May 2026 has been a rollercoaster ride for horror movies, one in particular being Lee Cronin’s bone-chilling The Mummy. Just this past month, I went to see it in theaters to understand the hype behind the “scariest movie of the year.” Let us just say…It was something. The following review contains spoilers, so be warned!
The story begins ominously with a mysterious woman and her husband entering the cellar of their house, where they uncover a sarcophagus containing human remains. As soon as the sarcophagus is opened, the mummified remains instantly kill the husband, with gore splattering everywhere. Not only was I underwhelmed, but I was also extremely grossed out from the gore.
One day, the same mysterious woman kidnaps Katie, the daughter, and she is not seen again for another fifteen years. Eventually, the family moved to New Mexico, which was a confusing skip in time for me. I later caught up after many context clues. Then, after years of hopelessness, the family finally receives good news: Katie has been found. She was severely scarred, unable to speak, and severely malnourished.
While attempting to groom her, Katie’s mom tried to cut her nails, and her skin ripped up to her knee. It is safe to say I can never look at a nail cutter the same. Eventually, the detective uncovers disturbing videotapes documenting Katie’s mummification and revealing that her spirit had been completely crushed. Meanwhile, Katie begins possessing members of the family and even kills her grandmother by throwing her out of a window and allowing dogs to consume her body. I felt this to be overly gory and unrealistic. Subsequently, during the grandmother’s funeral, her friends threw up multiple times after seeing rotten food and mold on the walls. The amount of times I almost gagged my butter drenched popcorn after watching this movie is unbelievable.
After learning about Katie’s actions and her status quo, Charlie, the father, realizes that the only way to save his daughter is to sacrifice himself and become the new mummy. In the final scene, he is restrained in a hospital room with the detective, his wife, and the woman responsible for Katie’s kidnapping standing nearby. The curse ultimately shifts from Charlie to the mysterious woman, bringing the film to an end. To me, the curse’s final transfer felt like the happy ending this family desperately needed. Now, to answer the question on many viewers’ minds: Was this truly the scariest movie of the year? Honestly, no. It is not even close. It was hardly terrifying and instead of relying on suspense or psychological fear, the film focused mostly on disgusting human matter. Throughout the movie, I lost count of how many times people ripped off skin, rotted, or bled all over the screen. If this movie were to win any award, it would be for the grossest movie of all time.
Despite the unappealing imagery throughout each scene, I would actually recommend watching this movie with a large friend group because it ends up being unintentionally hilarious, and other West High students agree. Kaylie Avery (10) reminisces, “normally horror movies are not my go-to because I enjoy getting my ten hours of sleep every night, but The Mummy was actually really funny, which completely caught me off guard.” Another friend with whom I watched the movie, Becca Elkins (10), wanted more of the bone chilling effect horror movies come with and added, “I would not recommend watching this movie if you are looking for a bone-chilling scare. It leans more toward comedy because of the random humor.” The Mummy’s comedic elements make for an entertaining film that keeps both you and your friends engaged.
