The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		2.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		1.5

The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 23, 2022

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of The Aztec Mummy Collection.

Could you adequately describe the difference(s) between the Aztecs and the Mayans? There are a number of excellent online resources for anyone who might need a little, um, help, but there wasn't an internet in the early sixties (that we know of, anyway), and that may account for the somewhat hilarious fact that American producer Jerry Warren re-released a Mexican effort from 1957 called The Aztec Mummy that Warren had rejiggered for American audiences, renaming it Attack of the Mayan Mummy in the process, though the English language versions of The Aztec Mummy's sequels included on this disc are attributed to K. Gordon Murray. As Dr. David Wilt discusses in his interesting comments on the films included on this disc as a supplement, the first three Aztec Mummy films, the aforementioned one linked to and then The Curse of the Aztec Mummy and The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy included on this disc, were basically shot back to back (to back). It's somewhat hilarious, then, that while it is instantly obvious in watching the three films on this disc that The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy in particular utilizes footage from The Curse of the Aztec Mummy, in truth both of those films evidently utilized footage from the first film (which is not included on this disc). These were obviously quickie low budget productions that were probably made even more gonzo when the likes of K. Gordon Murray got ahold of them and "translated" them into English. The results are undeniably daffy, with fleeting glimpses of our raggedy anti-hero (whatever his "tribal" status may be), and the added attraction of everything from Luchadors to robots to wrestling women thrown into the mix for good measure.

Part of the interest in this release may be the fact that this particular film was skewered mercilessly on Mystery Science Theater 3000 pretty early in that show's long run, and let's just cut to the chase and state definitively that there probably was no riper piece for the peculiar sensibilties of Mystery Science Theater 3000's "critics" than this completely gonzo outing. Large (and I mean large ) portions of this film play like "previously. . .on The Curse of the Aztec Mummy", though, as mentioned above, part of the subliminal comedy here is that the ubiquitous reused footage also comes from the first film.

Once again all of the major characters are back in place attempting to find the priceless treasure that once belonged to the mummy formerly known as Popoca (Ángel di Stefani). Dr. Dr. Eduardo Almada (Ramón Gay) has gone ahead and married Flora (Rosa Arenas), this despite the fact that his own hypnotic regression of his betrothed disclosed she was once Princess Xochitl, who may have had a "thing" with Xochitl. The evil Dr. Krupp (Luis Aceves Castañeda), kind of hilariously also known as The Bat, is still plotting to get that aforementioned priceless treasure, and in that regard, his mad scientist proclivities have come in handy with the creation of a giant robot which he believes can help him attain his quest.

This is one of those films where you just kind of watch it with a mantra of "WTF" slowly revolving in your head. This is another film where the mummy doesn't get a whale of a lot of screen time, and usually under extremely shrouded, hard to see, circumstances. The "robot" is just flat laugh out loud funny from any number of standpoints.

The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of VCI Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This presentation struck me as second best to The Curse of the Aztec Mummy, but part of the downgrade may simply because so much material is reused from both that film and its predecessor. Even given that bit of slack, this shows more of a filtered, smeary appearance than the first film, though there still is a grain field of sorts visible. As such, detail levels aren't always incredibly precise or fulsome, though some close-ups can still deliver commendable results. There's quite a bit more damage to be seen in this film than the first one on this disc, with some pretty evident scratching in particular.

The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

As with The Curse of the Aztec Mummy, The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy features only lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono audio. Once again, the English dub is often laughable at odds with lip movements, and the entire track is thin and boxy, but dialogue is understandable and there are no huge issues with regard to damage. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

VCI has packaged three of the Aztec Mummy films together on one disc, with the following sole supplement:

• The Mummy Films (HD; 24:38) is billed as a "video essay" but is in fact mostly the rather interesting Dr. David Wilt speaking directly into his monitor's camera about the films. He's obviously reading and probably will seem a little stiff for some tastes, but he has a lot of good information to impart, and there are some fun archival stills and snippets from the films included as he speaks.

The Robot vs. the Aztec Mummy Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you see only one film this year featuring an Aztec Mummy battling a Robot, I guess it should probably be this one, but this is probably more suitably enjoyed as fodder for your own Mystery Science Theater 3000 "critique". Technical merits could stand improvement, but the supplement on the disc is informative, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.