Heaven and Hell (1979)

A warrior of heaven (Lee I-min) is banished to earth and embarks on a mythical journey among men and into the deepest bowls of hell where he is called upon to help five lost souls fight their way out.

Heaven and Hell marks one of Chang Cheh’s more unusual martial arts films, one that unevenly presents fantastic and horrific imagery, musical numbers, outrageous costumes and weapons, and different martial arts styles depicted in various periods in China’s history. The film is a sprawling mini-epic that plays more like a highlight reel of Shaw Brothers movies than a single, cohesive picture.

Many of SB’s top stars make mostly brief appearances in a wide variety of scenarios that put the studio’s production facilities to the test. The film goes from cloudy heights to a blend of surreal and “modern day” sets straight out of a musical like An American in Paris, and ultimately to a dank and thorough representation of hell and its many tortures that would even impress Dante. The one common thread is underrated martial arts star Lee I-min (Ninja Checkmate) who plays a heavenly warrior tossed out for aiding two repressed lovers. He is reincarnated as a taxi driver who again aids two lovers on earth who are played by one-time couple, the late Alexander Fu Sheng and Jenny Tseng. If the shock of going from a costumed fantasy to a modern setting (circa 1979) is hard to swallow, then accepting the even crazier scene changes to follow becomes near impossible. The film briefly turns into an honest-to-God musical as Fu Sheng and Tseng sing to each other as Kong Do, playing a gangster threatens them. Most of this takes place in a starkly surreal setting with Fu Sheng taking on color-coordinated and knife-wielding gangsters who perform dance moves among their martial arts. In an unexplained contrast, a mid-climax occurs on a city street as Fu Sheng and Lee I-min battle more of Kong Do’s thugs led by prolific kung fu villain Johnny Wang Lung-wei.

The viewer should be thoroughly unbalanced by the time that I-min arrives in hell after taking a bullet for Fu Sheng. He hooks up with a gal as played by the attractive Lam Jan-kei and together they discover that hell is made up of a series of mini-hells designed to torture perpetrators of specific crimes. For instance, alcoholics must drink from an endless supply of booze, gamblers have their fingers cut off and swallow liquefied gold. But like most bureaucracies, hell is imperfect and sometimes gets the sinners mixed up with each other and even with lost saints. As thieves and beggars share the fate of lying in a field and being repeatedly sliced up by large plows, I-min and Lam get a second chance when the Buddha arrives to charge I-min with the task of locating four other lost souls and joining them in fighting their way out of hell. Chang Cheh’s signature depiction of brotherly bonds engages as Sun Chien, Phillip Kwok, Lo Meng, and Bruce Tong join Lee I-min in fighting the monstrous denizens of hell who turn out to be the people who wronged each of them in their past lives.

If Heaven and Hell’s story and oddball mix of genres were not so scattered and confusing for the average viewer, it would be camp classic. Even so, the film has much to offer the more adventurous and forgiving audiences. Roles by top martial arts stars like David Chiang and Kara Hui are small and disappointing. But Fu Sheng easily dominates the first half of the film with some great kung fu action that almost makes up for the cheesy dubbed singing that he’s forced to lip-sync to. The second half of the film belongs to the Venoms stars with standout performances from a thoroughly ripped Lo Meng, a charismatic Phillip Kwok, and a super-kicking Sun Chien. They all sport great costumes, but the prize goes to Mack Daddy Chiang Sheng wearing a white, feathery ensemble and glitter on his face. Their combat which is choreographed by Robert Tai and Lu Feng who also appears in a small role as Kwok’s nemesis features the usual bizarre weapons, gratuitous blood-spurting, acrobatics, and sweaty bare-chests one comes to expect from a Venom’s flick. The highlight is their fight against the demonic guards while balancing on dozens of sword tips.

Anyone who enjoys Chang Cheh’s Venoms era action should be mostly pleased with Heaven and Hell. There is more than enough gaudy excess from the many humorously macabre tortures depicted in hell, the head-cleaving action, and the colorful and extravagant art direction. The mix of modern, ancient, and supernatural environments provides plenty of variety. Yet these very elements will make it difficult for anyone not already familiar with Shaw Brothers films to take it all in. The musical portions of the films do the most harm as they are simply sappy and add nothing to the film’s camp value. If not for the quality kung fu action performed by some great stars, the film would solely be an oddity to gape at rather than enjoy.