In 1983, El Santo was nearing the end of his movie career. I think there might’ve been an expectation for the Son of Santo to continue in his father’s footsteps. Ultimately, the Son of Santo never found the success his father had, as he only starred in a handful of features.
Mobsters are using strongarm tactics to buy up land along the Mexican border. A couple of concerned farmers hire the Son of Santo to protect their property from the gangsters. Sure, that plot description is a little thin, which would be okay if the wrestling action was top notch. As it is, the wrestling scenes are kind of ho-hum. The Son of Santo participates in a six-man tag team match, which suffers from some crummy camera placement as much of the match is filmed from afar. About halfway through, the top-billed Mil Mascaras shows up to give the movie a slight boost, but even his wrestling sequences fail to impress.
Comparisons to the star’s father are inevitable. He just doesn’t have the screen presence his old man had. He fares better during the action as his fighting skills are more Kung Fu-inspired. However, the staging of the fights leave something to be desired. (Once again, the erratic camerawork is often to blame.)
It doesn’t help that the Son of Santo kind of gets lost in his own movie as there’s way too many supporting characters that gum up the works. (The most egregious being the comic relief priest.) Add to that the abundance of padding in the form of nightclub performances (no less than FIVE of them), which also helps cut down on Son of Santo’s screen time. Naturally, the lame modern-day western motif didn’t do the film any favors. Maybe if Son of Santo had some mummies or werewolves to fight like his old man had, it would’ve made for a more entertaining picture.
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