Heavenly Legend

Distinctly 90s, and very much for kids, how does this cheesy Taiwanese Journey hold up?

“We saved his life and we still have to give him money?”

The wonderfully unoriginally titled Heavenly Legend is one of a few of Taiwanese films retelling stories from the Journey to the West, and it’s one of the most 90s, Saturday morning versions I’ve ever seen. This is mostly because the film is actually closer to being three episodes of TV than it is an actual film. The first half hour tells of Wukong’s mission to retrieve his golden hooped rod from the Dragon King. The Dragon King asks Wukong to defeat Nehza – a sweet but mischievous boy in this one – because Nezha (and a bafflingly young Bajie) helped a princess escape from her arranged marriage to the Dragon King’s son (who died by his own incompetence in the process).

The next half hour details a mission where Wukong, nehza and the princess try to find a lotus to save young human’s life, and the third deals with that human becoming possessed by a demon, and everyone coming together to fight him.

Heavenly Legend is fun. It’s the sort of fun you only really get from Super Sentai shows, and I swear this is what this movie was meant to be. Perhaps a backdoor pilot for a greater Journey to the West series that never made it air (or maybe it did, there’s not a lot of information about this around).

To appeal to a younger crowd, much of the focus is on Nehza, who is both a kid who likes to goof off and a bonkers good martial artist, and Zhu Bajie who is just as gross as his adult self, but a touch cuter about it. I’m not comfortable with how often he gets his arse out though. The dynamic between those two kids, and the grown up Wukong and Dragon Princess is pretty good, with Wukong taking on an almost older brother role. It makes for a strong set-up and it’s a shame there was never any more made from this.

The effects are extremely cheesy, but unlike the embarrassing efforts made by modern filmmakers low on time, money and cares, there’s earnestness in this film’s attempt to make the best effects they can. There’s an excellent blend of bad green screen, people in suits, forced perspective and silly looking puppets all of which come together to make the most 90s looking Journey thing I’ve ever seen. I was surprised Barney the Dinosaur didn’t show up as the Bull Demon King.

What makes Heavenly Legend work over similar, low-budget films is how much fun everyone seems to be having. They’re not treating it too seriously, they’re not under any assumption that they’re making anything other than something for kids, an adaptation of Journey in practically name alone. It’s refreshing, so while it isn’t exactly great cinema it is the most fun I’ve had watching a live action Journey to the West film in a long time and the perfect thing to put on between Wishbone and Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.

Verdict: All I can say is if this had played on my TV in 1999, I’d have been enraptured. It’s not excellent cinema by any means, but it’s a good time.

Overall entertainment: 7/10
Violence: 2/10
Sex: 0/10
Fun: 8/10
Virgin’s urine thing: That actually played a role in the finale, huh. Weird.
Match-maker: Just ties people together to make them fall in love? Also weird.
Best effect: At one point Wukong transforms into a dozen animals (never actually used in battle), but the footage they have of the puppy and the bunny makes them look absolutely enormous. It’s a real treat.

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Heavenly Legend (1999)

Director: Chen Chi-Hwa
Writers: Wu Cheng’en (novel), Chen Chi-Hwa

CAST

Ashton Chen – Nezha
Jimmy Lin – Sun Wukong
Steven Hao – Zhu Bajie
Vivian Hsu – Lady Dragon