Los autómatas de la muerte (1962) User Reviews

You just gotta love these 60s-era lucha movies!

[bensonmum2 · 5/10 · 29 September 2018]

The quick pitch: Masked luchador and superhero Neutron must do battle with the mad Dr. Caronte and his band of zombie-like creatures if he is to save the world from a neutron bomb.

You just gotta love these 60s-era lucha movies! I readily admit that Neutron the Atomic Superman vs the Death Robots isn't a good movie by any normal standards. Neutron comes across a bit like the poor, red-headed stepchild of the better known Santo films. Everything about the movie - acting, sets, lighting, special effects, direction, pacing, cinematography, script, fight choreography - it all scrapes the bottom of the proverbial barrell. And to make things even worse, the movie features some of the worst dubbing I've ever heard. It sounds like you took the dialogue and converted it into about a dozen languages before you finally hit on English. It's pretty poor. But despite all that, Neutron the Atomic Superman vs the Death Robots is just bizarre enough and just fun enough to make it worth watching. From Dr. Caronte's over-the-top pronouncements to the ridiculous way the bomb is planted at the airport to the silly looking death robots to the unibrowed mini-me named Nick, there's something to be seen and experienced around most every corner.

Doesn't even come close to living up to its title (spoilers included)

[lemon_magic · 3/10 · 4 February 2018]

All right, I realize this is some kind of spin-off to a Mexican wrestler movie, so you can't ask for too much. And a lot of the problems with the movie are created by an English dub that is so sloppy and negligent as to defy belief, (I know...I can imagine the production crew thinking, "What the hell, it's only a Mexican Wrestler movie, who cares if the dubbing's any good?")

In its favor: the hero, "Neutron", is fairly well built and is reasonably adept at leaping around and doing fight choreography while keeping his gut sucked in. There are a fair number of fights, a fair amount of camera movement, and a potentially exciting plot idea about a returning supervillian blowing up the city with a "neutronbomb" and using evil "death robots" to fetch his supplies from various warehouses and murder random people and drain their blood to keep three brains alive. And there's a scene where a "death robot" pulls its own head off to avoid giving away the location of its lair.

And it is kind of sweet when the supervillian and his dwarf assistant hold hands as they walk from location to location inside his lair.

Against? A terrible dub where the dubbers appear to be reading their lines off cue cards for the first time while recording. "Death robots" that appear to actually be mummies of sorts, reminiscent of the Aztec mummy from the infamous "Robot vs the Aztec Mummy anti-classic from the same period. An absolute lack of apparent superpowers displayed by Neutron, except for the introductory scene where he jumps into the air and disappears (flight? teleportation? invisibility?) but that ability is never shown again. A lot of wasted time watching the movie's romantic interest warble Mexican love songs (and at one point, for no reason that I can see, a Marimba band doing the same thing). A stunningly unconvincing "love quadrangle" and a desultory running subplot about discovering Neutron's "secret identity" (even though it is established early on that Neutron's effectiveness depends on his having a secret identity.) A HUGE amount of screen time wasted watching people walk up and down various staircases.

And finally, plot holes you could drive a bus through, including the fact that the pit full of "death robots" disappears from the pit near the end of the film and it is never established where they went or what happened to them.

Still, the movie is harmless enough. But I'd rather watch "El Santo Versus the Vampire Women" again.

A luchador fights another evil luchador!

[Aaron1375 · 3/10 · 28 December 2020]

I watched this film under the title, Neutron the Atomic Superman vs The Death Robots! Now that is a title! Too bad there really aren't any death robots and the Superman of the piece isn't really all that awesome. I have seen other movies featuring wrestlers turned superhero and Neutron may have the best name, but alas, he is not the most super. I mean Super Argo could levitate! Santo fought actual vampires! This guy gets outwitted by a little dude who can barely walk and has a unibrow named Nick...

The story to this film leads me to believe this was a sequel as they keep talking about how the bad guy perished as people who look disinterested stare at a television newscast. Well he is not dead and he will soon bring terror upon the world! Well, he pretty much makes Nick do everything leading me to believe he would have been victorious had he, himself, did the footwork as he could have gotten done much faster. Neutron the mysterious superhero who really is not all that super will do what he can to defeat the evil guy while a professor who is constantly saved by Neutron keeps wondering who Neutron really is as he must be one of the three guys who courts this lady at a nightclub...or is he?

The thing about most of these luchador films is that it is kind of hard to do a story around them as they do not take off their masks so you really cannot develop the character beyond him in costume. Instead, you get three dudes courting a lady who may or may not be Neutron that adds little to the plot of an evil guy and his faithful henchman, Nick. So the film is a bit shallow, but so funny to watch!

So, the title really brings a lot of cool things to mind, but never mind that as we get a wrestler who always looks uncomfortable sucking in to make himself look really buff fighting things that are more reminiscent of zombies and do not resemble robots in any way, though they do cause death from time to time. The highlight though has to be the final fight where the hero and villain stop fighting in one location and do a car chase to another place and promptly resume their fight...

Hilarious Mexican Wrestling Horror Nonsense!

[Jens-28 · 21 September 1999]

This is apparently the third Neutron-film and in this our masked marvel, Neutron, is fighting his archenemy, the evil Dr. Caronte (who survived the 2nd movie). With the help of three brains, a dwarf and some vampire zombies Caronte is planning to take over the world, of course, by creating a neutronbomb! I don't know if Neutron was a big rival to the mighty Santo in the 60's, he's shorter and not that convincing in the "fight scenes" but he sure know how flex his muscles! It's campy, juvenile fun and Caronte's dwarf-sidekick has to be seen (and heard!). Enjoy!

CHASING THE NEUTRON BOMB

[mmthos · 2/10 · 13 November 2021]

Of course, this is ridiculous. Lotsa fisticuffs and running up and down stairs, with cops, giant zombies, and a bare-chested superhero who looks suspiciously like a Mexican lucha libre competitor in full overhead mask. There's a pretty cool cartoonish mad scientist lab, full of all the bubbling flasks and flashing electric arcs you could ever want, along with the requisite evil little resident igor, some pretty feeble flamethrowers on a no-budget budget, and 4 beautiful musical numbers in a pointless subplot that has no business being here. Dig the overdramatic score.

Totally mindless fun.

Superior Mexican wrestling madness

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 3 September 2016]

The first sequel to NEUTRON, THE MAN IN THE BLACK MASK, is an enterprising, action-packed movie which rises above the usual boundaries of low-budget exploitation to become an actually good, well-made movie. Due to the wealth of excitement and action on display, the time flies by while you're having fun watching, making this movie a unique and fulfilling experience. Here, the bad dubbing simply adds to the fun, and when a film is as plot-focused as this one so obviously is, who cares about the quality of the acting? This time around, the silver-masked Caronte has a nefarious scheme involving the resurrection of three dead brains; "I shall need blood - lots of blood!" he cackles to his sinister dwarf sidekick, Nick! Caronte's plan is to create an 'electronic brain' which will give him the information he seeks on the creation of the atomic bomb. Joined by 'sound waves', the brain quickly speaks up and gives Caronte the information he requires as to the ingredients of the bomb. Most of the (short) film consists of Caronte's henchmen collecting the ingredients as the police (lead by a man who looks like Alan Arkin) hunt him down and Neutron foils his plans.

One again the biggest flaw of the film are the interminable nightclub scenes where people sing and play bad music for what seems like an age - such padding is unnecessary and the film would have run smoother, and faster, without them. Most of the cast return from the first film; amusingly, Professor Thomas, who was British in the original, is now Mexican judging by his accent! Neutron has far more screen time here than in his earlier (and later) adventures, his athleticism showing no boundaries as he leaps and tackles dozens of Caronte's "death robots", which are actually those lumbering ape-men from the first film again. This time he even gets to set them on fire! There's plenty of fun to be had with this movie, not least the homoerotic undertones which show the muscular and half-naked Neutron 'meeting up' with Thomas...in the professor's bedroom! Nick the dwarf is as funny as before and has a fair amount of screen time too. Other highlights include a death robot disguising itself as Neutron - except that it has a totally different build to him! Another death robot pulls off its own head after being chased in a totally hilarious moment. There are plenty of fights to enjoy, and the plot doesn't give you a chance to dwell over the gaping holes - instead it moves so swiftly from scene to scene that it's hard to keep track of what's going on! Events culminate in probably the best action of the series, a huge fight between Caronte and Neutron which begins in the Professor's house and ends up in Caronte's castle lair, which then self-destructs! It's hugely exciting and a lot of fun. Definitely a highlight of the series and a film I would recommend to curious fans. Neutron returned in the disappointing NEUTRON VS. THE AMAZING DR. CARONTE.

Perilous pacing

[kevin_s_scrivner · 18 August 2021]

What could have been a passable low-budget superhero adventure is marred by interminable pacing. A nightclub romance subplot (and accompanying musical numbers) brings the action to a screeching halt three or four times. The songs aren't bad but would be more appropriate in a Bing Crosby or Abbott and Costello style comedy.

On the other hand, there is an intimidating villain with a master plan and a cool lair, a giggling dwarf sidekick, a shambling squad of 8-foot lab creations that look as if they needed to bake in the oven a few more minutes, and some decent fight scenes. It just takes too long to get to them. The hero needs more screen time, the ingenue less.

Would You Like To Be The Star Of A Fabulous Television Program?!"...

[azathothpwiggins · 14 April 2020]

NEUTRON THE ATOMIC SUPERMAN is part of a wondrous Mexican film series.

The masked, shirtless wonder, Neutron, is on the trail of his nemesis, Dr. Caronte. Along with his unibrowed henchman, Nick, the Doctor is up to no good once more! He's building a mega bomb in his secret lab, to wreak havoc on mankind. He also has an army of vampire zombies, but needs blood, lots of blood.

The zombies fan out in search of the red stuff to keep the brains alive. What brains, you ask? Why, Caronte's captive scientist brains, of course! He needs them to divulge the secret formula. After that, he can abduct Professor Thomas, and build his doomsday bomb! Can Neutron get to the bottom of this madness in time? Doesn't he ever catch a chill running around with no shirt? I guess we should be glad he wears pants!

This is absurd entertainment at its best...