The Aztec Mummy

The Aztec Mummy

Mexican release poster
La Momia Azteca
Directed by Rafel Lopez Portillo
Produced by Guillermo Calderon
Written by Alfredo Salazar
Guillermo Calderon
Starring Ramón Gay
Rosa Arenas
Crox Alvarado
Luis Aceves Castañeda
Jorge Mondragón
Arturo Martínez
Ángel Di Stefani
Jesús Murcielago Velázquez
Music by Antonio Díaz Conde
Cinematography Enrique Wallace
Edited by Jorge Bustos
Production
company
Cinematográfica Calderón S.A.
Distributed by Azteca Films Inc.
Release dates
  • January 11, 1957 (1957-13-11)
Running time
 80 minutes
Country Mexico
Language Spanish

The Aztec Mummy (Spanish: La Momia Azteca, also known as Attack of the Aztec Mummy) is a 1957 Mexican horror film directed by Rafael Lopez Portillo and based on a story by Alfredo Salazar (who also wrote the screenplay for the film), and Guillermo Calderon. It is the first in a series of four other films starring the title character.

Plot

In ancient times, Aztec warrior Popoca is buried alive after being caught having an affair with maiden Xochitl who is killed outright. Popoca is cursed with immortality in order to forever guard the Great Pyramid of Yucatán where his lover and the treasures of the Aztec are kept. In the present day, Dr. Eduardo Almada decides to experiment with hypnotic regression on his fiancée Flor Sepúlveda. Through hypnosis, Eduaro discovers that Flor is in fact a reincarnation of Xochitl, using her past memories to find Xochitl's remains. Taking the remains along with Xochitl's golden breastplate (which contains a map to the location of the treasure), they attempt to leave the cave. However, before they are able to leave they are intercepted by the now reanimated Popoca. Managing to elude the immortal warrior, the group flees to Mexico City with Popoca in pursuit. Meanwhile, Dr. Krupp (Almada's colleague who is also the villainous thief known as The Bat) discovers the existence of the treasure and sends his thugs after Almada in order to retrieve the breastplate. Krupp's men converge on Flor's house in order to retrieve the breastplate. Little do they know that Popoca is not far behind...

Cast

Production

Development

At this point in Mexican Cinema, it saw a wide range of films release that were similar in plot to famous films released by Universal Studios, but differed enough to avoid any copyright lawsuits.[1] The first of these films was Ladrón de Cadáveres which was partially inspired by Universal’s Frankenstein (1931 film) which was a commercial and critical success and brought about a golden age in Mexican cinema .[2][3] Hoping to cash in on Ladrón’s critical and financial success, Alfredo Salazar wrote a screenplay similar to that of Universal’s other horror film The Mummy, and was based on a story written by Salazar and Guillermo Calderon.[1][4][5]

Filming and Post-Production

La Momia Azteca was filmed in Mexico City, Mexico in Estudios CLASA studio.[6][7] In order to save on dubbing costs for releases into the U.S., American directorJerry Warren was brought on to re-cut the film. Warren also filmed additional scenes for the film with actors Richard Webb, John Burton, Bruno Ve Sota, and actress Nina Knight. Warren made a deal with the film's distributor Azteca Films Inc. which was based in L.A. to create Americanized versions of foreign films for the company.[8] Footage for the film was re-used in the film's sequels and another Mexican mummy film, Attack of the Mayan Mummy which was released in 1964.[7]

Release

The film was released in Mexico on November 13, 1957[9] and was a financial success in both Mexico and in the United States[1] and spawned three sequels. The entire film series including the film was later released on DVD by Bci / Eclipse on December 26, 2006.

Reception

Critical reception for the film has been mixed.

It currently has a score of 4.6 / 10 on IMDb.[10] Horror DVDs.com awarded the film a grade C commenting "Although the mummy is given relatively little screen time, his initial, on-screen revelation is suspenseful and expertly handled, at least by the standards of Mexican horror films. The movie builds to a reasonably satisfying climax, though its hour-and-twenty-minute running time often drags. The only element to the film which does not make sense when taken by itself is the introduction of Dr. Krupp. When viewed out of context with its sequels, Krupp's presence in The Aztec Mummy seems largely gratuitous, as he doesn't really have much importance to the plot. It is only when the plots of the two sequels are taken into account that Krupp's role in the original begins to make sense".[11] Welltun Cares Reviews.net gave the film a score of 2 / 4 commenting "This is a mummy movie without the trappings of Egypt, and as such has some interest to the Horror fan. It’s doesn’t quite merit “gotta see” status, though, what with relentless padding and extremely superfluous subplot".[12] TV Guide awarded the film no stars out of 4 calling the film "Completely bizarre and cheaply made," but further stated that the film was engaging and worth taking a look.[13] Regardless the film has gained a cult following over the years and is now considered a cult classic.[7]

Sequels

References

  1. 1 2 3 Wheeler Winston Dixon (24 August 2010). A History of Horror. Rutgers University Press. pp. 114–. ISBN 978-0-8135-5039-8.
  2. ↑ Steven Jay Schneider; Tony Williams (1 January 2005). Horror International. Wayne State University Press. pp. 38–. ISBN 0-8143-3101-7.
  3. ↑ Victoria Ruétalo; Dolores Tierney (7 May 2009). Latsploitation, Exploitation Cinemas, and Latin America. Routledge. pp. 94–. ISBN 978-1-135-84877-4.
  4. ↑ Rovin, Jeff (1989). The Encyclopiedia of Monsters. New York, New York: Facts on File Inc. p. 15.
  5. ↑ Tom Weaver,; Michael Brunas; John Brunas (1 April 1990). Universal Horrors: The Studio's Classic Films, 1931-1946, 2d ed. McFarland. pp. 462–. ISBN 978-0-7864-9150-6.
  6. ↑ "La momia azteca (1957) - Filming Locations - IMDb". IMDb.com. IMDb.com. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  7. 1 2 3 "Momia azteca (1957)". DB Cult Film Institute.com. DB Cult Film Institute. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  8. ↑ Dennis Fischer (17 June 2011). Science Fiction Film Directors, 1895-1998. McFarland. pp. 648–. ISBN 978-0-7864-8505-5.
  9. ↑ "La momia azteca (1957) - Release Info - IMDb". IMDb.com. IMDb.com. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  10. ↑ "La momia azteca (1957) - IMDb". IMDb.com. IMDb.com. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  11. ↑ "DVD Reviews A-M - Horror Digital". Horror DVDs.com. Jeremy. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  12. ↑ Waters, Cullen. "La Momia Azteca/Attack of the Aztec Mummy (1957)". Welltun Cares Reviews.net. Cullen M. M. Waters. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  13. ↑ "The Aztec Mummy Review". TV Guide. TV Guide. Retrieved 7 January 2015.

External links

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