This compilation contains full-length Chinese fantasy movies that can be found on Youtube. These are the ones I like, mostly because of better storylines and acting.
There are many low-budget commercial motion pictures produced by China in recent years. The typical genres include period fantasy, period detective or martial arts 武侠 (wuxia) movies. The quality of the storyline, acting, and special effects vary greatly but they are quite entertaining and do not tax the brain too much.
I am listing the period Chinese fantasy movies that I like, ranked from most favorite to least. I think the plots are quite good. The acting and special effects are acceptable too. Most of them will have some sound issues (either funny background music or silence at certain parts of the movies). It can’t be helped since they are free to watch.
If you do not see English subtitles, try turning on the Closed Captions feature to get auto-generated English subtitles. They aren’t too bad.
Table of Contents
麒麟幻镇 Magic Town
Magic Town was broadcasted on iQiyi Channel on 21 Jan 2021.
Magic Town has quite an interesting story. A family in the town was massacred and it seemed that an evil spirit wanted the lives of the extended family members as well. The female constable appealed to her fiancé for help. He is a divination master. He was reluctant at first but agreed to help in the end.
I enjoyed it. It is more like a romantic comedy, there are some interesting scenes, and the ending was a delightful surprise. Only at the end will you know why the movie is called Magic Town.
狂刀 Soul of Blades
Soul of Blades is broadcasted in China in 2020.
I had no expectations for this movie when I started but was pleasantly surprised by it. The story is about how a poor beggar boy become a confident man with the help of his adoptive father and a famous blade. There are some elements of the Sixth Sense in this movie.
张三丰 The Tai Chi Master
Broadcasted on 22 Jan 2022.
This is an alternate origin story of the founder of Tai Chi. Zhang San Feng 张三丰 is a historical figure that had been used in fictional works for years. Unlike many that merely use the name to garner eyeballs, this movie made an admirable attempt.
The male lead grows on you with his acting. The female lead is also competent. The fight scenes are good too. What I didn’t like is the introduction of a giant centipede. The CGI work is terrible, and the story can do without it.
奇门遁甲 – The Art of Becoming Invisible
This is quite a fun movie to watch. A sort of coming-of-age story.
茅山大师
Another coming-of-age story. The storyline reminded me of Happy Feet. It reminds us not to teach our children not to bully others with odd physical appearances.
阴阳秘术
伏妖开封府之御猫展昭
开封府之奇灵
牧野诡事之秦岭龙窟
The title of this movie is so complex I do not know how to translate it. It is about a family who are descendants of grave robbers.
Featured image: Image by Công Đức Nguyễn from Pixabay
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