Director: Charles Pinion
Year: 2017
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: Aztec Blood
Genre: Mummy
Plot:
Heading into the desert, a university research team heads out to investigate the findings of an Aztec idol nearby come to find they have unleashed the murderous spirit of an ancient warrior who is killing off the team one-by-one and must find a way to stop the deadly rampage.
Review:
For the most part, this one wasn’t all that bad but still had enough going for it. Among the more enjoyable aspects here is the fact that there’s some decent enough work here at building the world away from the typical Egyptian variety. The move to the American Southwest offers a slightly more original take here where it’s a more recent vintage that still performed somewhat similar enough actions to make a mummy appearing there plausible. Tying that into the original idea of the blood sacrifice sequence in the caves which features some strong and startling attempts to raise the creature inside which starts this one in earnest, the fact that it utilizes some rather familiar concepts of Aztec lore into the creatures’ rebirth and actual reappearance is quite an intriguing move here.
As well, once this one gets going in the later half with the possessed going on all sorts of great rampages the action is quite fun and makes this a little more engaging, with the discovery of the dead colleague moving around the camp, the brawl with the second victim crawling around, the ceremonial offerings in the cave system or the final battle with the possessed followers inside the camp which all makes this one seem far more engaging than it really is by bringing in some solid action and plenty of gore to help liven this one up. This is what helps make for a fun time here.
However, while it does have some solid positives the flaws here are far more detrimental. Hardly anything is more damaging here than the rather low-budget throughout here, which is quite obvious and really does this one a disservice. The fact that it doesn’t have the budget to bring out an actual mummy is a big issue, rarely featuring anything about the actual creature coming back shuffling around killing people and being more about the return of the curse driven by the creature and it rarely provides much to discount that feeling. Everything looks too closed in and confining which is typical of the style, and added together with the stilted performances from the cast who seemed to sleepwalk through everything as well as the slow, drawn-out pacing here that really lowers the first half really tend to lower this one.
Overview: **/5
Due to a few large issues that holds this one back, the few minor positives are really overwhelmed for the most part and it really becomes somewhat troubling to get through this one. This is really only recommended to fans of the lowest budgeted efforts or like cheesy creature features such as these, while those with more discerning taste should heed caution here.
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