Buddha Power. I really enjoyed this though
I noticed that reviews for it seem divided between those who found it boring
and those who thought it had merit. Much of it takes place in Thailand (though
called Nanying in the film so not to hurt the innocent) where it becomes a
battle between good and evil, between a Buddhist monk and an evil male witch
doctor. It is on one level another one of those Hong Kong films in the genre
of "Don't Visit Southeast Asia", but it feels much more serious than most
of the others. At times it almost seems like a documentary about spells and
counter-spells and how to do them. A How to Book for prospective witches.
They cover the Oil Carcass Spell, the Worm Spell, the Split Head Spell, the
Raising Demon Child Spell, the Lemon Spell and others. To viewers it might
sound like nonsense but living in Thailand one is surrounded by a belief
in spirits - evil and good. There are the small Spirit Houses with offerings
of food all over, people wear amulets to ward off evil spirits, get intricate
tattoos for the same reason, blame their bad luck on evil spirits, try to
get merit for good deeds and visit temples to pray for good luck. There is
a strong belief by many in ghosts. In my condo building after someone has
died, I have seen them bring in a phalanx of monks to chant the ghost away.
There are spell makers for love, heartbreak, impotence among others. And
revenge. This film is about revenge.
It is directed by Kuei Chih-hung who after
years of action and exploitation films for the Shaw Brothers found popularity
with a spate of horror films - Hex, Hex vs Witchcraft, Corpse Mania, Hex after
Hex, Curse of Evil, Boxer's Omen and this one. For whatever reason curses,
spells and maggots were big in Hong Kong. This film has them all. It takes
an interesting angle on the world of the supernatural as it begins with what
seems like a regular murder investigation that morphs into a series of spells
and mishaps. In the opening credits they Introduce Hussein Hassan as a witch
doctor from Malaysia. So, this is the real deal!
Don't Go Breaking Her Heart. Especially
if it is a Thai woman with access to a witch doctor. Maybe her insurance covers
it because it gets a bit expensive. But it starts in Hong Kong. The dead
body of a young girl is found in the park, all rotted and infested with insects.
And a nine-inch spike driven into her head. Bobby Wong (Melvin Wong) is put
in charge of the investigation and with good police work they determine that
her killer is her father. And he confesses. And is sentenced to hang. But
he asks to speak with Wong and in that conversation tells him that he was
under a spell and he tells his not so pretty story.
He went to Bangkok on a group tour, found
an attractive girl and invited her to Pattaya where she goes topless on the
beach. He promises to come back on a certain day and of course doesn't. At
the airport she gives him an amulet to wear. Filled with terrors though unknown
to him. She had already prepared for heartbreak and revenge by going to Magusu
the Neighborhood Witch Doctor and having the amulet made. Clearly, this woman
had suffered heartbreak before. When he doesn't go back a lot of weird shit
starts happening - the amulet leaks blood that then becomes bristly hair,
he thinks his daughter will kill him, she's on top of a cabinet, with a knife,
eating raw pork liver and so he does the natural thing - takes her to a park
and with a hammer, drives in the spike.
His story intrigues Wong enough to take
off time and go to Thailand. Big mistake. Leave well enough alone. In a wonderful
scene he goes to a female witch who with incantations and a few helpers contacts
the spirits to tell him what spell was put on the killer. The Oil Carcass
Spell. Probably a favorite of many of you and it is a real thing if you Google
it. On a full moon night all you need to do is go to a morgue, find a dead
pregnant woman and extract oil from her eyes. It is Nam Man Plai. All nicely
shown. Wong hires a powerful Buddhist monk (Choi Kwok-hing) to battle with
the witch - and they have a cool long-distance fight of spells - at one point
when he is losing, Magusa opens a barrel with blood and fetuses in it and
drinks it. Now on sale at your local pharmacy here. It all gets quite grody
with pails of maggots and a bat coming out of a mouth. Magusa turns his attention
to Wong and his wife. Good stuff, beautifully lensed with great interiors
and a lot of Bangkok and the Chao Phraya River getting some great shots.
