Human Lanterns (1982) Movie Review

“Human Lanterns”, one of the most controversial and infamous Shaw Brothers titles gets another airing on DVD thanks to Image Entertainment. Directed by Sun Chung (who made a number of hits for the studio, including his classic “Rendezvous With Death”), the film was originally...

August 29th, 2008 | Read More

Vice Squad 633 (1979) Movie Review

“Vice Squad 633″ is a slice of hardboiled Hong Kong cop action which was originally released back in 1979, when the new wave was starting to break and the genre was shifting to favour gritty realism over black and white heroism. Hua Ren, also responsible for the similarly themed “Payoff”,...

August 28th, 2008 | Read More

You Bet Your Life (1998) Movie Review

Originally released back in 1989, “You Bet Your Life” is a film that could never have been made anywhere but Hong Kong, combining as it does the ghost and gambling genres. Although directed by Liang Jia Shu, also responsible for the Stephen Chow comedy “Love is Love”, the film...

August 28th, 2008 | Read More

The Invincible Eight (1971) Movie Review

Fortune Star serves up another helping of classic martial action in the form of “The Invincible Eight”, a long unavailable fan favourite that was originally released back in 1971. The film was directed by Lo Wai, a prolific ex-Shaw Brothers helmer, who later became one of the biggest names...

August 28th, 2008 | Read More

Chaos (2008) Movie Review

Although the Hong Kong film industry waxes and wanes, one man can always be relied upon to keep on delivering the goods – Herman Yau. Beloved to cult film fans for his early category III rated classics, including “The Untold Story” and “Ebola Syndrome”, the director has...

August 26th, 2008 | Read More

Two Women in Red Scarves (2006) Movie Review

“Two Women in Red Scarves” is the latest slice of rural drama from Mainland Chinese novelist turned director Han Zhijun, which sees him following up his well-received humanistic ‘Village’ trilogy with more of the same. Again focusing largely on his female characters, he gently...

August 24th, 2008 | Read More

Cherries (2008) Movie Review

“Cherries” is one of those films that comes to DVD with fantastically inappropriate and misleading box art, in this case featuring a variety of naked pictures of lead actress Miao Pu. Needless to say, viewers lured in by this cheap trick (the pictures in question are all taken from one brief...

August 24th, 2008 | Read More

Missing (2008) Movie Review

The prospect of “Missing” inspires both hope and trepidation, marking as it does the return of Tsui Hark, the one time golden boy of Hong Kong cinema, who since his peak in the heady days of the 1980s and early 1990s has suffered a slow decline in fortunes. With his highly touted 2005 comeback...

August 21st, 2008 | Read More

The Music Box (aka Barber, 2006) Movie Review

It’s hard not to view “The Music Box” without a certain amount of melancholy, given that it marks the final outing of acclaimed Chinese director and artist Chen Yi Fei, whose “Evening Liaison” was highly praised at Cannes in 1995. A master painter who studied in New York...

August 21st, 2008 | Read More

The Moss (2008) Movie Review

“The Moss” is hotly tipped Hong Kong director Derek Kwok’s follow-up to his much praised debut “The Pye-Dog”, and sees him sticking to the same territory with another gritty tale of urban angst. Here, the tone is somewhat darker, and the film delves even further into the...

August 7th, 2008 | Read More

Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon (2008) Movie Review #2

With John Woo’s mighty “Red Cliff” having been in production for an age before finally storming into Chinese cinemas, it was always inevitable that a number of other films would attempt to steal a little of its thunder, or at least to cash in on its inevitable success. The highest profile...

August 2nd, 2008 | Read More

Jail House Eros (1990) Movie Review

The excellently titled “Jail House Eros” boasts what may well be the ultimate premise in exploitation cinema, combining the women in prison genre and the wackiest excess of the Hong Kong ghost film. Needless to say, the film was the brainchild of none other than Wong Jing himself, and is...

July 13th, 2008 | Read More

Ghost Snatchers (1986) Movie Review

“The Ghost Snatchers” was originally released back in 1986 when the Hong Kong ghost boom was in full swing, with filmmakers still desperate to cash in on the success of Sammo Hung’s classic “Spooky Encounters” and the hit “Mr Vampire” series. The film was directed...

July 9th, 2008 | Read More

And the Spring Comes (2007) Movie Review

“And the Spring Comes” is Sixth Generation Mainland Chinese director Gu Changwei’s second outing, and the follow up to his widely acclaimed, award winning debut “Peacock”. Casting his own wife in the decidedly unglamorous lead role, he again explores rather grim themes of...

July 9th, 2008 | Read More

Lady Whirlwind (1972) Movie Review

Martial arts fans have a reason to be excited this month with the re-release of “Lady Whirlwind”, a classic slice of old school action from 1972 featuring the incomparable Angela Mao. Thankfully the film has retained its original title, rather than its bizarre and misleading Western moniker...

July 4th, 2008 | Read More

Marriage Trap (2008) Movie Review

Despite its decidedly generic cover and familiar premise, to pitch “Marriage Trap” as a simple romantic comedy would definitely be selling it short. Marking the debut of Mainland Chinese director Zhang Cheng, the writer of Ning Hao’s excellent “Crazy Stone”, the film is...

June 21st, 2008 | Read More

Come Drink With Me (1966) Movie Review

(Movie Review by Kevin Nickelson) Remember those days when you went through the junk in your attic and stumbled across a piece of treasure that you’d forgotten about. Maybe it was an embarrassing photo of a drunk family member at a party, or a sterling silver Buddha with the clock in the belly. The...

June 19th, 2008 | Read More

Heroes of the East (1979) Movie Review

(Movie Review by Kevin Nickelson) Have you ever visited a home where the décor wildly differs from room to room? There is the main living room, usually reserved for guests, decked out in something vaguely similar to Victorian style. You move to the kitchen, which is 90’s glass and wood panel. Turn...

June 5th, 2008 | Read More

Two Stupid Eggs (2007) Movie Review

“Two Stupid Eggs” is Mainland Chinese director Kiefer Liu’s follow up and sequel of sorts to his hit parody “Big Movie”, and for a change is actually a remake of a Western film, namely the 2003 award winning Spanish comedy “Torremolinos 73″. Although dealing...

May 24th, 2008 | Read More

Beach of the War Gods (1973) Movie Review

Now re-issued on DVD, the excellently titled “Beach of the War Gods” was originally released way back in 1973 and is likely to be of particular interest to martial arts fans for having been written and directed by the “One Armed Swordsman” himself, Jimmy Wang Yu. The film was...

May 16th, 2008 | Read More