IMDb RATING
6.7/10
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An adventurer who's been inflicted with a deadly curse during a previous expedition to Thailand goes back to battle an evil sorcerer, his tribal army, and his deadly creatures.An adventurer who's been inflicted with a deadly curse during a previous expedition to Thailand goes back to battle an evil sorcerer, his tribal army, and his deadly creatures.An adventurer who's been inflicted with a deadly curse during a previous expedition to Thailand goes back to battle an evil sorcerer, his tribal army, and his deadly creatures.
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If this had been the first Hong Kong action-horror film I'd seen, it would've stuck with me for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, The Seventh Curse comes on the coattails of some of the most crazy, awesome movies I have ever seen from the director Kuei Chih-Hung. Do you want a movie about a character that has a curse that causes wounds to appear on their body, and with gross worms? Watch Bewitched (Gu), which came out five years earlier.
And I know what you're saying, this movie is an adventure, not a Shaw Brothers film-which is definitely true. Seventh Curse often feels like the craziest Spielberg film you've never heard of. But I find it hard to keep thinking that when watching the more graphic and gross-out scenes, reminiscent of something from The Boxer's Omen.
All that being said, I still think it's at least a 6. The effects are great, the sets are particularly great, and Old Ancestor is probably my favorite movie skeleton. He's got that perfect mix of goofy, 80's glowy-eyes, and impressive editing hiding the transition from puppet to stunt actor.
So, is The Seventh Curse worth a watch?
If not for the fantastic skeleton (I seriously cannot state enough how great it is), I'd say no. I think there are other films that accomplish the same things this does with more interesting plots AND more fun. However, you guys gotta see the skeleton. You HAVE to see the skeleton. So yes, watch it.
And I know what you're saying, this movie is an adventure, not a Shaw Brothers film-which is definitely true. Seventh Curse often feels like the craziest Spielberg film you've never heard of. But I find it hard to keep thinking that when watching the more graphic and gross-out scenes, reminiscent of something from The Boxer's Omen.
All that being said, I still think it's at least a 6. The effects are great, the sets are particularly great, and Old Ancestor is probably my favorite movie skeleton. He's got that perfect mix of goofy, 80's glowy-eyes, and impressive editing hiding the transition from puppet to stunt actor.
So, is The Seventh Curse worth a watch?
If not for the fantastic skeleton (I seriously cannot state enough how great it is), I'd say no. I think there are other films that accomplish the same things this does with more interesting plots AND more fun. However, you guys gotta see the skeleton. You HAVE to see the skeleton. So yes, watch it.
I have seen many a horror film in my day; Americain, Canadian, European, Japanese, Korean and Hong Kong. The Seven Curses brings cheesey eighties horror to new heights for gore and blood. Not to say that this is anything remotely scary, but a couple of scenes are brutally gory. Best part of the film: check it out in slow-motion in the scene where they drive the jeep through the worm-tribe's hut and up the steps of the temple. Just after they drive the jeep through the hut, one of the extras is a little slow on his feet and gets PLOWED by the jeep! I can't believe they used that take! OUCH! Anyways, if you're a fan of cheesey horror, and like gore and splatter-fests, check it out. If you like doing the whole MST3000 thing, check it out. If you're a big fan of horror, check it out. Otherwise, find something else to watch...
THE SEVENTH CURSE is an unusual little film from Hong Kong, set in Thailand for the most part and featuring plenty of action and very little plot. It's a dark horror/fantasy that has its basis in the queasy Hong Kong horrors like BLACK MAGIC and HEX, as the central character discovers that he's been put under a 'blood spell' which spells imminent death unless he can kill the evil wizard who put him under it.
This is the most popular of the Chinese film series featuring the character of 'Wisely', a pipe-smoking professor who fights evil in his spare time. Chow Yun-Fat essays the role here, but as this was before he really hit the big time, he doesn't have a great deal of screen time, although he does make the most of when he appears and that bit at the climax is a hoot.
Chin Siu-Ho is a rather stolid lead, and the storyline gets saddled with an ultra-irritating Maggie Cheung as a reporter who tags along for the ride. But the supporting cast is much better: Joyce Godenzi (EASTERN CONDORS) shows up alongside Sibelle Hu, Kara Hui, Yasuaki Kurata, and best of all one of my favourite Hong Kong stars, Dick Wei, who ISN'T cast as the bad guy for a change! Seeing Wei rip up the screen on the side of good is a real treat, and makes this a film impossible to dislike.
Elsewhere, THE SEVENTH CURSE is a film fuelled by effects-enhanced mayhem, featuring all manner of bizarre creations. There's the usual army of black-clad cult members, some acrobatic Buddhist monks, a couple of living skeleton monsters, and creatures that look like the alien from ALIEN in both baby and adult form. The effects are rubbery but fun, and there's plenty of artery-spraying gore for the horror fans to enjoy. Alongside ALIEN, a big inspiration here seems to be RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, as THE SEVENTH CURSE has the same kind of madcap, action-heavy exotic adventure. It may not be high art, but it is a lot of fun.
This is the most popular of the Chinese film series featuring the character of 'Wisely', a pipe-smoking professor who fights evil in his spare time. Chow Yun-Fat essays the role here, but as this was before he really hit the big time, he doesn't have a great deal of screen time, although he does make the most of when he appears and that bit at the climax is a hoot.
Chin Siu-Ho is a rather stolid lead, and the storyline gets saddled with an ultra-irritating Maggie Cheung as a reporter who tags along for the ride. But the supporting cast is much better: Joyce Godenzi (EASTERN CONDORS) shows up alongside Sibelle Hu, Kara Hui, Yasuaki Kurata, and best of all one of my favourite Hong Kong stars, Dick Wei, who ISN'T cast as the bad guy for a change! Seeing Wei rip up the screen on the side of good is a real treat, and makes this a film impossible to dislike.
Elsewhere, THE SEVENTH CURSE is a film fuelled by effects-enhanced mayhem, featuring all manner of bizarre creations. There's the usual army of black-clad cult members, some acrobatic Buddhist monks, a couple of living skeleton monsters, and creatures that look like the alien from ALIEN in both baby and adult form. The effects are rubbery but fun, and there's plenty of artery-spraying gore for the horror fans to enjoy. Alongside ALIEN, a big inspiration here seems to be RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, as THE SEVENTH CURSE has the same kind of madcap, action-heavy exotic adventure. It may not be high art, but it is a lot of fun.
The Seventh Curse (German title) can easily be the Hongkong Version of Indiana Jones.That means more crazy fun and splatter. Have you ever seen a blood-sucking monster embryo fighting against an other old monster?If not, than take a look!
Crazy and very fast-paced Hong Kong action/adventure/fantasy/horror/comedy that seems to dip its toe into almost every genre besides musical.
There's even a cop/crime element at the start, small amounts of romance, and a scene that feels like a riff on a Rambo sequel where it almost becomes like a war film.
It feels like it changes gears/genres every five minutes, and that's part of its charm. It always remain fun and fast paced, no matter what it's trying to do.
Of course there's not much by way of a coherent story or great characters, the fantastic Chow Yun-Fat's presence is unfortunately exaggerated by the poster (he's really not the protagonist), and honestly I wished it could have been a little bit longer, because with a fast pace and a 78 minute runtime, it's over very quickly.
But if you like movies that pull off tackling numerous genres at once, this is pretty easy to recommend.
There's even a cop/crime element at the start, small amounts of romance, and a scene that feels like a riff on a Rambo sequel where it almost becomes like a war film.
It feels like it changes gears/genres every five minutes, and that's part of its charm. It always remain fun and fast paced, no matter what it's trying to do.
Of course there's not much by way of a coherent story or great characters, the fantastic Chow Yun-Fat's presence is unfortunately exaggerated by the poster (he's really not the protagonist), and honestly I wished it could have been a little bit longer, because with a fast pace and a 78 minute runtime, it's over very quickly.
But if you like movies that pull off tackling numerous genres at once, this is pretty easy to recommend.
Did you know
- TriviaUnusual for the time, in Cantonese language versions of the film, the Ni Kuang wrap around scenes were seemingly shot in sync sound rather than dubbed in post. Ni Kuang's character is actually speaking Mandarin.
- Alternate versionsThis film has at least 3 different endings in every of its release. In the original theatrical release, after the monster-killing climax, there's another by-the-pool-party scene (same pool as seen in the beginning of the film, but is supposed to be another party) in which Maggie Cheung's character (kind of) makes up with Dr Yuen. Then we cut to the original party scene that starts off the movie with Dr Yuen, Wisely, Ai Hong (Ni Kuang - the real author of the two pulp-novel series) and a bunch of beautiful girls. As the author finishes telling the movie's story to the girls, one of them asks if he has another adventure story to tell. The author replies, "Well, we have to see what exciting adventures Dr Yuen and Wisely are going to have." The two main characters come into frame, toast and finish their drink. Freeze frame and comes the music and end credits. In the first video release available in Hong Kong during the late 1980s-early 1990s, the last two scenes were completely cut out, so as the very last close-up of Bachu, the native girl. Instead it is replaced with a two-shot of her and her lover, while the end credits rolls halfly over its freeze frame, halfly over black. Also in that video release, the native girl's nude scenes were partly censored with the explicit body parts blacked out to make the film more "family-oriented". In the DVD edition, the second last scene in the original theatrical release is cut out, whilst the final scene is retained but with end credits rolling over. The original dialogues are replaced with the ending music. One would suspect the reason for the last two scene being cut out in later releases is because they drag on for quite a while, though narratively it is not a bad attempt as the two scenes mirror the beginning of the movie.
- ConnectionsFollowed by La légende de la perle d'or (1987)
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