Egle Elohim (Nadia Haro Olivia) causes a sensation when she performs a black magic stage show in a small Mexican town. Professor Tejeda (Carlos Riquelme) is skeptical of her abilities, but once he sees her show, he becomes convinced she is the descendant of a 15th witch. He investigates the matter, and Egle promptly kills him using that old black magic. It doesn’t take long for his daughter Maria (Lulu Parga) to become suspicious too, especially once Egle begins casting a love spell on her boyfriend (Aldo Monti).
Mysteries of Black Magic is a stylish and entertaining Mexican horror flick. What it lacks in originality, it more than makes up for in atmosphere as there are plenty of fog-shrouded crypts and torchlit-dungeons that add an eerie ambiance to the proceedings. Egle’s magic shows are also a lot more macabre (and nastier) than the typical American mad hypnotist/magician movies of the era, which helps to set it apart from many similarly themed films.
The film moves along at a reasonably steady clip too, and the plot-heavy dialogue scenes are short and sweet for this kind of thing, which is nice. Although it starts to run out of gas near the end, the witch’s comeuppance makes for a solid enough send-off for the horrible hag. The climactic appearance of a zombified, leprous sorcerer adds to the fun in the final reel.
The only real downside is that the supporting performances are a bit stiff and/or reserved. That’s okay though because Olivia makes a memorable impression as the scheming, brooding witch. She more than compensates for her castmates’ lack of thespian prowess, especially when she’s conjuring demonic forces, performing black magic rituals, or barking orders at her assistant, who has ears so big they put Mr. Spock’s to shame. Even if you didn’t enjoy the movie as much as I did, Olivia’s performance is sure to cast a spell on you.
AKA: Return from the Beyond.
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