The Curse of the Aztec Mummy

The Curse of the Aztec Mummy (Spanish: La Maldición de la Momia Azteca) is a 1957 Mexican horror film directed by Rafael Portillo. It is the second film in the Aztec Mummy series which began with The Aztec Mummy (Spanish title:La Momia Azteca) which was released earlier that year.

The Curse of the Aztec Mummy
Mexican theatrical release poster
Directed by	Rafael Portillo
Written by	Guillermo Calderón Alfredo Salazar
Produced by	Guillermo Calderón (producer)
Starring	See below
Cinematography	Enrique Wallace
Edited by	Jorge Bustos José Li-ho
Music by	Antonio Díaz Conde
Production company	Cinematográfica Calderón S.A.
Distributed by	Clasa-Mohme (1957 United States theatrical release)
Release date	1957 (1957)
Running time	65 minutes
Country	Mexico
Language	Spanish

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, 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 as Dr. Eduardo Almada
• Rosa Arenas as Flor Sepulveda / Xochitl
• Crox Alvarado as Pinacate / El Ángel
• Luis Aceves Castañeda as Dr. Krupp (a.k.a. El Murciélago/the Bat)
• Jorge Mondragón as Dr. Sepúlveda
• Arturo Martínez as Henchman Tierno
• Emma Roldán as María, Dr. Almada's housekeeper
• Julián de Meriche as the Commandante de Policía
• Salvador Lozano
• Jaime González Quiñones as Pepe Almada
• Ángel di Stefani 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 as Esbirro del Murciélago
• Firpo Segura as Esbirro del Murciélago
• Sergio Yañez as Esbirro del Murciélago
• Estela Inda 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.

Reception

Author and film critic Leonard Maltin 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 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

• The Aztec Mummy (1957), released as Attack of the Mayan Mummy 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 Tezomoc
• Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy (2007)

External links

• The Curse of the Aztec Mummy at IMDb
• Curse of the Aztec Mummy at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Curse of the Aztec Mummy at the TCM Movie Database
• La maldición de la momia azteca at DB Cult Film Institute
• La Maldicion de la Momia Azteca at AllMovie