SAGA OF THE PHOENIX – 88 Films Blu-Ray Review: A Niche Fantasy Classic That Still Flies High

Lam Ngai-Choi and Yuen Biao’s The Peacock King was one of my earlier viewings many, MANY years ago on VHS. My memory of that film is so vague too, and I can’t speak much on it apart from my memory of it as one of the more odd viewing experiences that I can share.

Needless to say, it warrants a rewatch while 88 Films makes its customer base whole with the film’s 1989 sequel, Saga Of The Phoenix, rejoining Yuen with actress Gloria Yip, along with a band of recasts including Hiroshi Abe in one of his earlier stakes in Hong Kong cinema.

As the logline briefly tells it, The Holy Maiden of Hell, Ashura (Yip) “possesses immense power that can destroy humanity.” We initially catch up with Ashura at a monestary resorting to her usual mischievous nature, blaspheming a set of prayer pillars before a dark cloud looms, resulting in the rise of stone creatures and demons who target her.

It’s not long before Peacock (Yuen) and Lucky Fruit (Abe) show up along with a trio of warrior monks to save her life before bringing her back before the spirit world’s High Abbott, Jikku (Shintaro Katsu) to await her judgement and be sentenced to imprisonment in a Buddhist statue. Determined to maintain her freedom and making her plea to Jikku, Ahsura is granted seven days among humanity with strong assurance of her care by Peacock and Lucky Fruit to make sure she stays out of trouble and not cause armageddon.

That’s the wind-up-and-the-pitch for a story that soon takes you through spirit realm’s underbelly and the streets of Hong Kong, reuniting Ashura with pint-sized trouble-making goblin, Tricky Ghost, and teetering to mitigate a human world they’re not at all accustomed to. In parallel, as our heroic monks work to keep up, they are soon thrust into a whirlwind of adventure as the High Concubine (Ngai Suet) sets her sights on Ashura’s qi for her own nefarious means against the world.

My first experience with Lam’s work was Story Of Ricky on DVD I think possibly around 2005 or 2006, and prior to that with The Peacock King (little did I know how important that film would be to me). This was long before to getting to see The Cat for its arrival on Blu-Ray from 88 Films and also featuring the beautiful Yip in a glimmering lead role.

With these in mind, I can assert that Lam’s eye for the colorful, exotic and equally grotesque bodes for an even-handed look at what lies firmly in his wheelhouse. To this, Saga Of The Phoenix is as much of an acquired taste as was his other work. An adaptation of a popular Japanese manga, the film is an alluring mix of late-80s fantasy thrills, horror and comedy – the kind that only OG special effects can bring to life.

Yip’s role is as irksome from the very start, and it earns our sympathy from then on, as does the beloved Tricky Ghost through puppetry and stop-motion animation. Biao is a frontrunner for a lot of fans upon hitting play, which makes for a bit of a bewildering watch as his character is sidelined for most of the film, leaving Abe to carry the film as its dashing lead protagonist until the final act. And not for nothing either, as Abe, freshly transitioning from modeling to acting around this point in time, certainly earns his keep.

Our characters are later joined by Chin (Loletta Lee) who stumbles upon Tricky Ghost who at this point is turned into a statue by the High Concubine during one of the film’s first major battles. Chin’s brother, Tan (Laurence Lau) is a crazed science loon who has his own janky device which can somehow transport people to other parts of the globe. There isn’t much else to him either, aside from wanting to torture Tricky Ghost after Ashura revives him, and managing to finagle two warrior monks into changing out of their battle-worn garments and into swimsuits. Straight goofy shit.

The final battle is as big as you’d hope, bookending the last in a spate of sequences coordinated by Yuen Bun. It involves a lot of wirework and special visual effects, and little of the signature martial arts choreo you would normally enjoy if you’re typically in the market for a Yuen Biao action flick. The ending of the film feels more abrupt than anything after several characters unceremoniously perish, and with an exit untouched by anything significant in poignance or depth. It’s just, well, an ending.

Saga Of The Phoenix is the kind of film more suited as a rainy day digital rental or purchase. Granted, the film bodes well with characteristics as the kind of throwback that merits a nod to old school creativity in things like costume and set design and special effects, and it’s worth noting the measureable success and popularity this film and its predecessor garnered outside of Hong Kong, particularly with a title based on a Japanese IP.

Indeed though, Saga Of The Phoenix is not really a major keeper if your tastes are similar to mine, which undoubtedly makes what 88 Films did to put together this limited edition release something worth appreciating, and for a film debuting on Blu-Ray for the first time ever, at that.

There isn’t much to go by online as far as research goes, so it’s awesome to get a 40 page pamphlet about the film, as well as a featured disc commentary from the likes of F.J. DeSanto and Frank Djeng to help carry viewers over the runtime. The disc also offers a cool gallery and classic trailer, as well as a dose of footage from the film’s Japanese cut that was removed from the Hong Kong version, in addition to the 22-minute interview, “Saga of Golden Harvest – The International Connection” in which Albert Lee talks up his career, how he came into the industry and film production, Golden Harvest’s distribution strategy and more.

Indeed, 88 Films’s packaging of Saga Of The Phoenix is a worthwhile one. It’s an acquired taste, but if you’re a completist and love Biao, Abe or Yip, or Lam and any of his bizarre cinematic oddities, you can find the film available now at MVDShop.com.