Reviews
Hung bou yit sin ji Dai tao gwai ying (2001)
surprisingly subtle-and effective
hong kong films are many things -but subtlety is not their strong point. even the most brutal movies from there seem to cram in a bit of silly humour-see the untold story for an example. here is something else though..... influenced more by the japanese ring series than any hong kong film this film starts with an american film crew making a documentary on a popular hong kong radio series in which listeners tell ghost stories. this time a man phones in giving details of a childhood encounter with a baby with a deformed head,kept in a cage near his school. from here the film and radio crew attempt to look into this urban legend and terrifying things start to happen....... this film has a genuinely unnerving atmosphere,some moments that will make you jump and a choice of 2 endings that are very much in the blair witch style. some people might be put off by the fact that a lot of loose ends are not tied up but that just adds to the mystery of it all. don't be put off by the silly name-this is a hong kong horror that really delivers.
Keung gaan haam ging (1998)
rape and revenge hong kong style
storyline..... woman and man in a relationship,they need money to expand their business. the boyfriend suggests the woman has a fake marriage to anthony wong,anthony wong will inherit money,give a pile to the couple,divorce,everyone lives happily ever after. of course wong turns out to be a psycho who wants to consumate the marriage via rape. from here on events spiral out of control.... nothing special but entertaining enough and as ever anthony wong plays a very convincing psycho even if he doesn't reach the heights of madness he did in the untold story. a lot less explicit than other films of it's type-it's actually category 2 rather than 3-the title is the most offensive thing about it.
Craze (1974)
mad african idols
working from memory here so forgive the hazy details..... jack palance chews the scenery as an antique dealer who becomes convinced that by sacrificing women to an african idol in his cellar he will have good fortune bestowed upon him. cue lots of crazy 70's fashions,music,drugs references etc etc. the film follows jacks downward spiral as he tries to keep the idol satisfied. cleverly the film never makes it clear whether jacks good luck is coincidence or whether it really does bring good luck. this film is well worth picking up for entertainment value.
Silas (1981)
classic childrens tv!
as a child i loved this series on tv. the cheesy dubbing never bothered me-but what a great storyline! young boy runs away from the abusive circus owner,wins a horse and embarks on adventures. the most memorable bit though-the music! each character had a theme,when the evil shrew appeared on screen wailing electric guitars blasted forth-brilliant stuff.
Messalina, Messalina! (1977)
a true roman tragedy
first off-don't expect anything to do with the original caligula. this is an italian comedy version which uses left over sets from that production. messalina is the emperor of romes wife and spends much of the film in a variety of sex scenes. there is a lot of genuinely funny parts in this film-mainly due to the truly awful english dubbing. before seeing this film i was unaware that romans spoke with strong american accents and called each other babe! to top it all off the film ends with a long gore scene which was very surprising although this too is done in a humorous way. this is worth picking up if you see the dvd for sale cheap although beware-the picture quality of the dvd is pretty crummy.
Ta paidiá tou Diavólou (1976)
ISLAND OF NONSENSE!
this film is just crazy-let's have a checklist CONTAINS SPOILERS!
a)brother and sister who live like husband and wife-check b)scene in which the man rapes and kills a little goat-check c)scene in which a painter has death by paint drinking inflicted on him-check d)scenes of urination on an old granny-check e)scene in which a fat man is killed because he's gay-check f)numerous awful songs which include lyrics such as 'fetch my sword'-check
and so much more! you really need to check out this insane film.
Jiu er shen diao zhi: Chi xin qing chang jian (1992)
not what you might expect
first things first-if you are expecting a sequel to part one you will feel very let down. why they used the title i don't know. it's actually a fantasy comedy. it features andy lau's character plus a godson and his grandfather. andy constantly dreams of a secret lover and seeks her in real life. this is just an excuse for lots of silly over the top humour and a small amount of martial arts. the film is actually very inventive and if you approach it expecting nothing to do with the first film you should be happy.