Martial arts movies and horror don’t initially seem like genres that would blend well together, but on closer inspection, there are a whole host of films combining the two styles to awesomely cheesy effects. The most genre-defining martial arts movies focus on themes like revenge, perseverance, and the power of the human spirit as channeled through hand-to-hand combat. When crossed over with horror concepts like blood, gore, and supernatural entities, the resulting chaos often needs to be seen to be believed.
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Admittedly, most martial arts horror movies thrive on their novelty above all else, in many cases enjoyable in a more ironic sense thanks to their bizarre storylines and questionable low-budget special effects. That doesn’t mean that they aren’t worth watching as popcorn flicks best enjoyed with friends, stacking up with some of the greatest so-bad-they’re-good movies of all time. From international B-movies to Hollywood blockbusters, martial arts-focused horror movies are all one of a kind.
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10 Ninja III: The Domination
1984
One of the most bizarre genre blends ever conceived, Ninja III: The Domination mixes the scares of possession films like The Exorcist with classic ninja action, the two mixing about as well as oil and water. The movie centers on a typical 80s aerobics instructor and dancer who gets possessed by the spirit of a ninja after a close encounter with one. Following the film’s thesis statement, “Only a ninja can destroy a ninja“, a second shinobi assassin shows up to exorcize the specter.
Bearing no real relation to the previous two Ninja films (aside from the presence of actor Shô Kosugi, who plays a different character in every entry), Ninja III: The Domination is enjoyable straight from the beginning. From the hilariously unrealistic romance between Lucinda Dickey’s Christine and the cop investigating the ninja attack to the audacious special effects and ninja battles, the film provides a goofy romp through multiple genres. Ninja III: The Domination is worth watching for the goofy seduction scene in which Christine pours a can of V8 down her chest for her lover to lap up alone.
9 Robo Vampire
1988
One of the most blatant martial arts movie ripoffs of a classic American blockbuster, Robo Vampire is amazingly cheap, both in terms of filmmaking and creativity. Stealing the set-up to the beloved sci-fi action movie classic RoboCop, Robo Vampire begins with a deceased police officer being brought back into service from beyond the grave in a startlingly similar cybernetic suit. The film makes a hard left turn from its RoboCop forgery with the introduction of a deadly horde of vampires, which the newly rebuilt supercop will have to defeat.
Robo Vampire is the king of bizarre plot tangents. The main antagonists are a group of drug runners utilizing Chinese hopping vampires to move their product, not to mention the help of a terrifying “Vampire Beast”, essentially an excuse to use a cheap gorilla suit the production had on-hand. That’s not even to mention the RoboCop lookalike’s ghostly girlfriend, furious that her love is being prevented from moving into the afterlife with her. With the production stylings of a Spirit Halloween store and an achingly confusing narrative, Robo Vampire is a hypnotizing disaster.
8 Human Lanterns
1982
Considering the sheer breadth of legendary kung fu movies made by the Shaw brothers in Hong Kong in the late 70s to mid 80s, it’s no wonder that a few of them strayed from the path of typical martial arts fare. Enter Human Lanterns, a rare foray into horror for the Shaw brothers that still retained the sibling duo’s signature directorial flair. The story takes place in feudal China, presenting a rivalry between two kung fu masters that soon turns gruesome when the two begin competing for the same women.
With some of the most graphic violence of any Shaw brothers film, Human Lanterns lives up to its title when the film’s masked antagonist begins flaying his victims alive, fashioning them into macabre decorations. For all the torture at play, there’s also some thrilling wire work and genuinely excellent kung fu action shoehorned into the plot as haphazardly as the insidious lantern maker’s handiwork. Beyond the enjoyment of its audacious plot and fight scenes, Human Lanterns is worth a watch for its earnestly stunning cinematography and gorgeous color palette.
7 Silent Rage
1982
The overseas market by no means has a monopoly on bizarre martial arts movies with vague horror influences. Even iconic action movie figures like Chuck Norris can’t escape appearing in the occasional horror-adjacent project, as evidenced by Silent Rage. Here, Norris is posited as a cowboy hat-wearing sheriff who is tasked with stopping the rampage of a psychopathic killer who had undergone an experimental procedure rendering him nigh-impossible to kill.
A formulaic horror movie shaken up by the novel appearance of a typical Chuck Norris character, Silent Rage is a curious novelty worth dissection with a group of friends. The unintentional humor of the film is quite rich, particularly in the love scenes, which received bad enough feedback to bully Norris from ever attempting them again in subsequent movies. That being said, the mad scientists behind the slasher villain rampage driving the action are particularly entertaining, rounding out the oddly entertaining experience that is Silent Rage.
6 Blade
1998
Wesley Snipes’ Blade may technically be a comic book adaptation, but cutting into its core, the film is truly the pinnacle of horror and kung fu mixed together. A spectacularly bloody film, Blade sees Wesley Snipes wade into battle as the titular vampire hunter, a half-vampire “daywalker” himself with all of the strengths of the nocturnal creatures, but none of their weaknesses. Alongside his mentor, Whistler, Blade tears through the hidden world of vampires in a bloody crusade for justice in retaliation for his mom being killed by one years ago.
As a vampire movie, Blade‘s horror trappings are clear, but the incredible action deserves more credit as a genuinely great martial arts movie. Snipes is a very real trained martial artist, and the excellent choreography puts his skills on full display in multiple bloodbath action scenes, punctuated by his eternally endearing cocky attitude and pearly white smile as Blade. The development woes of the upcoming MCU Blade reboot might just indicate that it’s impossible to do a blend of horror and martial arts as well as the original Blade.
5 Brotherhood of the Wolf
2001
Of all the international origins a horror martial arts movie might come from, a French-made film library might be the last place one might expect to look for such a unique feature. Yet there Brotherhood of the Wolf stands, a puzzlingly unique martial arts horror blend masquerading as a period fantasy film. The story centers on a French knight and naturalist who joins his Iroquois companion in hunting the legendary Beast of Gévaudan, which has been reportedly terrorizing the countryside.
Brotherhood of the Wolf is famous for heavily influencing FromSoftware’s beloved action video game Bloodborne, and after viewing it, it’s easy to see how the film’s horror and combat afflictions could inspire a fast-paced action game. Brotherhood of the Wolf combines high-flying swashbuckling with modernized martial arts and beautiful horror setpieces courtesy of Jim Henson’s Creature Shop for a truly unpredictable experience. Despite how confusing it can get, the hidden French gem of creativity is a genuinely great intersection between exciting action and gripping gothic horror.
4 The Legend Of The 7 Golden Vampires
1974
A joint production between the Shaw brothers and the legendary horror studio Hammer Film Productions, The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires is a martial arts horror match made in heaven. The collaboration brought the iconic gaunt visage of Peter Cushing into the world of martial arts movies for the first time, playing famed vampire killer Professor Abraham Van Helsing. The film sees Cushing’s Van Helsing join forces with martial artists in order to destroy a cabal of vampires and their undead army led by none other than Dracula himself.
As great as the prospect of the Shaw brothers and Hammer Film Productions’ individual strengths within their genres combining forces as one, the two filmmakers’ sensibilities simply crash into one another with no grace to speak of. That doesn’t mean The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires isn’t worth watching, however, as the film is indeed a properly spectacular eruption of hand-to-hand combat and gore. For the sheer novelty of its creation, The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires merits a group watch with multiple sets of eyeballs to catch every bizarre detail.
3 Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky
1991
While the film may have few overtly supernatural or scary elements, Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky is one of the most infamously gory horror movies around, giving it a well-earned horror bent. The Hong Kong splatter film centers on the titular Ricky, a superhumanly strong fighter who is sent to the world’s deadliest prison after getting revenge on the mob boss who killed his girlfriend. It’s not long before the prison’s various gang leaders and corrupt elements take aim at Ricky, who bloodily batters them all back one at a time.
Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky makes its manga roots clear, reading like a live-action adaptation of bloody absurdist martial arts anime like Fist of the North Star or Baki the Grappler. The outrageous violence alone qualifies the film for a horror label, with each burst of pulpy viscera being accompanied by an unbelievably cool martial arts battle. The sudden appearance of a genuine mutant monster also keeps things close enough to the scary movie arena for Ricky’s adventures to earn a spot as one of the best blends between the two genres around.
2 Versus
2001
Considering what great lengths Japanese cinema has gone to master both martial arts movies and horror movies, it’s no wonder that one of the best crossover films utilizing both genres hails from the land of the rising sun. Versus is a sleek crime film that breaches the walls of the iconic zombie movie, combining both formulas to craft a genius adrenaline rush. The narrative sees a group of Yakuza gangsters and their captive travel through a mysterious forest that resurrects all who die within it as vicious zombies in search of the supernatural gate to the afterlife hidden within.
Versus is a bit front loaded with lore that explains the mysterious gates the Yakuza intend to use, even going as far as to show a 10th century flashback indicating the gate’s history. Once this bit of housekeeping is out of the way, however, the film is able to come online as a Japanese take on a Quentin Tarantino movie surrounded on all sides by flesh-eating zombies. Whether it’s human vs. human or human vs. zombie, Versus has some of the best bloody horror-action around, utilizing swords, guns, and unarmed combat to their full potential.
1 Big Trouble In Little China
1986
Considering Big Trouble in Little China was directed by the same horror movie master responsible for The Thing and the original Halloween, it’s no wonder the East Asian-inspired action adventure bears some clear horror elements. The fantasy action comedy weaves an adventure headed by Kurt Russell’s Jack Burton, a simple truck driver who finds himself in over his head when his close friend Wang, played by Dennis Dun, recruits him to rescue his fiancée. What follows is a harrowing dive into the underworld of San Francisco’s Chinatown, where ancient sorcerers and horrifying monsters await.
Admittedly, Big Trouble in Little China is primarily a fantasy adventure movie with comedic elements, but the clear martial arts movie setting sets it apart as a genuine kung fu movie. The horror elements are also more than obvious, from the terrifying wild man to the unsettling eyeball guardian and the bizarre body horror deaths. A venerated cult classic for a good reason, Big Trouble in Little China is a great tale to reach for to satisfy a particular craving for scary martial arts movies.
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