Las momias de Guanajuato

Initially intended as a vehicle for Blue Demon and Mil Mascaras, both of whom had joined El Santo in making lucha libre films, MOMIAS ran into a snag somewhere along the way.

Whether (as has been suggested) it was due to the writer being simply unable to resolve the plotline after many pages of keeping the two heroes from vanquishing their supernatural adversaries, or whether the producers decided to hedge their bets by bringing Santo into the production, the Man In The Silver Mask arrives at the literal last minute to solve their problem.

The ad art for the film seems to suggest this last-minute addition. While several mummy faces and Mil Mascaras' and Blue Demon's faces are obviously related in the artwork, Santo's face is painted against a different background, and off to one side.

The concept of the film is intriguing, in that Guanajuato, the city where the action takes place, is famous as the "home" of literally hundreds of mummified former residents. Already a macabre tourist attraction, and as monsters, aliens and other weird menaces had featured in a number of genre films to the time, these natural mummies seemed made to order for a wrestling horror film.

Blue Demon and Mil Mascaras are wrestling in the city of Guanajuato, which just happens to be where Mil's current girlfriend lives. When one of the larger mummies -- a magician -- vanishes, and several people are killed, the wrestlers investigate. At this point the idea of calling in Santo is proposed and is rejected by Blue Demon.

The magician, mow revived, awakens a number of the mummies into a lethal army. They begin a series of attacks in the city, complicating things when one of the mummies impersonates a kidnapped Blue Demon.

Things come to a head until the arrival of Santo. Fighting with the released Demon and Mil Mascaras, he can't overcome the living dead. However, he has three flame guns in his car. When Mil retrieves these, the trio make short work of the supernatural menace.

MOMIAS is possibly the most notorious of the lucha films, in that it stars the three most notable wrestler/actors of the lucha film boom. It's not bad as an action film, with some nice mood points, but the theme, played on a slightly jazzed-up organ, is anything but ideal for what is to come. Good, but not as great as it's rumored to be.

When a strange curse brings the mummified remains of a group of warriors back to life in a small Mexican town, a group of masked wrestlers are called upon to save them from the ever-growing menace.

This here is an immensely enjoyable and entertaining Mexican luchador film, this time graced by a triplicate of popular heroes as the three biggest stars in the genre band together to save the town, and that in turn leads to a lot of greatness in the film. From the opening scenes in the museum where the mummies are on display to their eerie rampages through town and a series of rather fun and impressive stalking scenes with their victims, this one manages to compile a nice atmosphere at times from the situation, since the central storyline and what goes on are a lot of fun from time to time. There's also a never-ending series of action in here, with the wrestlers called upon to brawl and fight with the creatures pretty constantly, and by utilizing their wrestling moves against the lumbering creatures, there's a lot of good cheesy fun to be had from the situation and that is well-served in the finale, where it's highly enjoyable and packed with action as the three unite together to fight off the invading horde with more than just fists, which is cheesy-heaven. The look of the mummies might be the only flaw here, since they obviously look pretty bad and easily-discernible as fakes, but the designs are cool enough to be overlooked. All in all, this turned out to be a fairly enjoyable entry.

Rated Unrated/PG-13: Violence and Language.

The following review is an extract from the book "Santo, the Wrestler with the Silver Mask: A guide to all his films", which is now available on Amazon.

"The cemetery of Guanajuato is a real tourist attraction. There, mummies are exhibited (...) The guide enjoys scaring tourists with terrifying legends. One of them tells that the largest mummy, belonging to a gigantic 2.20-meter individual, was not dissected by natural procedures or embalmed by human hands. Its almost perfect state of conservation (except for the face) is due to the fact that the above mentioned made a satanic pact. The giant was in the past century a professional wrestler, known as "Satan" because of his proclivity towards the dark. Satan fought against an ancestor of Santo, the Silver Masked Man, and was defeated. But he swore vengeance, assuring that he would return from the dead just 100 years later, to take revenge on the Saint's successor and his followers.

(...) This is one of Santo´s best known films, and paradoxically the Silver Masked Man is not the protagonist. His role is quite secondary; he doesn't appear until well into the film, being Blue Demon and Mil Máscaras the wrestlers with the greatest acting weight in the film.

(...) The revenge of a being from another era, who was defeated by an ancestor of Santo and now seeks revenge, is a recurring theme of the saga. An analogous plot is found in "Santo against the Vampire Women" (Alfonso Corona Blake, 1962).

(...) Without a doubt, "The Mummies of Guanajuato" is one of the most remembered and enjoyable films in Mexican wrestling."

I was part of a family audience in Guanajuato when I saw this. Great scenes of the city, great mummies with decomposing faces. Almost a spoof, none of the children around me seemed scared. Includes scenes of the seamy side of Guanajuato. Techniques borrowed from all over the place, technically good for a low budget film. After reading the other review, I know why lucha libre played such a prominent part in the film.

The one child actor wasn't up to snuff but his presence probably adds to the appeal of the plot for children.

Two beautiful Mexican actresses of very different physical types and a midget guide to the museum stood out in the cast.

Classic example of a Z grade quickie in the luchador genre of films. Featuring Blue Demon, Mil Mascaras and El Santo (for a few moments near the end) this fun mummy flick sure gives you all that you could want.

With its cheap but engaging atmosphere, its use of odd angles and wide angle lens, Mummies of Guanajuato becomes a surreal experience the resembles a strange dream with long wrestling scenes, cheap yet gross looking mummies and plot points that come out of nowhere.

A must watch for luchador fans.