Dark Streets of Cairo

In the 1940s, one of the most prolific B-movie villains was George Zucco. Again and again, he appeared as one diabolical genius madman after another. So, when I saw he was in "Dark Streets of Cairo", I pretty much assumed he'd be his usual self.

The story begins with Abadi (Zucco) murdering a minion because he's no longer important to his schemes. This would be repeated quite a few times in this film...which makes you wonder why all the Egyptians are so darn devoted to him and his quest to get the legendary Seven Jewels. The only ones who seem capable of stopping him are a couple Americans...Denny (Ralph Byrd) and his goofy sidekick, Jerry (Eddie Quillan). Can they manage to thwart this evil genius...especially since they don't seem altogether bright...especially Jerry.

In many ways, this plays like a 1940s film about some mummy cult...though this one actually has no mummies. This does make you wonder why such a cult-like following surrounds Abadi...and it makes you wonder how long his followers will put up with his disposing of them right and left.

This film is pretty much what I expected. Zucco is menacing and evil and the story is just a good excuse to provide a variety of thrills and action. Well made for what it is...just pure undemanding Saturday morning entertainment.

No mummies here (of the "living" variety anyway), but it does have a very sinister George Zucco in an Egyptian setting (sound familiar?).

While on an expedition in Egypt, an American archaeological team unearths the rare "Seven Jewels of the Seventh Pharaoh." A local businessman of dubious reputation, Abbadi (Zucco...who really is "a baddie" in this movie), along with his henchmen, go about stealing the famed jewels and replacing them with fakes. In order to divert suspicion and pin the crime on someone else, Abbadi invites to Cairo a renown antiquities collector from Stockholm, Sweden who, along with his daughter, are held captive and framed for the theft.

When strange things start occurring in Cairo, the local inspector teams with a pair of the archaeologists to solve the mystery. Suspecting Abbadi of some misdeed, they are tipped off by his wife and plan a rendezvous with justice in an abandoned system of antiquated aqueducts underneath the city. As is typical of this genre, one of the archaeologists is the serious "straight man" and the other is the "comic relief." A little bit too much comic relief in a film that clocks in at a mere 59 minutes, but as I said, Zucco is VERY diabolical here, so maybe it's warranted.

Some huge plot holes here, but the gist is understood. The stereotypes depicted border on absurdity and do not expect historical accuracy (a cabbie named "Yahudi"??...in Egypt???) Not among the best mystery movie by any means, but it is a Universal picture from the "Silver Age" of horror and the stock musical score adds a real sense of suspense to this film. Undoubtedly, though, it is the usually superior performance of George Zucco that makes this worth seeing. 5/10

1940's "Dark Streets of Cairo" is a real obscurity among Universal buffs, as it was never included in the studio's SHOCK! collection of classic horror films issued to television in the late 50s, probably never making the rounds on local stations either, although Realart posters assured its theatrical comeback. Released a few months after "The Mummy's Hand," the film reunites George Zucco and Siegfried Arno in basically the same roles, but are now jewel smugglers based in Cairo, using the same sets and much of the same musical cues. Zucco's fez wearing gang leader is named Abbadi (pronounced 'a body'), who tries to pin his crimes on a kidnapped wealthy baron (Lloyd Corrigan), with top billing going to Sigrid Gurie as the baron's daughter. The screen's best known Dick Tracy, Ralph Byrd, plays the hero, and diminutive Eddie Quillan, fresh from "The Grapes of Wrath," supplies too much comic relief for a 59 minute feature that provides little thriller relief. Zucco easily handles his duties in fine fashion, and other villains are played by Henry Brandon, Nestor Paiva, Steven Geray, and Charles Wagenheim.