Lam Ching-ying establishes himself as China’s top ghostbuster and vampire slayer as Taoist master Kau, who along with his two bumbling assistants, do battle with a Chinese vampire and a ghostly siren.

A pure classic by any standard! Produced by Sammo Hung, Mr. Vampire created a surefire combination of chills, humor and kung fu that spawned a successful franchise and numerous spin-offs and copycats. Enriched with classical Chinese folklore and energetic and moody atmosphere, the film is a treat to watch.

Kau (Lam Ching-ying), a Taoist priest and his two goofy assistants, Choi (Ricky Hui) and Chou (Chin Siu-ho) are called upon to put an end to the Yam family’s bad luck. Kau discovers the reason when the family’s recently deceased grandfather is found to have been buried improperly by a Feng Shui master. When the corpse turns out to be one of the walking dead and escapes its Taoist bindings, Kau and the police go on the hunt while dead bodies begin to turn up. Things go wrong as Choi is infected by the walking corpse and Chou is haunted by a ghost who has fallen in love with him. Kau has to use all his Taoist tricks to save his apprentices and defeat the evil vampire.

The tales of vampires in Chinese folklore is just as popular and rich in tradition as their Western counterparts originating with Brom Stoker’s Dracula. There are variations though on how to control or kill a Chinese vampire or walking corpse and Mr. Vampire is probably the best cinematic example on how to deal with them. From sticky rice to Taoist symbols, the principle hero, Kau wields a vast array of weapons to combat the undead.

What makes the film all the more entertaining is the almost comical direction akin to Ivan Reitman’s Ghostbusters. The fact is that Chinese vampires are simply hopping, rotting corpses with more in common with mindless zombies from Night of the Living Dead than a suave Dracula who seduces women. The film’s director, Ricky Lau was clearly aware of this and plays for more laughs than chills. The film also borrows from another homegrown hit entitled Encounters of a Spooky Kind starring Sammo Hung who introduced the world to the horror/comedy/kung fu genre. Ricky Hui plays the forlorn assistant with charm and Lam gives a star performance as the vampire busting priest who left a lasting impression that he never shook right up to his death.

Cheap special effects, the fact that the only villain is a mindless corpse and occasionally overplayed and crude humor adds to the camp factor but keep the film from being more engaging. Also, there isn’t nearly as much martial arts action as found in Encounters of a Spooky Kind. Nevertheless, Mr. Vampire is great fun and fans of the Evil Dead series should see where Sam Raimi, a Hong Kong film fan got some of his twisted inspiration from.

REVIEW: Mr. Vampire (1985), 10.0 out of 10 based on 2 ratings

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