''The Curse of the Aztec Mummy'' (Spanish: ''La Maldición de la Momia Azteca'') is a 1957 Mexican

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

directed by

Rafael Portillo Rafael Portillo (1916–1995) was a Mexican film director, screenwriter and film editor.Berg p.127 Selected filmography Director * ''The Ghost Falls In Love'' (1953) * ''A Life in the Balance'' (1955) * ''The Aztec Mummy'' (1957) * ''The Curse o ...

. It is the second film in the Aztec Mummy series which began with ''

The Aztec Mummy ''The Aztec Mummy'' (Spanish: ''La Momia Azteca'', also known in the USA as simply ''La Momia'') is a 1957 Mexican horror film produced by Guillermo Calderon from his own story idea, scripted by Alfredo Salazar, and directed by Rafael Portillo. ...

'' (Spanish title:La Momia Azteca) which was released earlier that year.

Plot

The plot is continued from the first film in the series, ''The Aztec Mummy''. The evil Dr. Krupp (Luis Aceves Castañeda) known as ''The Bat'' escapes from the police with the aid of his gang. He once again tries to get possession of the Aztec princess Xochitl's gold breastplate and bracelet by hypnotizing her current

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is a ...

, Flor Sepulveda, to get her to reveal the location of Xochitl's tomb. Confusion reigns as Krupp and his thugs are opposed by Flor's fiancé Dr. Almada, his mild-mannered assistant Pinacate, and a mysterious masked superhero called the Angel. Dr. Krupp kidnaps Flor, Dr. Almada, and the Angel and tries to force Almada to translate the hieroglyphics on the breastplate, which will reveal the secret location of the Aztec treasure. It turns out their bookish friend Pinacate has been the man behind the Angel's mask. However, he finally meets his match when Popoca, the warrior mummy who guards Xochitl's tomb, bursts into the mad doctor's lab, kills his thugs and throws the screaming Dr. Krupp into a pit filled with live snakes. Popoca takes his stolen artifacts and stumbles off back to his tomb. This film's plot leads into the third film in the trilogy, '' The Robot vs. The Aztec Mummy''.

Cast

Ramón Gay Ramón Gay (born Ramón García Gay; November 28, 1917 – May 28, 1960) was a Mexican film actor. He was one of the stars of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema, known to horror film fans for his role in ''The Aztec Mummy'' trilogy of films in the ...

as Dr. Eduardo Almada *

Rosa Arenas Rosa "Rosita" Arenas (born 19 August 1933) is a Mexican actress and singer whose film career was most prominent during the 1950s and 1960s. She is one of the last divas of Golden Age of Mexican cinema. She was born in Caracas, Venezuela, the da ...

as Flor Sepulveda / Xochitl *

Crox Alvarado Cruz Pío Socorro Alvarado Bolado (3 May 1910 – 30 January 1984), known professionally as Crox Alvarado, was a Mexican actor who appeared in over 90 films. He was considered a popular star of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Alvarado had ...

as Pinacate / El Ángel *

Luis Aceves Castañeda Luis Aceves Castañeda (1913–1973) was a Mexican film actor.Paietta, p. 141. Selected filmography * ''Juan Charrasqueado'' (1948) * ''Philip of Jesus'' (1949) * '' Maria Islands'' (1951) * '' A Place Near Heaven'' (1952) * ''Mexican Bus Ride ...

as Dr. Krupp (a.k.a. El Murciélago/the Bat) *

Jorge Mondragón Jorge Mondragón Vázquez (born October 30, 1962) is a Mexican retired diver. He competed in four consecutive Summer Olympics for his native country, starting in 1980. Mondragón won two bronze medals at the 1991 Pan American Games The 1 ...

as Dr. Sepúlveda * Arturo Martínez as Henchman Tierno *

Emma Roldán Emma Roldán (February 3, 1893 – August 29, 1978) was a Mexican character actress and costume designer. She is remembered as the sharp-tongued, domineering matron of Mexican cinema, and was nominated three times for a Silver Ariel Award. ...

as María, Dr. Almada's housekeeper *

Julián de Meriche Julián de Meriche (born Vladimir Lipkies Chazan; 10 october 1910 – 27 July 1974) was a Russian Empire-born Mexican film actor and choreographer. De Meriche worked as a dancer in European music halls, then moved to Argentina where he worked ...

as the Commandante de Policía *

Salvador Lozano Salvador, meaning "salvation" (or "saviour") in Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese may refer to: * Salvador (name) Arts, entertainment, and media Music *Salvador (band), a Christian band that plays both English and Spanish music ** ''Salvador'' ( ...

Jaime González Quiñones Jaime is a common Spanish and Portuguese male given name for Jacob (name), James (name), Jamie, or Jacques. In Occitania Jacobus became ''Jacome'' and later ''Jacme''. In east Spain, ''Jacme'' became ''Jaime'', in Aragon it became ''Chaime'', and i ...

as Pepe Almada *

Ángel di Stefani Angel is a given name meaning "angel", "messenger". In the English-speaking world Angel is used for both boys and girls. From the medieval Latin masculine name ''Angelus'', which was derived from the name of the heavenly creature (itself derived ...

as Popoca the Aztec Mummy * Jesús Murcielago Velázquez as El Murciélago (the Bat) * Enrique Yáñez as Esbirro del Murciélago * Guillermo Hernández as Esbirro del Murciélago *

Alberto Yáñez Alberto is the Romance version of the Latinized form (''Albertus'') of Germanic ''Albert''. It is used in Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. The diminutive forms are ''Albertito'' in Spain or ''Albertico'' in some parts of Latin America, Albertin ...

as Esbirro del Murciélago *

Firpo Segura Francisco Segura García (November 10, 1907 – January 15, 1968) was a Mexican Boxer, Movie actor and ''Luchador'', or professional wrestler best known under the ring name Firpo Segura, given the name after the Argentine boxer Luis Ángel Firp ...

as Esbirro del Murciélago * Sergio Yañez as Esbirro del Murciélago *

Estela Inda Stella (or Estela) Inda (June 28, 1924 – December 7, 1995) was a Mexican film actress. She was the star of notable Mexican films, including ''Los olvidados'' by Luis Buñuel in 1949. Biography Inda started her career as extra in the successful ...

as Aztec Chanteuse

Release

''The Curse of the Aztec Mummy'' was released theatrically in 1957. It was later dubbed in English and released in the U.S. by

K. Gordon Murray K. Gordon Murray (1922–1979) was an American producer, most notable for his redubbing and re-releasing of foreign fairy tale films for U.S. audiences. He is often cited as the "King of the Kiddie Matinee." Murray also marketed many of the Mexpl ...

Reception

Author and film critic

Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fil ...

awarded the film one and a half out of four stars, calling it "Cheap" and "droning". On his website ''Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings'', Dave Sindelar noted that the film was slightly better than its sequel, having more plot than the other films in the series. Sindelar's only criticism was slow pacing during the last half of the film.

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

awarded the film three out of four stars, calling it "wholly enjoyable". ''Horror DVDs.com'' on their review for the complete series gave the film a negative review calling it "the least satisfying entry in the series". The reviewer also criticized the introduction of the superhero El Ángel as "random".

Other films in the Aztec Mummy series

* ''

'' (1957), released as ''

Attack of the Mayan Mummy ''The Aztec Mummy'' (Spanish: ''La Momia Azteca'', also known in the USA as simply ''La Momia'') is a 1957 Mexican horror film produced by Guillermo Calderon from his own story idea, scripted by Alfredo Salazar, and directed by Rafael Portillo. I ...

'' in the U.S. * '' The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy'' (1957) * '' The Wrestling Women vs. the Aztec Mummy'' (1964), featured a similar Aztec mummy named TezomocHardy, Phil (1995). ''The Overlook Film Encyclopedia: Horror''. Overlook Press. . Page 164 * ''

Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy ''Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy'' (also known as ''Mil Mascaras: Resurrection'') is a 2007 Mexican-American lucha libre film starring the legendary Mexican wrestler and cult film star Mil Máscaras. It has the distinction of being the first lu ...

'' (2007)

References

External links

* * *
La maldición de la momia azteca
at DB Cult Film Institute * {{DEFAULTSORT:Curse of the Aztec Mummy, the 1957 films 1950s Spanish-language films Mexican black-and-white films Mexican monster movies 1957 horror films Mummy films 1950s Mexican films