Magia

This one's definitely one to see, just to say you've seen it. That's not to say you won't get something out of it, but it's weird… it's tremendously weird! It starts off predictably enough, with a revenge flick set-up, but soon goes off on superbly bizarre tangents involving flying heads, automaton Buddhas and tons of maggots and oodles of vomit. It seems that anything to do with magic also involves maggots and vomit.

A word of warning to people - like me - who like to try to psycho-analyse weird films, books etc.; don't try. Your head will hurt. The best thing to do when watching this, is just to let it wash over you.

As if Jodorowsky met Coffin Joe in Hong Kong and decided to collaborate on a supernatural martial-arts action film. Filled to the brim with visual overload, mystical drama, Buddhist symoblism and dark supernatural atmosphere, this film follows the life of a boxer embroiled in a vengeful feud sparked by the brutal, nearly fatal beating of his brother in a sparring match. He is overwhelmed one night by a vision, an omen as it were, which ultimately leads him towards the realization of his own destiny that takes him along a path of spirituality and a quest for the power and inner peace that may free his lineage from an ages old curse. This scenario is used as a launching point for what is surely one of the most bizarre, chaotic & excessive Hong Kong flicks ever made. Most of the movies effects are obviously low budget but the rather excellent filmwork and audaciously gonzo, over-the-top nature of the imagery far than makes up for any budgetary restrictions. The indelibly weird vibe that permeates the film is, in fact, partially due to it's low-fidelity nature. Those familiar with the "Chinese Ghost Story" and similar fare will be familiar with the themes conjured up by these supernatural Hong Kong action flicks and may know what to expect. But those who are not should get ready for a pretty wild trip down a road full of wild twists of logic that lead through glowing supernatural vistas, magical terrorist attacks, flying eyeball creatures, and wild clashes with demonic entities and manifestations of all sorts. A crazy little nugget of a film that could even be an accidental masterpiece. At the very least, a unique cinematic experience that's probably like nothing else you've ever seen. Virtually impossible to track down and not, as far as I know, offically available. In spite of this, fans of offbeat & mondo cinema should do whatever they can to track this gem down.

I feel like Roy Batty at the end of Blade Runner, because this movie made me see things you people wouldn't believe. I sometimes feel like I've seen it all, after nearly three decades of watching movies and having seen thousands at this point, but The Boxer's Omen is unlike anything else. It's got mixed martial arts, supernatural horror, nightmarish fantasy/mythological elements, and plenty of genuinely disgusting gross-out scenes that genuinely made me feel queasy.

I can't even explain most of the things I just saw. This was a fever dream of a movie, and I don't even know if I really saw some of the things that I think I just saw. This movie just never stops finding bizarre, gross, and creative things to throw at its protagonist and, by extension, its audience. It's a ride that's mostly fun, but at other points feels dangerously deranged, and kind of uncomfortable... but it works, given this is clearly going for horror. While it's not the kind of horror that'll make me struggle to sleep tonight, it is the kind of horror that got a reaction from me.

I know only one person - maybe two people - who I could potentially show this to without them disowning me, and it's the kind of movie where I think I have to show it to someone, just so they can validate it really exists and the things on-screen really did happen. This movie's 104 minutes of utter insanity, and it made me very uncomfortable but I also had a surprisingly good time, so watch it if you think you've seen everything.

I have to give this film a high rating just for the fact that it is so utterly insane, disgusting but at times brilliant. When I was in the USA last year, I went into a cool little Indy Music and DVD shop looking for a Martial Arts movie to watch that night. This little gem jumped off the shelf into my hands. Watching it that night, I actually found myself so horrified with some of the scenes, I was looking around the room to see if anyone else might be watching me watching the movie. You see, I was visiting family and didn't want to be categorised as the strange chap from London who watches films where wizards eat chickens testicles. To me, it had the spirit of Jodorowsky with some absolutely amazing scenes of transcendence by Buddhist meditation that still look awesome with today's technology. Not many movies like this. Really glad i found it.

A late Shaw oddity that has elements of a classic Shaw occult film but with qualities that are very un-Shaw like.

The plot is about a Hong Kong gangster discovering a supernatural connection with a deceased Thai monk after the monk's spirit saves him from an ambush from a rival gang. Ignoring the spirit's pleas, the gangster goes home to his beautiful (and frequently naked) girlfriend. The gangster then goes to Thailand to challenge a cheating Thai kickboxer who gravely hurt his best friend in a match. After disgorging a live Moray eel in a hotel, the gangster decides that it's a good time to find the temple that the monk resided in. The gangster learns that he was a twin brother to the dead monk in a previous life and therefore their lives are forever intertwined! The monk was about to achieve immortality but a crazy Thai dark warlock poisoned his eyes with spiders and the monk died. The gangster's life is at risk if he can't defeat the warlock and break the poison spider spell.

That's enough description. I can't begin to list the strangeness that occurs in this film. Lots of rubber animals, vomit eating wizards, talking corpses, a flying alien head that hatches from a giant pink slime egg, lots of butcher shop offal, maggots, bats, Buddhist monks and breasts pressed against windows, all in the same movie! The photography is very good at points sometimes much better than other Shaw films but then we are plunged into a typical Shaw scene of garish colored lights. The art direction is very, very good. The pacing is uneven but the weirdness keeps your attention. At one point the film stops to spend a few minutes showing crocodiles with no dialog and no warning. It's not so bad since you are actively trying to figure out what you are watching. The vomit eating and chewed food sharing scenes might be over the top for some people.

I enjoyed the film but I also realize that this might not be a shared reaction. You are warned.