The Ghost Of Yotsuya (1959)

A samurai Iemon and his conniving servant Naosuke commit multiple murders to secure the affections of two sisters, Iwa and Sode. Iemon soon tires of Iwa, and given the opportunity to marry a wealthy man’s daughter, he removes the inconvenience of an existing wife by poisoning her and slashing to death the masseur he’d bribed to seduce her. The two bodies are nailed to opposite sides of a shutter and sunk in a pool. Both victims’ disfigured ghosts return to haunt the two murderers, leading them to further crimes and, ultimately, retribution.

Classic Japanese horror/ghost story from the late 50’s based on a kabuki play which has stood the test of time very well and still has the power to give anyone the chills whilst watching it. Excellent visual effects throughout and even has some great horror effects too such as showing a just-poisoned wife catching a glimpse of her hideously disfigured face in a mirror. That has to be one of most striking horror images of all time. The story takes it’s time for actual ghosts to appear but once they do they are a sight to behold. The director Nobuo Nakagawa wanted to build the mood and atmosphere of the movie by showing how low the protagonist would go before retribution comes his way. Excellent acting by all the cast. If you want to watch a brilliant adaptation of one of Japan’s well known ghost stories then this is the one to watch. Recommended.

Some clips from the movie below:

Sadako’s Rating: 4 stars out of 5

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Dynamite Warrior (2007)

After seeing his parents viciously murdered by a mysterious, tattoo-covered killer, a grieving young man named Zieng vows to avenge their tragic deaths. When Zieng learns that the murderous maniac who slew his parents also runs with a nefarious group of cattle rustlers, the righteous martial artist’s mission of vengeance takes on the larger task of stopping the group’s illegal activities and ensuring that each head of cattle is delivered back to its rightful owner.

I usually quite like Thai action/martial arts movies but this one just isn’t good enough and hasn’t anything really to grab and hold your attention. The plot I found fairly dull about a young man seeking revenge on a dark wizard that killed his parents. The acting is generally awful and too camp and the fighting scenes involve too much wire work and are repetitive. However, not all of the fights are poor and one or two sequences saved this movie from being a total disaster but on saying that I really did want this movie to finish as I was starting to get bored. There are far better Thai martial arts movies out there for serious fans. Only watch this is you have time to waste otherwise don’t bother.

Sadako’s Rating: 2 stars out of 5

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The Untold Story (1993)

When rotted human remains wash up on a beach, the police are dispatched to investigate. Their search leads them to the Eight Immortals Restaurant, with it’s local proprietor, Wong Chi Hang. But it seems Wong has ownership of the restaurant without proof, which leads one cop, above all his bumbling peers, to think there’s more to Wong than he’s willing to tell. As their investigation progresses, the cops find themselves on a missing persons case: the man who originally ran the restaurant and his entire family have just gone missing without a trace. The only man with knowledge of what happened to that family is Wong, who very well may be responsible for the disappearances of employees too. What the cops must uncover will be an unlikely horror they couldn’t anticipate, from a very dangerous man capable of doing even more evil acts, in the one thing no one had even considered…

Famed for being one of the most shocking Asian horror movies, “The Untold Story” is surprisingly not as gory as one would expect with that reputation; however, this is not saying that the movie doesn’t live to the hype, as it is definitely a shocking experience although for a very different reason.

The movie features a couple of pretty graphic and sick moments, that makes this movie stand out in its genre. It’s one of those movies that got banned in numerous countries at the time of its release and is heavily cut in others. Not that it’s the most nastiest movie around but it does have its moments that will make some people’s stomach turn.

The first half would make you think that there’s nothing grisly about this movie – in fact it’s pretty light hearted and pictures a comical view of the Macau cops but all that changes in the second half when the horrific stuff appears which includes the shocking murders of several children. “The Untold Story” is often hard to watch, but it’s definitely never boring, and while crude, the portrait of sadistic violence it makes of the crime is captivating in a way that few horror movies are. While this is definitely one of the best CAT III movies of its time, it’s not without flaws.

This movie is now a classic of Hong Kong cinema, and essential viewing for those interested in the infamous exploitation movies rated as CAT III. It’s not a movie for everyone, but if you have an interest for gritty tales of serial killers, “The Untold Story” is a must-see.

Sadako’s Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

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Human Pork Chop (2001)

The movie begins with the gruesome discovery of the bones and body parts of a missing woman. The police arrest the top suspects and drag them in for questioning. After a little bullying and persuasion, we are gradually told in flashback how the poor victim met her awful fate. The girl in question was a drug-addicted prostitute who foolishly stole some money from a vicious pimp. When discovered, she is kidnapped, imprisoned, humiliated, degraded, tortured, and finally killed.

Based on a real life murder in Hong Kong dubbed The Hello Kitty case, this is another notorious HK CAT III horror which has a reputation about it. It’s not that it’s got a lot of gore about it or anything like that, just that this poor woman gets humiliated by thugs in the most despicable of ways, and nobody is around to help her out of her misery. Even though the torture of the woman is shown in a graphic, barely watchable manner, it never really exploits the maltreatments, which saves the movie from being just a piece of junk. Emily Kwan plays the unfortunate woman who manages to generate a fair bit of sympathy for her wretched character. Because the movie manages to make the viewer care for the woman, it even becomes a tragic story.  All in all, the movie is an unpleasant experience – people who are easily offended should not see this but if you enjoy watching a movie with a person getting mistreated, humiliated, degraded, tormented, burned, tortured, murdered, and finally chopped up for 90 mins, then this movie just might be your cup of tea.

No trailer I’m afraid

Sadako’s Rating: 3 stars out of 5

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