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Popular Culture Review
predator/prey relationship as a type that is ‘'perennially interesting to readers and
viewers” (6). Thus, these stories feature a group of adventurers who must fend
off the “other” while simultaneously protecting the creature’s object of desire.
Many contemporary films find a degree of audience appeal by experimenting
with these conventions, particularly by including women as members of the
protecting group rather than solely as the object of the invader’s desire. This
trend received a boost ixom Alien's Ripley in 1979 and the female characters in
such films as The Relic (1996) and the remake of Night of the Living Dead
(1990) who became interchangeable with a traditional male member of the
group whose job it is to repel the invader.
This twist of generic conventions appears to be incorporated into
Stephen Sommers’s remake of The Mummy. In this film, Evelyn Carnahan
(Rachel Weisz) undergoes a substantial transition from klutzy librarian to strong
woman as the plot unfolds. This change is underscored by the costuming and
other cosmetic differences Evie exhibits as Imhotep’s (Arnold Vosloo) presence
becomes increasingly menacing. Costume designer, John Bloomfield, describes
the progression this way
She does start off as a librarian .. . looking quite sedate but
still very beautiflil. Then it’s the classic thing of the glasses
and the hair in a bun. During the course of the story she lets
her hair down and she changes from her very pale colors into a
much more dramatic look. She takes on the black Arab dress
and then, when we come back to Cairo, we see her in bed and
she’s in a black nightie. The moment she realizes the full
danger she’s in, she never has a chance to change again, so
she’s running through the streets in her black nightie. It’s quite
logical because she’s terrified and she’s not caring any more
what she’s wearing. (Cadigan, 38)
Throughout the Sommers-penned story, Evie fulfills the role of the brains of the
outfit, possessing the knowledge of Egyptology necessary for the group to repel
Imhotep. This stands out in contrast to the statement by the Egyptologist hired
by the rival American group when he tells his benefactors not to worry about
Rick O’Connell (Brendan Fraser) and his motley band because, “They are led by
a woman. What does a woman know.” But, despite this oxymoron, the film only
pretends to exhibit a modern feminist viewpoint. A close examination of
Sommers’s script shows that Evelyn is responsible for most of the major
problems the adventurers face. Layer on Anck Su Namun’s (Patricia Velasquez)
provocative “makeup as daywear” undress as she scampers around the palace
carrying on her unconsummated affair with Imhotep, and we see Sommers
telling us that women are definitely a problem to have around. For example,
when the Pharaoh discovers the truth of his mistress’s affair with his high priest