SHAW-SHOCK: HORROR COLLECTION VOLUME 2 Brings More Shaw Brothers Chillers Home

It used to be rough going for fans of Hong Kong cinema.

Some fight films would get play on Saturday afternoon television, but we often had to rely on bootleg connections if we wanted to catch glimpses of Hong Kong's less action-forward genre offerings. My connection was named Randy, and he sold me magic from the trunk of his car before he was eventually murdered. Like I said, it used to be rough.

We have it much better these days, as numerous boutique home video labels are releasing high-def releases, complete with extras and slick packaging, of Hong Kong movies previously lost to time and terrible VHS transfers. Australia's Via Vision is one such label via their Imprint Asia brand, and their latest release is a three-film box-set called Shaw-Shock: Shaw Brothers Horror Collection Volume 2.

While Volume 1 features three films that are graphic and grisly in their horrors, this set puts the focus on more ghostly terrors. First up is 1960's The Enchanted Shadow and its story of a haunted temple that's home to a deadly spirit.

Ning Caichen (Chao Lei) is a scholar on the road who takes shelter one night in an old, abandoned temple. He's seeking quiet, but he's not bothered to find a swordsman named Yan Chixia (Yang Chih-ching), who's looking for the same. They keep to themselves, but Ning soon meets a third resident of the temple, a beautiful young woman named Nie Xiaoqian (Betty Lo Ti), and the pair discover an irresistible romance building between them. The bad news is she's a ghost, tasked with luring him in so that an elder demon can devour his blood.

The good news? There's a slim chance Ning can defeat the demon, rescue the girl, and live happily ever after.

Li Han-hsiang's 1960 feature The Enchanting Shadow is based on the same classical tale as 1987's A Chinese Ghost Story, but while the bones of the story are easily identifiable between them, the execution is far different. Li's film is far more subdued, an atmospheric ghost story about the weight of desire, and what it lacks in big set-pieces, it makes up for in atmosphere and beauty.

The film runs a brief 83 minutes, but the love story is allowed to breathe while danger and threats hum just beyond the periphery. Those evils finally cut loose in the third act, and Li shows a deft hand at crafting nightmarish visuals and horror-heavy sequences without losing sight of the emotional connection at its core.

Imprint Asia's new release is presented in full-frame HD and looks good. There's no restoration work here, but the release still benefits from Li's striking visuals, colorful palate, and smart use of shadows and light. The film was shot on Shaw Brothers' studio lot, and the location is used to great effect. The disc's supplements include two trailers and the following.

- *NEW* Commentary by author Stefan Hammond and Asian film expert Arne Venema
- *NEW* Film Historian Paul Fonoroff on The Enchanting Shadow [13:59] - Fonoroff recalls seeing the film as a young man in Singapore, and he talks about the filmmakers and the production. His enthusiasm and constant grins give him an Eddie Deezen look, which adds to the piece (if you know who Deezen is).
- Boundless Life [15:35] - A featurette on director Han Hsiang Li

The second film in the Shaw-Shock Volume 2 boxset is 1971's The Bride from Hell, which suggests it's probably not a good idea to marry a woman possessed by a murder victim.

You'll never know everything about your partner, but it's worth getting to know them a bit before sealing the deal and getting married. It's advice that Yun-peng (Yang Fang) should have followed after stumbling into a young woman's bed chamber without an invite. He sees Anu (Margaret Hsing-hui) naked and decides to take the honorable route of marrying her before learning anything about her. Like her family history, her hobbies, or that she's actually the ghost of a woman who was murdered and raped several years prior by members of his own family.

Oops.

Chou Hsu-chiang's early 70s chiller is a low-key affair, due both to its low budget and a pretty simple script. Boy marries girl, boy discovers girl is a vengeful ghost, dead girl gets revenge before being vanquished -- it's a tale as old as time. There's a lot of chatter here, but when Anu's ghostly side is allowed to come out and float about the screen, the film finds an atmospheric look and colorful vibe that works well, despite budgetary limitations.

The film's never graphic, despite the brutality of a rape/revenge setup -- posthumous sexual assault is icky, y'all -- and we don't actually see any of the violence. It's the same for Anu's revenge, as we get sequences with the men being stalked and terrified to the point of their bloodless demises with a twist. It's also home to a lightly comic tone. culminating in a strange scene with the villagers trying to burn her alive until a god intervenes to say, basically, "hey, wait, let her get some crazy vengeance first..."

The film is presented in HD, and again, it looks very good. The Shaw Brothers studio lot provides a suitable setting while widescreen framing and colorful production design add visual weight. The extras are minimal but include a trailer and the following.

- *NEW* Commentary by Asian film expert Arne Venema and filmmaker Domini Ting

The final film in Imprint Asia's three-movie set is 1974's The Ghost Lovers, which delivers another tale of supernatural romance gone awry.

Song Lian-hua (Li Ching) is awaiting her husband to be, a man named Han (Lam Wai-tiu), whom she was betrothed to when they were just children. She's on the clock, though, as she's fallen ill -- and she dies before Han arrives. Other men soon start showing up claiming to be Han in the hopes of securing an inheritance, but Song's guardian has a special interest in making sure both the truth and love itself win out in the end.

And yes, that means ghosts.

The Ghost Lovers is a solid enough blend of romance and supernatural elements, but it never quite delivers greatness on either count. It's still engaging, though, as shifty players are dealt with, a tangentially invested couple entertain, and our core couple come ever closer. Ultimately, this is a tame, relatively quiet little tale.

The most interesting talking point, however, is in regard to director Shin Sang-ok. A South Korean filmmaker working in Hong Kong is already interesting, but add in that he was kidnapped by North Korean operatives and held for a decade (before escaping) for the purpose of making propaganda films.

And then years later he would go on to direct 1995's 3 Ninjas Knuckle Up! What a journey.

The film is presented in HD and looks fantastic. Sharp details, bright colors, and some enchanting cinematography are brought to life in beautiful widescreen. The disc features the following special features.

- *NEW* Commentary by critic/filmmaker Justin Decloux - This is an expectedly fun and informative commentary track, as Decloux is a fun and knowledgeable film lover.
- *NEW* Film Scholar Wayne Wong on The Ghost Lovers [20:12] - Wong offers up a detailed look into the film's production, from its South Korean director to the themes at play through specific scenes.