The Shaw Bros have an endless line of classic kung-fu films. Every single one of them is excellent in their own way.  However later in the Shaw line, they started mixing it up with Hammer Films. This of course added  bit of horror in with the classic kung-fu brilliance. Films like The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires were born out of this cross pollination. In Human Lanterns Shaw and Hammer once again joined forces going after the slasher trend that was taking off in the States.This lead to one of the most bizarre and completely gnarly Shaw bros films of them all.

The result is a incendiary narrative that is a complete must-see – and an outright tale of revenge. All while also encompassing kung-fu action and knots of horror throughout. The killer in the film fits in nicely with Hannibal and the even elegantly displays his tableaus in a similar fashion. This killer very much does the same thing. This leads to a beautiful and terrifying portrait that is very much an exact illustration of the film’s title itself. Director, Chung Sung does a masterful job of creating a film that equally represents the interweaving of the two genres at once.

In Human Lanterns revenge is taken on kung fu masters by creating actual lanterns out of the flesh of their relatives. Not nice, right? Of course, this leads to a bloody amount of revenge that comes from the two kung-fu masters as well as the serial killer whose sadistic approach proves that he is very much in control of the situation by usage of methods that would easily fit a David Fincher film. In fact there are sections in Human Lanters that surprisingly act as moments from both Seven.

Lieh Lo and Tony Liu both play their roles majestically. Each is able to switch on and off the menace, drama and kung-fu easily between each beat. These two are the very balance of the film and utilize a cat and mouse frequency in order to bring the entire thing home.

I loved any time that Shaw Bros would step outside of themselves. It brings to mind the tale of Opium and the Kung-Fu Masters. In that film, they explored opium addiction and the downfall of a certain cultural mentality due to the introduction of drugs or other stimuli that pulled away from focus. In this case focus of being kung-fu masters and protectors of their village.

The official synopsis for Human Lanters goes like this:

Lung Shu Ai (Tony Liu), a pompous and wealthy man, hires Chao Fang (Lieh Lo) to make a special lantern for an annual lantern festival. Chao remembers losing his woman to Lung, so he plots revenge on the man and his loved ones.

The special features for Human Lanterns include:

HD transfer from original negative/ Audio Commentary by Kenneth Brorsson and Phil Gillon from the Podcast on Fire Network/ A Shaw Story – An interview with Susan Shaw/ The Beauty and Beasts – An interview with Linda Chu/ Original Trailer/ Reversible sleeve including original Hong Kong poster artwork/ Brand new slipcase with artwork from R.P. “Kung Fu Bob” O’Brien/Includes full poster of Human Lanterns artwork.

Human Lantern seethes with its mean-spirited menace while also maintaining that edge of beautiful wardrobe and set pieces that Shaw Bros films are famous for. The gore in the film is top-notch – each of the serial killer’s slayings will burn themselves in your memory. The cross-pollination of kung-fu and a completely harrowing backing of very real and freshly explored slasher horror is an exciting thing to see mix together here. Human Lanterns  is a gory affair with plenty of impressive narrative to accompany the horrors throughout. If you are a Shaw Bros fan and a slasher fan this is one that you really have to explore for your first time or for a much-needed re watch with the impressive blu-ray transfer.

Human Lanterns is due out on limited edition blu-ray beginning June 7. You can order it right HERE.