original production:

LA MALDICION
DE LA MOMIA AZTECA

Cast: Ramon Gay (Dr. Eduardo Almada/Dr. Edward Almaden), Rosita Arenas, (Flor/Flora), Crox Alvarado (el Angel, aka Pique/The Angel, aka Peacock or Pincate), Luis Aceves Castaneda (Dr. Krupp), Jorge Mondragon, Arturo Martinez (El Tierno), Alejandro Cruz, Angel D' Estefani (as "Angel Di Stefani"), Jaime Gonzalez Quinones, Guillermo Hernandez, Enrique Llanes, Julian de Meriche, Emma Roldan, Francisco Segura, Jesus Vazquez, Alberto Yanez

"Actuacion especial de los luchadoras: Murcielago Velazquez, Enrique Yanez, Firpo, Segura & Sergio Yanez"

PLOT OUTLINE:
(from IMDB): The evil Dr. Krupp, once again trying to get possession of the Aztec princess Xochitl's jewels, hypnotizes her current reincarnation, Flor, to get her to reveal the jewels' location - Xochitl's tomb. Confusion reigns as Krupp and his thugs are opposed by Flor's lover, Dr. Almada, his assistant, and wrestling superhero, El Angel. Krupp finally meets his match, however, when he comes up against Popoca, the warrior mummy who guards Xochitl's tomb.

(from AFI): When arch-criminal Dr. Krupp, alias The Bat, escapes from the police, Dr. Ramon and his fiancee, Flora, are warned by a hooded benefactor, The Angel, of the villain's escape. The Bat plots the theft of an entombed treasure, guarded by the mummified warrior, Popoca. Flora, whom Krupp believes to be Popoca's beloved princess incarnate, is abducted by The Bat. Ramon and The Angel are captured by The Bat, but Bobby, Ramon's young brother, is alerted by wrist radio and saves them. At the pyramid in which the treasure is hoarded, Ramon and The Angel are recaptured by The Bat's henchmen. With Flora as hostage, The Bat coerces Ramon into deciphering the hieroglyphics, which are the key to the treasure. Although The Angel is unmasked as Ramon's timid helper Pinkate, Popoca emerges from his tomb to subdue The Bat and his minions.

GUEST BACK-STORY
(LA MOMIA AZTECA):
by Rich Wannen
Experimenting in hypnotic regression to past lives, Dr. Almada discovers that his fiancée, Flor, is the reincarnation of an Aztec maiden who was put to death for loving an Aztec warrior, her body placed at the entrance to a hidden chamber in the Great Pyramid of Yucatan where the treasures of the Aztecs were hidden, and her lover mummified but cursed to remain alive and guard the treasure. With her recovered memories, Flor is able to lead Almada, his wimpish assistant Pincate, and her father to the now-skeletal remains of the maiden. Attached to them is a golden breastplate with a map detailing the route to the treasure. But to their horror, the party is intercepted by the mummified warrior, Popoca, and flee with the breastplate back to Mexico city. Popoca follows. In the meantime, Prof. Krup, an unscrupulous colleague of Almada's, recruits a gang of thugs, whom he leads from behind a mask and known only as "The Bat". Both Krup and his gang, and the mummy, converge on Flor's house to retrieve the sacred breastplate, which is in her possession...

by Doug Sederberg
Dr. Almada attempts to prove his theory that people can be regressed to past lives by hypnotizing his lover Flor. Finding out that in a previous life Flor was the Aztec maiden Xochitl, killed and entombed for having an illicit affair with the warrior Popoca, Almada is able to find the tomb and with it two valuable pieces of jewelry, which he steals. His problems have just begun, however, as taking the jewelry triggers the revivication of Popoca, the living mummy.

SYNOPSIS:
Two thugs, Lilac and Bear, read the latest newspaper headline: "The Bat Arrested!"

They are alarmed, as "The Bat" is actually their boss, the notorious scientist Dr. Krupp!

The thugs decide to send a message to Krupp, who is being held at police headquarters.

Meanwhile, at police headquarters, Krupp is being interrogated by the police Inspector, as colleagues Dr. Peacock and Dr. Edward Almaden, and Edward's fiancee Flora, watch.

The Inspector asks Krupp many questions, but he just fondles his hat and smiles.

A man enters with a note for Krupp. The Inspector intercepts and opens it. It is merely a picture of a bat, nothing more, but Krupp seems relieved to see it. The Inspector asks Krupp for the significance of the note, but again the shady criminal says nothing.

Krupp is taken back to his cell, and the Inspector speaks with his colleagues. We learn that Krupp was a famous researcher who had his medical license revoked some years ago, for conducting ungodly experiments on both man and animal!

Everyone agrees that the madman must be watched closely, for he is crafty, and may have accomplices on the outside who wish to set him free.

Peacock, Edward and Flora return home. Edward's daughter Jenny runs in and says goodnight to everyone.

Edward and Flora argue over their current situation. Edward believes now that his enemy, Krupp, is in jail, they may continue their research in peace. Flora disagrees; she recounts how much trouble Krupp caused all of them earlier, and feels they are not through with him yet.

We learn that the researchers are engaged in an ongoing project involving an ancient Aztec mummy named ?Q?, a mummy that may be brought back to life by certain primitive curses!

Peacock, and Edward's young brother Bobby also converse. Bobby thinks Peacock is a coward, but Peacock insists that discretion is the better part of valor.

Meanwhile, back at police headquarters, Krupp is led away in a prison bus. However, Krupp's men follow the bus in their own sedan.

Shortly after the bus leaves police HQ, a strange figure arrives in a snazzy sports car. He is a muscleman, wearing a silver cape and face mask. He is the wrestler and superhero known as "The Angel".

The Angel asks which way the prison bus went, and follows, post-haste.

Meanwhile, Krupp's men start to fire at the prison bus. The bus stops, and guards emerge, guns blazing. A shootout ensues, and Krupp and his men kill all the guards.

The Angel arrives, and fights the gangsters bravely, but he is outnumbered, and they knock him out. He comes to just as Krupp and his men drive away.

The next day, the newspaper shouts: "The Bat escapes!"

Flora and Edward are playing chess, when a strange man appears at the top of the stairs. It is The Angel!

The Angel tells them that they are in great danger, as "The Bat" has escaped, and they are his mortal enemies. He gives them a special radio wristwatch, which with they can contact him if a crisis arises.

Edward and Flora decide to go away for awhile, until the danger is over.

Meanwhile, at Krupp's laboratory, the mad doctor thanks his men for his successful escape from justice. He tells them they will all be rewarded, and sooner than they think, for his next job is to steal the sacred treasure of the Aztec Mummy!

Krupp then relates the whole story of the Aztec Mummy to his men:

A year ago, the famous researcher Dr. Almaden hypnotized his fiancee, Flora, in order to see if one could access memory of past lives. The experiment was a wild success; Flora's memory was reverted to that of an Aztec princess, Xochitl, in the ancient Yucatan city of the pyramids, Tinotchticam! She relates that she was born to be the life-long maiden of the great god Tacatlipoca, but instead fell in love with Popoca, a great Aztec warrior. For this betrayal, the lovers were taken as prisoners by the high priest. Popoca was sentenced to be buried alive, his soul cursed so he could never find peace. She was sacrificed as an act of atonement to her forsaken god.

Krupp reveals that he watched the whole experiment from a nearby window, and that Almaden then instructed Flora to remember where the great treasure of Popoca was buried, so that they might use it in their archeological research.

Krupp now knows what he must do; kidnap Flora and hypnotize her, so she may lead the bad men to the great treasure!

Krupp tells his men to kidnap Flora that very night.

Later that night, Krupp's men approach Almaden's castle-like abode. They sneak in through a window, and search for Flora. Edward, Peacock and Bobby work in the office, while Flora sleeps.

Krupp's men sneak up on the sleeping woman, and kidnap her. However, little Jenny sees the men carrying Flora off, and screams for help. Lilac grabs Jenny as well.

The men downstairs do not hear all of this commotion. They leave the office, and are ambushed by Krupp's men. The scientists are knocked out.

Later, in Krupp's laboratory, Flora and Jenny are brought in. Krupp is pleased; the two female victims will assure Edward's cooperation.

Krupp tells Flora of his plans to steal the Aztec treasure. Flora tells him that his plan will fail, because she doesn't recall where the treasure is hidden, and in addition, there was a terrible explosion there, collapsing the pyramid and killing her father!

Krupp knows all of this, and still anticipates success. He injects Flora with a powerful drug, which will force her to be susceptible to hypnosis.

Back at Edward's house, the men nurse their wounds, and decide what to do. Edward wants to call the police, but Peacock feels this may endanger the girls. He thinks they should wait for Krupp to call them, and Edward reluctantly agrees.

Peacock asks Bobby if he still has the radio The Angel gave him. He does. They agree that The Angel should be called as soon as Krupp contacts them again.

Next morning, Krupp instructs Lilac to bring Flora to him. Flora is under a trance from the drugs, and comes willingly.

Krupp puts Flora under his spell easily. He tells Lilac and Bear that they will go to the pyramid next, and retrieve the ceremonial breastplate and bracelet.

Krupp instructs Lilac to call Krupp on the phone.

The phone rings at Almaden's house. A weary Edward picks it up. Krupp tells him that he has his daughter and fiancee captive, and if he wants to see them again unharmed, he'd better come to his laboratory, in the next thirty minutes. Krupp gives his address: Mount Lorraine #22!

Unbeknownst to both men, Bobby is listening on the extension phone, and as soon as the men hang up, Bobby calls his new friend, The Angel, on his special radio wristwatch.

The Angel, who was resting on his bed, answers immediately, and tells Bobby he is on his way to Mount Lorraine #22!

Soon, Edward arrives at Krupp's lab, is promptly grabbed by Lilac and Bear, and brought straight to Krupp.

Krupp tells Edward of his plan: he will take Flora to the pyramids to retrieve the sacred Aztec breast plate. They will then return, and Krupp will make Edward decipher the hieroglyphics, leading them directly to the invaluable Aztec treasure!

Edward thinks Krupp is a madman and a coward, but can do nothing. Suddenly, the alarm bell rings; someone else has entered the secret laboratory!

The Angel snoops around the lab, and is soon attacked by Krupp's men. While The Angel fights the thugs, Edward manages to escape. He goes up to Flora, and tells her everything will be alright.

Krupp's men gain the upper hand, and beat the crap out of The Angel.

Edward locates Krupp. The two men fight, but Lilac sneaks up behind Edward and knocks him out with a 2-by-4.

Later, both Edward and The Angel have been tied up. Krupp chastises them both for daring to interfere with his great plan.

Two thugs drag The Angel to Krupp's "death chamber". As soon as they close the door, the floor opens, revealing a pit of hungry rattlesnakes directly below! What's worse, the walls start closing in! It looks like The Angel is doomed!

Krupp escorts a hypnotized Flora out of his lab; they are about to begin their journey to the pyramid. Edward, tied to a chair, looks on helplessly.

The Angel, meanwhile, is hanging on for dear life in the death chamber, by holding onto an electrical lamp cord, while rattlers hiss below him. He calls Bobby on his radio wristwatch, and instructs him to get to Krupp's lab pronto!

Bobby arrives at the lab, and is led to the secret chamber with The Angel's directions. Bobby helps The Angel swing out of the room and to safety.

Bobby and the Angel next overpower Krupp's men, and free Edward and Jenny.

Krupp takes Flora and his men to the pyramid, where they comb the ruins for the coveted breastplate.

Flora stands in a trance, unable to intervene.

Lilac moves aside some rubble, and uncovers Popoca, the Aztec Mummy! Lilac identifies the monster as the same one who attacked them at Dr. Almaden's laboratory, some time back. Krupp doesn't believe him; it is an ancient mummy, after all, and couldn't harm anyone.

Lilac lifts the sacred breastplate off Popoca, and hands it to Krupp.

Suddenly, Edward and The Angel enter the tomb, and a fight ensues. At the same time, the Popoca comes alive and searches for his breastplate.

Krupp's men grab Edward and The Angel, and everyone crawls quickly back through the entrance, barely escaping the mummy's clutches.

Back at Krupp's lab, Edward apologizes to The Angel for getting him into this jam, but The Angel doesn't mind; it's all part of the job. Edward is certain that Popoca will eventually find its way to Krupp's hideout.

Lilac comes in to bring the two prisoners to Krupp.

Krupp tells Edward to decipher the hieroglyphics on the mummy's breastplate. In exchange, he will obtain not only his freedom as well as Flora's, but also be given a percentage of the treasure. Edward agrees.

Krupp and Edward argue over the possibility that Popoca might actually be a being powered by the supernatural.

Flora is brought in, and Krupp removes her spell. She is horrified when she sees the Aztec breastplate of her former lover, and wants to know why Edward is aiding this criminal. Edward tells her it will be alright.

Krupp tells Edward to get started with his part of the bargain. Edward informs Krupp that he will need a book on ancient Egyptian symbols in order to decipher the breastplate's message. The book is at Edward's house.

Edward is allowed to phone Bobby at the house; he asks him to bring the rare book to Krupp's hideout.

Shortly, Bobby arrives with the book. Lilac grabs him, and pushes him into the lab.

Krupp grabs the book, and thumbs through it. But first, he decides it would be fun to unmask The Angel.

Lilac removes The Angel's mask, and everyone gasps. The Angel is none other than the coward, Peacock! Even in their present dire predicament, everyone laughs at this most ironic turn of events.

Edward works deep into the night, trying to unravel the mystery of Popoca's breastplate, as Krupp and Lilac watch over his shoulder.

Finally, Krupp becomes impatient, and gives Edward only one more hour to finish decoding the message.

Edward works feverishly, and completes the job in time. Krupp grabs the note, and walks off, telling Lilac to do his job as instructed.

Lilac grabs a rifle, and prepares to shoot the prisoners, but at that moment, Popoca enters the laboratory!

Lilac and Bear shoot at Popoca, but bullets don't affect the undead.

Popoca attacks Lilac, who falls over a table, his face burning with acid.

Popoca wrecks the lab, but leaves our heroes unharmed.

Popoca chases Krupp out of the lab, picks him up and throws him into the pit of rattlesnakes in the death chamber.

Popoca walks out of the death house.

Edward and Flora embrace. Edward rips up the map to the treasure, and tells Flora that since his temple was destroyed, Popoca cannot return there again.

Popoca walks through the night, looking for a place to rest in eternal peace.

THE END

REVIEW:
Seeing this movie for the first time is like seeing it for the tenth time, so familiar is much of the stock footage within. This sequel to LA MOMIA AZTECA (which to our knowledge was never released in an English-dubbed version, and is now considered lost even in its original language), and cousin to wild super-sequels THE ROBOT VS THE AZTEC MUMMY and THE WRESTLING WOMEN VS THE AZTEC MUMMY, contains a significant amount of footage from the first film.

In addition, footage from the first film and this film also found its way into THE ROBOT VS. THE AZTEC MUMMY, as well as two films from the late cine-genius Jerry Warren, who chopped them helter-skelter into his schizophrenic, minimal masterpieces ATTACK OF THE MAYAN MUMMY and FACE OF THE SCREAMING WEREWOLF!

We've seen Flora being regressed so many times, we get the sense that this film may be one of our own past lives! And this series is surely one of the most interesting pop culture takes on the "Bridey Murphy" hypno-regression craze of the late 50s.

So, watching this second in the Aztec Mummy series strikes a certain comfortable cord, although there's stuff in here which makes it a classic all on its own.

One of the most exciting things about this film is its hero, "The Angel", certainly one of the earliest incarnations of wrestler-as-superhero that would become such a staple of Mexican popular culture, with wildly popular superhero-musclemen such as Santo and Blue Demon.

The Angel is hilarious, driving around in his sports car (could it be a Stutz Bearcat?), cape a-flying, mask a-gleaming. And it's a hoot when he is unmasked, and turns out to be the alter ego of Peacock, Dr. Almaden's chicken-shit colleague! I can see he might be able to hide his courage, but where does he keep those muscles when he's nerd-boy?

Dr. Krupp, aka "The Bat", is a seriously amusing villain. With his wild eyes, cartoony beard, and absurd silent-film takes, he's a walking caricature of the archetypal mad scientist, virtually parodic.

Krupp's "helpers" are little better, petty thugs with wacky names (Lilac? Bear?) and moves lifted straight out of a 1937 poverty row murder mystery.

Krupp's lab is weird too, an odd mix of a super-modern facility and an old warehouse.

The "good" scientist, Dr. Almaden, lives in an old castle, according to one brief establishing shot. Strange. Even stranger, there's a teenage boy in the film, called Bobby, who is identified as Almaden's younger brother! Doubtful, to say the least. Even in the Jerry Warren films, the kid is identified as Almaden's nephew, much more believable. (In ATTACK OF THE MAYAN MUMMY, logic is so casual that the kid is called BOTH Timmy and Jimmy throughout the picture!)

Some excellent dubbing of the many prosaic speeches by the genies at Soundlab make this a bonafide Mexi-Murray treat.

COMMENTS:
* (updated 02-14-06) Thanks to a terrific new book we just received, "Ghouls, Gimmicks and Gold" by Kevin Heffernan, (2004, Duke University Press), we have been able to update the U.S. television release date for this Murray horror title to 1965. The appendices to this study of the horror film in America, circa 1955-1968, include complete listings of syndication feature film packages from many distributors, including American International Television, who subleased the K. Gordon Murray film catalog under the title THRILLERS FROM ANOTHER WORLD. It seems that 1965 was the watershed year for genre film sold to television, with a veritable flood of titles released by both domestic and foreign distribs.

* (effective 05-01-03) After a very brief window of availability, this long-sought K. Gordon Murray title is once again out of print, due to international copyright issues. Used video tapes of this title may be found on online video dealers and auction sites. Stay tuned for further developments!

* LA MALDICION DE LA MOMIA AZTECA is a sequel to LA MOMIA AZTECA (1957), and spawned two more sequels, LA MOMIA AZTECA CONTRA EL ROBOT HUMANO (1958), and LAS LUCHADORAS CONTRA LA MOMIA (1964). Some sources claim the first THREE films were shot simultaneously!

* For an in-depth, informative and highly amusing overview of the "Aztec Mummy" films, be sure to visit Frank Kurtz's "The Weird World and Wanderings of the Aztec Mummy". This great article goes places you can't imagine!

* For some stunning publicity shots from LA MALDICION DE LA MOMIA AZTECA, visit "Save the Galaxy", an amazing website which honors and showcases all of the beloved muscled superheroes of Mexican pop culture.

* Here's an interesting comment from the message board at "Scarlet Street", posted by "Professor TR" on 10/03/00: "I find THE ROBOT VS THE AZTEC MUMMY most amusing, but I prefer the second film, CURSE OF THE AZTEC MUMMY, especially the dubbed version, primarily (and most unusually) because it dumps the original, very sluggish score by Antonio Diaz Conde and replaces it with the more dynamic music of Gutsav Cesar Carrion which I believe was originally composed for CURSE OF THE CRYING WOMAN." I missed this switch; can anyone verify this?

Here is an update on the above-mentioned musical switcheroo, again by "Professor TR": regarding the replacement of the musical score for LA MALDICION DE LA MOMIA AZTECA, he assures us that this is the case, as he has compared the Murray version against the original Spanish-language version. The original score (like its sequel and presumably the first film as well) is by Antonio Diaz Conde. However, this score was completely junked, and Murray's dubbed version uses themes by Gustav Cesar Carrion which appeared in LA MALDICION DE LA LLORONA; for example, the scene of Krupp's henchmen trailing the prison bus uses the music that accompanies the coach ride through the forest in the opening of LA LLORONA, etc.

* This is one of two Murray releases (THE GOLDEN GOOSE is the other) which gets voice actor Paul Nagel's name right, even though he is listed as "director". (His name is spelled "Nagle" in many others.) Nagel created the voices for Dr. Almaden, Bobby, and Lilac.

* CURSE OF THE AZTEC MUMMY turns out to be one of the earliest Murray horror film releases, available to TV, along with the Nostradamus features, by 1963.

NOTABLE DIALOGUE: