in from satellite or enjoyed classic Egyptian film on video, thanyou've likely seen the image of Egypt's girl next door, actress Suad Hosny. This week, thousands of Egyptians crowded the streets around a mosque in Mohandiseen, Cairo, to mourn the famed Egyptian actress, who died in London at the age of 58.

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A recluse in recent years, Hosny's career scanned more than four decades and includes some 79 films, including Hobb fil Zinzana (Love in Prison), co-starring Adel Imam, Ishaa'it Hobb (A Rumour of Love), with Omar Sharif, and Khali balak min Zouzou (Watch out for Zouzou), with Hussein Fahmy. In the latter film, Hosny played an impetuous, fun-loving young woman. Journalists reported that callers to her cellular phone in London -- still operating immediately after her death, heard: "This is Zouzou, leave your name and I will get back to you soon." Suad Hosny was as deeply afffected by her charasmatic portrayals as were here devoted fans.

ON TV

On July 26, 1799, Napoleon took Cairo. The History Channels series, This Week in History, will feature an hour-long program, Napoleon Takes Egypt. The documentary covers the event that presaged the development of Egyptology. Napoleon and his fleet of 400 ships and over 34,000 men invade Egypt. But he also brings along 150 scholars and experts in all fields of science and art. Their job--to extend the frontiers of Western knowledge.

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The Travel Channels, Lonely Planet, doesnt quite get to Egypt, but its intrepid hosts trek through Tunisia and Libya where they explore El Djem, a huge Colosseum that is almost as big as its counterpart in Rome. Then, they enter the desert in Tozeur in search of the Star Wars set and they stop off at the WWII German General Rommel's last stand.

Across the Libyan border, they visit Leptis Magna, one of the finest examples of Roman ruins on the Mediterranean. From there, they travel to Sabha, the site of the biggest camel market in the Sahara region. Finally, they hike the rugged Akakus mountains, where they meet the 90-year-old Tuareg, who discovered the 10,000-year-old rock art in the mountains he loves.

The syndicated television action series, Stargate SG-1 begins its fourth season with an episode that includes a battle with Apophis, of ancient Egyptian mythology. But, thats about as Egyptian as it gets--the series featuring, Richard Dean Anderson, keeps its head in the science-fiction stars.

The American Movie Channel presents an encore of the 1954 film, The Egyptian. Yes, its treacherous, melodramatic treatment of historical figures, Imhotep, Akhenaten and Horemheb. But, Michael Curtiz directed this Technicolor period piece, so its got value as a curiosity, if nothing else.

Finally, The Learning Channel will premiere Frozen in Time: Mummies Forever the first week of August. Well have more details in August, but the program promises to explore mummification practices from around the world.

For Children

Mid-month, The History Channel Classroom features the one-hour documentaries, Ramses the Great, Egypts Mysterious Queen Hathshepsut and Tutankhamun Boy King.

A&Es Classroom follows, the next week, with features on some of the leaders that influenced or ruled ancient Egypt. The programs include Julius Caesar: Master of the Roman WorldAugustus: First of the Emperors, and Constantine: The Christian Emperor. All of the Classroom series screen at 6 or 7 a.m. in the morning, so if your school aged children sleep-in during the summer, set the VCR.

ON VIDEO

The Archaeology Channel, a nonprofit public-education service, announces their 14th online video, "Egypt: Gift of the Nile", which examines the ways by which the unique environment of the Nile Valley shaped the development of classical Egyptian civilization and the llifestyles of its people. You can find this video at: http://www.archaeologychannel.org. See your local theater, television, cable or satellite directories for screening dates and times.

The Mysteries of Qurna By Sonny Stengle
Traveling by Train in Egypt By Dr. Susan Wilson & Medhat A-Monem
The Charm of the Amulet By Anita Stratos
Egyptian Rock-Art Unveiled By Arnvid Aakre
Great Hair Days in Ancient Egypt By Ilene Springer
Touring With the Young, and Not-So-Young By Jimmy Dunn
A Tour in Egypt's Mohammed Ali's Mosque By Muhammad Hegab
Ancient Egyptian Agriculture By Catherine C. Harris
Why I Keep Going Back, and This is No 'Fish Story'! By Duncan McLean
Off the Beaten Path in the Sinai By Jimmy Dunn
Editor's Commentary
By Jimmy Dunn
Ancient Beauty Secrets
By Judith Illes
Book Reviews
Various Editors
Hotel Reviews By Jimmy Dunn & Juergen Stryjak
Kid's Corner By Margo Wayman
Cooking with Tour Egypt
By Mary K Radnich
The Month in Review By John Applegate
Egyptian ExhibitionsBy Staff
Egyptian View-Point
By Adel Murad
Nightlife
Various Editors
Egypt On Screen By Carolyn Patricia Scott
Restaurant Reviews
Various Editors
Shopping Around By Juergen Stryjak
Web Reviews By Siri Bezdicek

Prior Issues
June 1st, 2001
May 1st, 2001
April 1st, 2001

March 1st, 2001

February 1st, 2001

January 1st, 2001

December 1st, 2000
October 1st, 2000
September 1st, 2000
August 1st, 2000

July 1st, 2000

June 1st, 2000

Master Index