All posts by James Mudge »
The Trail (1981) Movie Review
“The Trail” is an early film from Hong Kong director Ronny Yu, best remembered for his classic “The Bride with White Hair”, and who would later go on to underwhelm horror fans with “Freddy...
Read More »
Wisconsin Death Trip (1999) Movie Review
Despite its title, “Wisconsin Death Trip” is not a crazed backwoods slasher film, but rather a feature length documentary about the high incidence of murder and madness which afflicted the small town of Black...
Read More »Fu Bo (2003) Movie Review
“Fu Bo” is a film which takes place in a location rather unusual for Hong Kong cinema: a morgue. Although there have been a number of films, mostly horror comedies, with this setting (such...
Read More »Women on the Run (1993) Movie Review
“Women on the Run” is one of the better known category III exploitation films, and is one with a pedigree of sorts, having been directed by the team of Hong Kong action master Corey...
Read More »The Imp (1981) Movie Review
Director Dennis Yu’s “The Imp” is a Hong Kong horror film from the early 1980s, which comes with the heady boast of being one of the all-time genre greats from its native country. Whilst...
Read More »Ebola Syndrome (1996) Movie Review
Even within the most dependable bastion of bad taste known as the category III genre of Hong Kong cinema, there are a few films which stand out as having a reputation for being truly...
Read More »
Ichi the Killer, Koroshiya: Episode 0 (2004) Movie Review
Takashi Miike’s infamous splatter-fest “Ichi the Killer” has proved to be a controversial cult favourite, and so it comes as no surprise that it has inspired a spin off in the form of an...
Read More »Leave me Alone (2004) Movie Review
“Leave me Alone” is Danny Pang’s companion piece to brother Oxide’s “Ab-normal Beauty”, the two films linked by a tragic car accident which has far reaching effects on the lives of all those involved....
Read More »Distinctive (2002) Movie Review
In times like these, when Western cinema screens are plagued with vapid, money grabbing remakes of vastly superior Asian films, it is vaguely comforting to find the likes of “Distinctive”, which provides positive proof...
Read More »
Tattoo (2002) Movie Review
The plot is set in Berlin, where a maniac is preying upon people with intricate tattoos, harvesting their skin and leaving them for dead. The detective assigned to the case, Minks (Christian Redl) is...
Read More »
Creep (2004) Movie Review
“Creep” comes along at a time when the British horror industry is experiencing a resurgence of sorts, with recent years bringing forth films such as “28 Days Later” and “Dead Man’s Shoes”. In this...
Read More »White Noise (2005) Movie Review
As the likelihood of finding an original concept in the horror genre grows increasingly thin, filmmakers are scouring the world of the supernatural for obscure plots and gimmicks. The result of this desperate search...
Read More »Ab-normal Beauty (2004) Movie Review
Ever since the global success of “The Eye”, the Pang brothers have become an increasingly hot property, and despite having only a few films under their collective belts, are now two of the most...
Read More »We’re Going to Eat You (1980) Movie Review
Tsui Hark is one of the all time greats of Hong Kong martial arts cinema, having been responsible for undisputed genre classics such as “Zu Warriors” and “Peking Opera Blues”. Unfortunately, his output in...
Read More »
Tomie: Forbidden Fruit (2002) Movie Review
“Tomie: Forbidden Fruit” is the fourth in the franchise based on the Japanese manga by popular horror artist Ito Junji, whose unique talent also produced the inspirations for the films “Uzumaki” and “Kakashi”. “Forbidden...
Read More »3-Iron (2004) Movie Review
“3-Iron” is the latest offering from Ki-duk Kim, the acclaimed Korean director who has been responsible for a number of nihilistic masterpieces, including “Samaria” and “Bad Guy”. “3-Iron” has been gathering strong reviews and...
Read More »
Ichi the Killer (2002) Movie Review
“Ichi the Killer” is easily one of the most controversial films of the last decade, and its undeniably extreme content has become synonymous with the name of its director, the notorious Takashi Miike. For...
Read More »A World Without Thieves (2004) Movie Review
“A World Without Thieves”, the latest from acclaimed Mainland Chinese director Feng Xiaogang, follows the criminal life of Bo (Andy Lau) and Li (Rene Liu), wandering husband and wife grifters, con artists, and whatever...
Read More »Last Ghost Standing (1999) Movie Review
Horror comedies have always been popular in Hong Kong cinema, and the sub genre has produced a number of classic films such as Sammo Hung’s “Close Encounters of the Spooky Kind” and the enduring...
Read More »
