Blood Reincarnation

A horror anthology. In the first, a man and his pregnant wife help an old woman bury a covered pot in a field. Believing that the pot contains treasure, they kill the old woman, only to find that it contains nothing but bones. The pregnant woman goes into labor over the dead woman's body, and blood from that event drips onto the corpse. The baby, when born, is fully able to bite his father's finger off and kill him. The second episode concerns an adulterous couple who, when discovered by the woman's husband, nail him up in a box and try various means to dispose of him, all of them somehow lacking finality. The final episode concerns a man who is wrongly accused and executed for a murder he did not commit. Using a bit of magic as he dies, he is able to return to his home for a few days as a very vigorous ghost.

Directed by Ting Shan-Hsi, Blood Reincarnation leans on a strong ensemble — Dean Shek Tin, Wang Lai, Shirley Huang — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about horror titles of 1974.