Ruins of any civilisation have always come with whispers of legends and those that came before, and few movies bring this to life more viscerally than The Pyramid (2014).Directed by Grégory Levasseur, this horror classic reminds us that some ancient kingdoms were buried and should remain that way, as it follows a claustrophobic descent into a cursed tomb.
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The Unearthing Begins
Set in the Arab Spring of the early 2010s,The Pyramidfollows two archaeologists, Nora and Holden, as they travel to Egypt to carry out excavations. Through this work, they come across a three-sided pyramid buried under the desert. Different from the usual four-sided structures of Ancient Egypt, this pyramid has a different energy and entices the two researchers to enter the tomb along with two other assistants. It is here that their descent starts to morph into an unimaginable nightmare as their way out slowly disappears behind moving corridors and their own disorientation. The audience is sucked into this tomb raider dread where the maze slowly begins to entrap the protagonists.
The Ancient Evil Awakens
Egyptian iconography and mythology are at every turn deep within the pyramid as we encounter dimly lit corridors, ancient artefacts and judgement rituals that come from that time period, such as being mummified alive. As the group moves further into the bowels, the danger increases, and soon they are hunted by Anubis, the Egyptian god of the dead, presented as a creature of wrath and hunger. He has remained and now is in charge of judging the intruders for sins, capturing part of the ancient Egyptian culture and adding some psychological unease to proceedings.
An Enduring Legacy
Although met with mixed reviews,The Pyramidis a must-watch for those fascinated by ancient Egyptian culture, a time period that we can still see the influence of, whether that is through film, history, or even digital entertainment. For example, in the iGaming sector, gamers can play games like Cleopatra Gold on Playstar, an online casinoNJ real money, which, much like the movie, brings players back in history. Offering welcome bonuses and new online games, the casino’s Egyptian-themed games showcase the enduring influence of that period with a focus on symbols of the time and monuments like the Sphinx. The fascination with Egypt’s ominous grandeur isn’t limited to cinema and games either.It has seepedinto fashion andarchitecture.Egypt’s legacy continues to inspire awe, from luxury brands evoking pharaonic splendour to national monuments mimicking pyramidal symmetry that we can see in cities across the world.
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The Pyramid is a reminder that while glorious, ancient kingdoms weren’t just that; they could be brutal, secretive and ruled by terrifying gods. Through relentless pacing and brilliant set design, this was brought to life in this movie, as the pyramid discovery quickly goes horribly wrong. Ancient civilisations may be long gone, but The Pyramidshows us their shadows remain alive, and whether we can see them or they are buried beneath the surface, we should tread carefully.