Shadow Boxing, The (1979)

An escaped convict (Gordon Liu) looking to prove his innocence poses as one of several hopping corpses being delivered to their relatives by a pair of corpse herders.

Sammo Hung’s Encounter of the Spooky Kind (1981) may have kicked off the Chinese vampire film frenzy of the mid-’80s, but Lau Kar-leung’s The Shadow Boxing came three years prior and established the conventions of this unique sub-genre. (The 1974 Shaw Brothers/Hammer Films co-production The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires doesn’t count because the vampires in that film were mostly Western creations.) Although lacking in several areas, The Shadow Boxing is essential viewing for anyone interested in fully exploring the wonderful world of Chinese vampires, or as their also known, zombies and walking corpses.

Unfortunately, Kar-leung isn’t content to simply make a zombie movie and the supernatural elements that dominate the first half give way to more traditional kung fu plotting. Unlike subsequent vampire films that upped the ante, Kar-leung’s vampire’s are simply walking corpses and rather harmless. There’s no bloodsucking or gore of any kind. But they can still get a little unruly without the proper spells and its up to Fan Zheng-yuan (Wong Yu) and his master (Lau Kar-wing) to keep them in order as they “herd” them to the homes of their families for burial. But for all of this duo’s skill, one bald corpse remains especially troublesome. The herders don’t know it yet, but he’s no corpse at all. He’s Zhang Jie (Gordon Liu), an escaped convict who is out to prove that he was framed for a crime. But first, he has to evade capture and get to the man responsible (Lee Hoi-sang) and posing as a walking corpse is his only option. This is basically the plot, with the rest of the film resting on situational comedy and sporadic kung fu.

The martial arts action is fairly weak for a Lau Kar-leung film. He mostly relies on the gimmick of Wong Yu performing a fanciful “vampire” style. Unable to remember the stances, someone has to read to Wong as he fights. It’s cute for minute or two, but this and most of the film’s action has a suspicious look of being directed by someone else who lacks Lau’s expertise. Co-choreographer Wilson Tong is the likeliest candidate. He’s actually a solid star and action director on his own, but doesn’t contribute much here. Part of what made Kar-leung such a success as a kung fu filmmaker was his knack for experimenting with the genre and developing variations on traditional kung fu. The vampire style might have been interesting had it been more elaborate or actually involved vampires.

What helps the film along is the strong screen chemistry of the stars. Wong Yu and Cecilia Wong make a great screen couple. Both are quite playful in their acting. Cecilia was primarily a television actress who starred in a number of Shaw Brothers films. Although lacking in martial arts talent, she does rival kung fu legend Polly Kuan for spunkiness and charm. She spends a lot of time slapping a well-meaning Wong Yu around. The director’s brother, Lau Kar-wing is a hoot as the master. Rather than play the master role straight like Lam Ching-ying did in the Mr. Vampire series, Kar-wing is a disinterested corpse herder on the way out. Although an expert at what he does, he’s more interested in gambling and drinking and only keeps from fumbling up several times due to Wong Yu’s caution. A nasty leg wound following a gambling hall brawl gives him the excuse to turn the business over to Wong Yu, with the help of Cecilia.

Gordon Liu stays in vampire mode for most of the time, but finally gives up the pretense after he’s caught stealing food. This is not a great role for him as just about anyone could have filled in and done just as well, unlike his unforgettable performance in The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter. Since he doesn’t do anything until the end, everything rests on the final match against regular baddie Lee Hoi-sang and Wilson Tong. It’s a disappointing fight that relies on gimmicks rather than strong performances. Again, this is not Lau Kar-leung at his best and should not be taken as reflective of his other classics from this era which is generally regarded as some of the best kung fu movies ever filmed.

Beyond the average kung fu action, The Shadow Boxing fails to be a great kung fu/vampire movie. It’s not as outrageously exploitive as Kung Fu Zombie (1981) or as focused as Mr. Vampire (1985). But it still has its fair share of funny moments and diverting action, while giving a decent introduction to China’s walking corpse myth.