First up for my latest double feature was this mid sixties camp fest that featured a mummy, "oriental" villains, wrestling women, fights, intrigue, mystery, and a whole lotta nonsense.
A series of mysterious kidnappings and murders are happening. It turns out that scientists are being taken by the evil Prince Fujiyata and his Black Dragon Gang, because the scientists have discovered an Aztec codex that holds the location of a secret hidden treasure. They set their sights on Dr. Tracy, who has the pieces of the codex, and is working with his police inspector nephew Armand and wrestling women Loretta Venus and Golden Ruby to solve it and find the treasure. It ultimately leads them all to a pyramid, which houses the remains of an old Princess named Xochitl and her Mummy guardian lover Tezomoc, who was a nagual (witch doctor) when he was alive. This causes the mummy to possess powers to transform himself into various animals, including a bat and a tarantula. When the gang steals the sacred necklace of Xochitl, the Mummy goes after them, determined to get his love’s treasure back.
This movie is absolutely ridiculous. The dubbed dialogue is funny, the Mummy looks cool, the villain is like a Fu Manchu wanna be, and it’s filled with lots of silly fights and shenanigans that you’d find in a spy film or those old serials from the 30’s / 40’s. During the fight scenes with the wrestling ladies, they use stunt women body doubles who look nothing like the actresses, being shorter and chubbier than the tall, svelte leads. The first half plays like a mystery gangster film, with the Mummy not showing up until the last half hour or so. The Black Dragon gang also has secret cameras everywhere (that they never show being planted), and the plot with the villains is quickly forgotten once the mummy shows up. These old Mexican horror movies are outrageous and campy as hell, so if you're a fan of them, then be sure to check this one out. I streamed it on YouTube, but it's also available on Tubi.
The next was an obscure, early 80’s supernatural slasher about an evil Native American spirit.
Dr. Kay Foster, an anthropology professor, oversees an archeological dig in the Arizona desert. They find various artifacts and a mummified body that gets taken back to the college. With the help of her colleague Paul, Kay takes it upon herself to study the body and try to identify it, especially after she’s warned by the local Native American elders that the body that was dug up will bring bad fortune. A local Native American man steals some artifacts from the site and performs a ritual, causing him to become possessed by the spirit of Nahalla, the dead shaman whom the body belongs to. He begins to go on a murder spree and stalk Kay, who seeks the help of her native boyfriend Tom Eagle with solving the mystery of the strange happenings.
This movie was surprisingly decent. The acting wasn’t bad, and it boasted some good kills and effective, creepy atmosphere. The film takes the subject matter seriously, without resorting to light hearted moments or comedy relief. It helps that the leads are professional adults and not teenagers, like in most of the 80’s horror flicks. It has a slow burn, eerie vibe, and, paired with a decent soundtrack and a stunning desert landscape, the films succeeds in having a sinister undercurrent throughout its runtime. While I’ve read that older copies of the movie had a dark quality that made it hard to see, this version, that I watched on Tubi, was released by Vinegar Syndrome, and was a very good print. If you enjoy lesser known 80’s horror, you may want to check this one out.
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