10 Types Of Movies You Don't See Any More

4. Luchador Films

A popular spectator sport since the 1930s, Mexican wrestling reached the big screen in the 1950s as the country’s most famous luchadors became crime fighters who battled supernatural villains in a series of cheaply made pictures. 

Most famous of all was El Santo, whose popularity inspired a franchise that lasted into the 1980s. By the time of Santo Vs The Zombies (1961), the formula had been established: in between wrestling matches, Santo helped the police solve a mystery, rescued a kidnapped friend from a supernatural antagonist and then returned to the ring as normality resumed. Whether encountering vampires, werewolves or mummies, though, Santo never met an opponent he couldn’t defeat with one-on-one grappling.

The films were made quickly and cheaply, and while a modern audience is more likely to be reminded of Adam West-era Batman, they were successful enough to open the floodgates for Mexico’s luchadoras (wrestling women) as well as various imitators. The uninitiated should seek out Doctor Of Doom (1963), Santo Vs The Martian Invasion (1967) and Night Of The Bloody Apes (1969).