''Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy'' (also known as ''Mil Mascaras: Resurrection'') is a 2007 Mexican-American

lucha libre Lucha libre (, meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term used in Latin America for professional wrestling. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has developed into a unique form ...

film starring the legendary Mexican wrestler and cult film star Mil Máscaras. It has the distinction of being the first

lucha film Luchador films (or ''Lucha Libre films'') are Mexican professional wrestling/action/science-fiction/ horror films starring some of the most popular masked luchadores in Lucha Libre. The luchadores are portrayed as superheroes engaging in battle ...

starring any of the "Big 3" ( Santo, Blue Demon, Mil Máscaras) to be produced in English. It was a tribute to the 1960s Mexican horror and lucha libre films and was the first of a trilogy of Mil Mascaras films that includes '' Academy of Doom'' (2008) and '' Aztec Revenge'' (2015).

Plot

An Aztec mummy is resurrected in a ceremony in which the blood of a human sacrifice is dripped onto the mummified remains. The mummy possesses a scepter with a jewel that can be used to control people’s minds for purposes of world conquest. Mil Máscaras learns of the mummy’s plans and is determined to thwart him. When the scepter fails to do so, the mummy attempts to control Mil's mind by exploiting the hallucinogenic effects of Aztec magic mushrooms and the allure of identical twin seductresses. Mil tracks the mummy to an abandoned monastery, but is captured. After escaping with the help of the Professor, Mil is joined by a team of luchadores in a battle against the mummy's warriors. Mil eventually defeats the mummy and entombs him forever.

Cast

* Mil Máscaras as Mil Máscaras *

Jeffrey Uhlmann Jeffrey K. Uhlmann is an American research scientist who is probably best known for his mathematical generalizations of the Kalman filter. Most of his publications and patents have been in the field of data fusion. He is also known for being a cult ...

as The Aztec mummy * Kurt Mirtsching as The Professor *

Willard E. Pugh Willard Earl Pugh (born June 16, 1959) is an American actor with numerous film and television credits. He has appeared in notable mainstream Hollywood films such as ''The Color Purple (1985 film), The Color Purple'' and ''Air Force One (film), Ai ...

as Police Commissioner *

Richard Lynch Richard Lynch (February 12, 1940 – June 19, 2012) was an American actor best known for portraying villains in films and television. His film credits included ''The Sword and the Sorcerer'', '' Invasion USA'', ''The Seven-Ups'', ''Scarecr ...

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

* Melissa Osborn as Maria * Marco Lanzagorta *

P. J. Soles Pamela Jayne Soles (née Hardon; born July 17, 1950) is a German-born American actress. She made her film debut in 1976 as Norma Watson in Brian De Palma's '' Carrie'' (1976) before portraying Lynda van der Klok in John Carpenter's ''Halloween'' ...

plus cameos by: * El Hijo del Santo *

Blue Demon Jr. Blue Demon Jr. (born July 19, 1966) is a Mexican professional wrestler. He is the adopted son of the original Blue Demon and is the first Mexican and the second masked wrestler to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship thus making him a one- ...

Harley Race Harley Leland Race (April 11, 1943 – August 1, 2019) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and trainer. Race wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federatio ...

* Dos Caras * Huracán Ramírez, Jr. * Neutron

Cameos

The film has appearances by some of the most famous wrestlers/luchadores in the world, including El Hijo del Santo (the son of Santo, both in the ring and in real life),

Blue Demon, Jr. Blue Demon Jr. (born July 19, 1966) is a Mexican professional wrestler. He is the adopted son of the original Blue Demon and is the first Mexican and the second masked wrestler to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship thus making him a one-t ...

, Dos Caras (Mil Máscaras' real-life brother), Huracán Ramírez, Jr., Neutron, and others. Veteran Hollywood actress

also makes a brief appearance, and

plays the President of the United States.

Distribution

In 2009, the film was released theatrically in the U.S. by Monogram Releasing and often screened with '' Academy of Doom'' and the short film ''

Susan's Big Day ''Susan's Big Day'' is a 2010 absurdist animated short film that was originally directed and written by Jeffrey Uhlmann in 1983. It tells the story of a pivotal event in the life of a young girl, Susan, on the day of her mother's date with a fire ...

''. It was released on DVD in 2012.

Critical response

The film screened at festivals around the world, garnering awards and award nominations along with very positive critical reviews. In particular, a review from the Cine Fantastico festival in

Estepona, Spain Estepona () is a town and municipality in the comarca of the Costa del Sol, southern Spain. It is located in the province of Málaga, part of the autonomous community of Andalusia. Its district covers an area of 137 square kilometers in a fertile ...

, suggested that the film may be the best ever made in the traditionally Mexican lucha genre, despite being produced in the United States. Reviews from major film critics were similarly positive, with

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

' Bill Gibron calling it "amazing movie entertainment... rivals any super hero film made in the mainstream" and M. J. Simpson giving it an 'A' (the highest letter grade). Similarly positive reviews accompanied the film's theatrical release in 2009, with ''

Fangoria ''Fangoria'' is an internationally distributed American horror film fan magazine, in publication since 1979. It is published four times a year by Fangoria Publishing, LLC and is edited by Phil Nobile Jr. The magazine was originally released i ...

'' magazine giving it 3.5 skulls (out of 4). In addition to film festival awards and nominations, the film also received a Rondo Award nomination for Best Independent Film (Runner-Up) after its DVD release and was featured in cover articles in ''Screem'' magazine and ''Filmfax''.

References

External links

Official page
* *
Reviews
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mil Mascaras Vs. The Aztec Mummy 2007 films 2007 horror films American robot films American science fiction horror films Mexican monster movies Films directed by Jeff Burr Lucha libre films Mummy films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films 2000s Mexican films