Mr. Vampire (1985) - A Quick Review

 

Classic Hong Kong movie!

Mr. Vampire is comedy/horror/martial arts movie released in Hong Kong in 1985 starring Lam Ching-Ying, Ricky Hui Koon-Ying, Chin Siu-Ho, Moon Lee Choi-Fung, Billy Lau Nam-Kwong, Pauline Wong Siu-Fung, Huang Ha, and Yuen Wah. Mr. Vampire was directed by Ricky Lau Koon-Wai, with martial arts directed by  Lam Ching-Ying and Yuen Wah. Sammo Hung was the producer of this movie.

Our heroes. From left: Ricky Hui, Lam Ching-Ying, and Chin Siu-Ho.

In Mr. Vampire, Lam Ching-Ying plays Master Kau, a Taoist priest who is an expert in the supernatural arts. He has two assistants, Man-choi (played by Ricky Hui) and Chow Chun (played by Chin Siu-Ho), who are both a bit immature. They get a case from rich businessman Yam Fat (played by Huang Ha), who arrives with his daughter, Yam Ting Ting (played by Moon Lee Choi-Fung); Mr. Yam wants to remove his dead father from his grave and rebury him to bring prosperity to the Yam family. When they unearth the body, they find that the corpse has barely decomposed, and the place where he was buried has bad feng shui. They bring the corpse back to their house, and the two assistants fail to properly seal it in its coffin. It escapes, eventually claiming several victims.

Though the victims bear the wounds of a vampire attack, the idiotic police inspector (played by Billy Lau) arrests Master Kau for their murders. While jailed, Master Kau sees one of the victims come back to life and attack the police chief! Chow Chun breaks him out and they battle the vampire until they subdue it. Meanwhile, the original vampire grows stronger every day it stays loose. Man-choi gets attacked by the vampire, and Master Kau has to give him a remedy to stave off becoming a vampire (as you can guess, things don't go according to plan). Throughout all of this, Chow Chun is seduced by a ghost (played by Pauline Wong Siu-Fung), who is taking his life force every time they "get it on". Master Kau has a lot to deal with in this movie!

One of the all-time classic scenes in Hong Kong cinema.

Mr. Vampire is one of the all-time classic Hong Kong movies. The success of this movie started the jiangshi trend in Hong Kong films, and many sequels and spin-offs came from this movie. This is the role Lam Ching-Ying is most remembered for, and he played it (and roles very similar to it) in many films after Mr. Vampire. Sammo Hung produced this movie, once again showing how influential he was in the history of Hong Kong film.

So, what do I think about the movie? I love it! It's definitely a classic! Lam Ching-Ying is great in this. He plays Master Kau with sternness, intelligence, strength, and a bit of empathy. He is always on top of the situation, and you can tell he cares about his assistants (and those he is hired to help). The story is interesting as well; they explain why the grandfather's corpse became a vampire, how they can stop it, and how to cure vampirism if you contract it. The comedy is good, too (though, humor is subjective). Billy Lau is so good as the idiotic police inspector. This is one of the best roles I've seen him in, actually. He is such a pompous jerk in this movie. The scene where he loses control of his body and the scene where he tries to fight off a vampire are great. There is a bit of tragedy in this as well (though it's not depressing or anything). Pauline Wong Siu-Fung as the ghost seducing Chow Chun is incredible. You end up feeling bad for her by the end. The way her character is introduced is so awesome and eerie. One of the best creepy introductory scenes ever filmed, in my opinion.

The action is wild and crazy in Mr. Vampire!

The action in Mr. Vampire is fun and crazy. There is not actually a lot of martial arts fighting in it. Chin Siu-Ho is the main fighter of the movie, and he does some awesome moves. Lam Ching-Ying gets to show off a brutal kick or two, as well. The incredible Moon Lee is in this movie, who is an awesome fighter in other movies, but she does not fight at all in Mr. Vampire. Kind of disappointing if you're a Moon Lee fan, but she is still great in this. She even helps out at the end! Otherwise, all the action mainly consists of crazy stunts. Lots of brutal falls, crashing through furniture, explosions, and magical mayhem. It's just a fun time!

I highly recommend Mr. Vampire. It's a classic that you need to see if you are into Hong Kong cinema or Asian cinema in general. Admittedly, Mr. Vampire is not that scary, and there are two scenes of animal cruelty (one involving a snake, the other one a chicken), but don't let that stop you from watching this great movie. Watch the movie that started the vampire craze in Hong Kong (and Japan) and gave Lam Ching-Ying his most beloved role. Maybe you'll get the bug and look for more jiangshi movies. It could happen!

The DVD I watched for this review. It's great, though the English dub calls the jiangshi/vampires "zombies". I need this on Blu-ray!

Back cover of the DVD case.

The DVD disc. Master Kau looks on with determination.

Reviewed by David Williams