The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974)
Runtime: 86 minutes
Directed by: Roy Ward Baker/Cheh Chang
Starring: Peter Cushing, David Chiang, Robin Stewart, Shih Szu, Julie Ege
From: Hammer/Shaw
Hammer Studios. Shaw Brothers Studios. Two great tastes that taste great together, right? Well, not exactly, but I can still say this is good. I wish that this collaboration between two awesome studios (awesome in their own ways, for sure) would have produced an unforgettable classic, but instead it is “only” good, and a cult classic to boot.
The plot: there's an opening which explains how Dracula ends up in China. After that, it's 1904 and Professor Van Helsing is in the country, and he is asked to help some siblings in dealing with the titular golden vampires. To fill time and add some romance, there is also Van Helsing's son, with the uber British name of Leyland. There's martial arts and vampires which have a skin tone (to borrow a phrase) of Mrs. Voohees' decapitated head in Friday the 13th Part 2.
I feel that in modern times this film works best as a campy piece of entertainment; it is easy to nitpick various things and yet it is still fun to watch, this mix of action and horror, where it's the action that stands out, although there are still a few spine-chilling moments. The biggest asset for the film is not the fact that there are KUNG FU VAMPIRES (although that is astounding) but rather the presence of Peter Cushing, who is always a delight to see on screen. Even though he was an old man at the time, he wasn't entirely inactive when it came to dealing with those vampires... regrettably, he doesn't do any kung fu himself. In addition, I only noticed once the trademark of the Jiangshi (Chinese vampire), which is hopping. Then again I do understand how it may look goofy to see vampires hopping about with their arms outstretched.
While each studio on its own would make plenty of films better than this, it doesn't mean people shouldn't give this curio a shot.
No comments:
Post a Comment