Juan López Moctezuma

Juan López Moctezuma
Born(1932-05-19)19 May 1932
Mexico City, Mexico
Died2 August 1995(1995-08-02) (aged 63)
Mexico City, Mexico
Alma materNational Autonomous University of Mexico
Occupations
  • Film director
  • screenwriter
  • film producer
  • theatre director
  • actor

Juan López Moctezuma (May 19, 1932[1] – August 2, 1995) was a Mexican filmmaker, theatre director, and actor.[2] He is best known for directing the 1977 horror film Alucarda, widely considered as one of the best Mexican horror films of all time.[3][4][5][6]

Biography

Early life and education

Moctezuma was born in Mexico City in 1932.[1] His father was a judge, and Moctezuma's family originally wanted him to follow a similar path. He studied art, theatre, and music at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, and was active with the University's radio station XEUN-FM, creating the long-running program Panorama de Jazz.[1] He worked on similar cultural programs for both radio and television in the following years.[1]

A theatre director by training, Moctezuma worked as an assistant to "the father of Mexican theatre" Seki Sano during the 1960s, during which time he met Alejandro Jodorowsky.[1] He subsequently helped produce Jodorowsky's films Fando y Lis (1968) and El Topo (1970).

Filmmaker

In 1973, Moctezuma made his feature directorial debut The Mansion of Madness (1973), a surrealist horror film adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's "The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether", using some of the same creative team as El Topo. The film was both a critical and commercial success. He next directed the U.S./Mexican co-production Mary, Mary, Bloody Mary, starring Cristina Ferrare and John Carradine.

In 1977, he directed his most recognized and controversial work, Alucarda (1977), which tells the story of a satanic possession in a Catholic convent. Despite facing censorship upon its initial release in Mexico, the film is widely regarded as one of the best Mexican horror films of all time,[3][4][5][6] and the British Film Institute described it as a masterpiece.[6]

Moctezuma's next film, To Kill a Stranger (1983), was a thriller starring Angélica María, Donald Pleasence, and Dean Stockwell.[1] In 1986, he directed his only film in America, the immigration-themed dramedy Welcome Maria. During the early 1990s, Moctzeuma shot a pilot episode for a horror anthology television series at TV Azteca, which never aired and is now considered lost.[1] His last film El alimento del miedo, premiered in 1995.

In addition to his filmmaking career, Moctezuma was an executive at the Televisa network (he was personal friends with Emilio Azcárraga Jean), and was director of its European division for eight years.[2]

Later life

In his later life, Moctezuma suffered personal and professional setbacks that led him to be fired from Televisa and isolate himself in a small rooftop apartment in Los Angeles. He was later diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, and held in a care facility in Mexico City.[2]

In 1993, two fans of Moctezuma abducted the director from the facility and took him to various filming locations of his movies, before returning him. The incident was the subject of the 2011 documentary Alucardos, Retrato de un vampiro.[2]

Death and legacy

Moctezuma died on August 2, 1995, at the age of 63.[2]

Roman Polanski cited The Mansion of Madness as an inspiration for his film The Tenant (1976).[7]

Guillermo del Toro has cited Moctezuma's influence, naming Alucarda as one of his favorite films.[8]

Filmography

Year Original title English title Functioned as Notes
Director Writer Producer
1973 La mansión de la locura The Mansion of Madness Yes Yes No
1975 Mary, Mary, Bloody Mary Mary, Mary, Bloody Mary Yes No No
1977 Alucarda, la hija de las tinieblas Alucarda Yes Yes Yes
1984 Matar a un extraño To Kill a Stranger Yes Yes No
1986 Bienvenido María Welcome María Yes Yes No [9][10][11]
1995 El alimento del miedo N/a Yes Yes No

Producer only

Acting roles

  • Alguien nos quiere matar (1970) - (voice)
  • Adios, amor... (1973) - Police Officer
  • Canoa: A Shameful Memory (1976) - Narrator (voice)
  • Alucarda (1977) - Monk
  • To Kill a Stranger (1984) - Albert Morell
  • Se equivocó la cigüeña (1993) - Curate
  • El alimento del miedo (1994) - Don Ramón

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Juan Lopez Moctezuma page". terpconnect.umd.edu. Retrieved 2026-05-11.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Gutiérrez, Vicente (28 February 2011). "López Moctezuma: la historia de un genio maldito". El Economista (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 4 March 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
  3. 1 2 Aguilar, Carlos (28 August 2019). "Mexican Horror Movies: 15 Films to Watch". Vulture. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019.
  4. 1 2 Navarro, Meagan (19 March 2021). "Intro to Mexican Horror: 8 Must See Horror Films". Bloody Disgusting. Archived from the original on 6 May 2023.
  5. 1 2 Vázquez, Ana Paula (24 September 2024). "La encuentras en Mubi, es considerada una obra maestra del cine de terror mexicano y la favorita de Guillermo del Toro". El Heraldo de México (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 21 September 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 Wilt, David (19 June 2023). "Where to begin with Mexican macabre cinema". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 19 September 2024.
  7. ↑ México, El Universal, Compañia Periodística Nacional. "Del siquiátrico a la pantalla". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-05-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. ↑ "Alucarda DVD Review". Horrortalk.com. Archived from the original on 2009-02-12. Retrieved 2026-05-11.
  9. ↑ "Welcome María (Anglove Corp., N.V., 1986/1987)" (PDF). Terconnect.umd.edu. Retrieved July 9, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Welcome Maria review". Terpconnect.umd.edu. Retrieved Jul 9, 2026.
  11. ↑ "The Mexican Film bulletin; Volume 23 number 2 ; Obituaries" (PDF). Terpconnect.und.edu. June 2017. Retrieved July 9, 2026.

Further reading

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