Attack of the Mayan Mummy

Attack of the Mayan Mummy
Directed by Rafael Portillo
Jerry Warren
Produced by Guillermo Calderón
Jerry Warren
Written by Gilberto Martinez Solares[1]
Alfredo Salazar[2]
Screenplay by Alfredo Salazar
Jerry Warren
Starring Nina Knight
Richard Webb
John Burton
Peter Mills
Steve Conte
Jorge Mondragón
Music by Anthony Conde
Cinematography Richard Wallace
Jerry Warren
Edited by Jorge Busto
Jerry Warren
Release date
 1963[3]
Running time
 77 minutes[4]

Attack of the Mayan Mummy is the Americanized, English-dubbed version of a 1957[2] [5] Mexican horror film called La Momia Azteca, aka La Momia. It was made by Jerry Warren, who removed a huge portion of the original Mexican film, replacing it with newly filmed footage featuring American actors[6][7]. This solved the problem of redubbing the original Spanish dialogue into English.[8] Warren released his film in 1963.[9][10][4][11] He later re-released the film in 1965 on a double bill with his Creature of the Walking Dead.[12]

Plot

A Mayan temple maiden named Xochitl is reincarnated centuries later as a woman named Ann Taylor. A scientist uses hypnosis to cause her to regress to her earlier life many centuries ago when she was executed by the high priests for having an affair with a Mayan warrior named Popoca. As punishment, Popoca was turned into a living mummy and placed in a pyramid tomb where he must guard Xochitl's remains and a Mayan treasure for all eternity. Ann Taylor leads an expedition of archaeologists to the hidden tomb where a valuable gold breastplate is guarded by the still living Popoca. Taking the treasure from its resting place automatically revives the mummy. In this Americanized version, the mummy kills one of the explorers, and is in turn captured by the scientists and taken back to civilization. The mummy later escapes, gets back his stolen breastplate and returns to his tomb. In the end, the scientists return to the pyramid and battle the mummy, holding him at bay with a crucifix. The leader of the expedition sacrifices his life to destroy the mummy with dynamite, collapsing the tomb on both of them.

Cast

Release

Attack of the Mayan Mummy was released in the USA in 1963[9][10][4][11], then later re-released in 1965 on a double bill with his similarly created Creature of the Walking Dead.[15]

Reception

Cavett Binion of AllMovie referred to the film as a "tedious effort" that was "padded out with deadly-dull exposition".[16]

Mike Haberfelner of SearchMyTrash.com wrote: ".....nothing really happens in the newly shot footage, it just shows characters commenting on what has just happened in the Mexican footage or contemplating what will happen - and it all seems to serve primarily one purpose: To avoid having to dub and lip-synch too much dialogue of the original footage. The result is so bad in fact that the film has come to be known as a trash masterpiece."[17]

References

  1. ↑ Ray, Fred Olen (1991). "The New Poverty Row". McFarland and Co. Inc. ISBN 0-89950-628-3. Page 21
  2. 1 2 "The Aztec Mummy". TV Guide.
  3. ↑ http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/67775/Attack-of-the-Mayan-Mummy/
  4. 1 2 3 O'Neill, James (1994). "Terror on Tape. Billboard Books. ISBN 0-8230-7612-1. Page 19
  5. ↑ Frost, Brian J. (6 July 2018). "The Essential Guide to Mummy Literature". Scarecrow Press. Retrieved 6 July 2018 – via Google Books.
  6. ↑ Ray, Fred Olen (1991). "The New Poverty Row". McFarland and Co. Inc. ISBN 0-89950-628-3. Page 14, 15
  7. ↑ Revenge of the Creature Features Movie Guide, John Stanley - Page 15
  8. ↑ Rotten Tomatoes - Attack of the Mayan Mummy
  9. 1 2 Weldon, Michael (1983). "The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film. Ballantine Books. ISBN 345-34345-5. Page 27
  10. 1 2 "Attack of the Mayan Mummy (1963) - Overview - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  11. 1 2 "Attack Of The Mayan Mummy". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  12. ↑ Ray, Fred Olen (1991). "The New Poverty Row". McFarland and Co. Inc. ISBN 0-89950-628-3. Page 15
  13. ↑ "Attack of the Mayan Mummy (1963) - Overview - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  14. ↑ "The Aztec Mummy". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  15. ↑ Ray, Fred Olen (1991). "The New Poverty Row". McFarland and Co. Inc. ISBN 0-89950-628-3. Page 15
  16. ↑ Binion, Cavett. "Attack of the Mayan Mummy". AllMovie. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  17. ↑ "(re)search my Trash". Searchmytrash.com. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
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