Dr. Phibes Rises Again
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Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972) was the second Dr. Phibes movie, a sequel to The Abominable Dr. Phibes. It was directed by Robert Fuest, and starred Vincent Price as Dr. Anton Phibes.
Plot
The moon rises at a predestined angle and awakens the sleeping Dr. Phibes three years later. To his dismay, he finds his house has been demolished and his papyrus scrolls stolen, the scrolls he needs to find the Pharaoh's Tomb in Egypt, where the River of Life flows. After identifying the source of the papyrus theft, he packs and leaves for Egypt with his assistant Vulnavia, still intent upon awakening his dead wife Victoria. The thieves of Phibes' scrolls suffer an attrition problem as Inspectors Trout and Waverly chase him across the world.
The murders in this film all have an Egyptian theme to them. A character is sand-blasted to death, while another is devoured by an eagle.
The film was rushed into production after the success of the first film. The script, penned by Fuest, suffered due to budget restraints, as well as studio meddling (it was them who forced Vulnavia to return, Phibes was originally to have a new assistant.)
This was to be followed by a third Dr. Phibes movie, The Brides of Phibes or Phibes Resurrectus.
It would have had Phibes protecting his secret of eternal life from a group of Nazis, who he would kill off one by one. His wife would also be brought back to life.
Another plan for a sequel was The Seven Fates of Dr. Phibes in this, Phibes resurrects Victoria, and the two then search for seven small statues that will fufil their ultimate plan. To obtain these statues, they kill people in styles based on Greek mythology (a trojan horse, cyclops, minotaur etc.) The film reveals Vulnavia's identity (she is the Greek Goddess Athena), and also features footage of Phibes before his accident. A treatment of this film still exists.
Tagline: Flesh crawls! Blood curdles! Phibes lives!