Daughter Of Darkness (1993) ***

This just might be the most demented film of all time, shocking even by Hong Kong's outlandish standards. Lily Chung plays an abused teenage girl suspected of killing her tormentors. But apparently because ''Daughter of Darkness'' is set in mainland China, the cops investigating the crime (led by Anthony Wong) show absolutely no compassion for the poor girl. And neither does the film, playing everything for laughs and succeeding brilliantly. It features the most unbelievable sex torture scene ever filmed. Directed by Ivan Lai, this violent story of sex abuse and murder is one of the best sexploatation films ever made: perverse, gory, kinky and very shocking. To quote a reviewer, M.C.Thomason, ''if you have a strong stomach and are open-minded enough to comprehend another culture's attitudes towards screen violence, then "Daughter Of Darkness" is definitely one of the unsung gems of Hong Kong's adult-horror industry. Just don't blame me if it offends you in the extreme!''. 

The Untold Story (1993) ***

Love To Kill (1993) ***

Stalin's Testament (1993) ***

Cronos (1993) ***

Fatal Love (1993) ***

Naked Killer 2: Raped By An Angel (1993) ***

Legal Innocence (1993) ***

Green Snake (1993) ***

The Bride With White Hair (1993) ***

The Bride With White Hair 2 (1993) ***

Il Grande cocomero (1993) **

Italian drama about an epileptic girl.

Godzilla Vs Mechagodzilla II (1993) *

Directed by Takao Okawara. Here, Godzilla and Rodan are bad guys, while Mechagodzilla (build by humans) is the hero.

The Olympic Summer (1993) *

Modernist film about a German gigolo arrested by the Nazis.

Szwadron (1993) *

Nieciekawy film o powstaniu styczniowym.

The Three Best Things (1993) *

Boring Dutch comedy about a young woman's adventures in Amsterdam.

The Assassin (1993) **

"Nikita", Hong Kong-style. Very stylized, but incredibly gory and violent.

The Bare-Footed Kid (1993) *

A typical martial arts film from Hong Kong, directed by Johnny To.

Blade Of Fury (1993) *

stylish, but dull historical epic set in the turn-of-the-century China. The plot concerns a plot against the Empress Dowager. There are a few exciting swordfight scenes, but it's mostly talk and talk. Director Samo Hung has a bit part as a prison warden. **

Down The Drain (1993) **

A black comedy about two unlucky schoolgirls in Japan.

Executioners (1993) **

Directed by Johnny To and Ching Siu-Tung, it's a action movie about three women who defend an embattled government from a military coup d'etat backed by a corrupt corporation. The film is set in a future ravaged by radioactivity and shortages of fresh water.

Farewell, My Concubine (1993) **

Visually impressive Chinese film about two opera singers. Too much melodrama, not enough subtlety.

Flirting Scholar (1993) **

Stephen Chow will do anything for a gag in this stupid, but funny comedy, co-starring Gong Li.

The Kung Fu Cult Master (1993) **

A "wu xia pian" pic starring Jet Li.

Island Of The Dead (1993) **

Poetic documentary about a famous star of the silent Russian cinema, Vera Kholodnaya.

The Last Hero In China (1993) **

Directed by Wong Jing, it's an entertaining martial arts film from Hong Kong. Particularly memorable are two fights involving a giant insect.

Magic Crane (1993) *

Hong Kong martial arts film in a fairy-tale setting. A princess, her kung-fu master, his estranged daughter, two martial arts experts ...

Huevos de Oro (1993) ***

Run And Kill (1993) *

A man unwittingly hires a killer to murder his wife. This film contains one of the most shocking scenes ever put on film: a demented killer (Simon Yam) burns a little girl alive, then takes her charred corpse and shows it to her father, mockingly imitating her voice: "Daddy, I'm dark. Don't you recognize me ?". The rest of the movie is equally repulsive, but at least there is some dark humor to relieve the tension. But the murder scene is played straight, making it completely unbearable even for the most jaded and tolerant viewers. There is no sex or nudity, only extreme violence. This is not a gory-but-fun exploitation flick, but a truly monstruous film that begs for censor's scissors. Only recommanded for those truly sick viewers who have lost all sense of decency and moral values. Box office: 6 million HK.

Schramm (1993) *

Directed by Jorg Buttgereit. The hero is a serial killer-slash-sex degenerate. The film has shocking, gory and sexually explicit imagery. A little too pretentious for an "honest" sexploitation flick, but not good enough to trascend its sleazy themes. 63'

Battle Angel (1993) *

A Japanimation feature about a female cyborg. Directed by Hiroshi Fukutomi.

Erotic Ghost Story 3 (1993) ***

Darkness In Tallinn (1993) *

Mediocre film about Russian gangsters organizing a robbery in Estonia.

Faraway, So Close (1993) *

Wim Wenders' most self-indulgent and least successful film, a pointless sequel to "Wings Of Desire" (1987).

For Fun (1993) *

Boring film about Chinese seniors organizing an Opera fan club.

Dwa ksiezyce (1993) ***

Belle Epoque (1993) ***