Bluray Review Hopping Mad: The Mr. Vampire Sequels
Crazy Jumper: Sequel to Mr. A vampire
Directed by: Ricky Lau/Ching-Ying Lam.
With Lam Ching-Ying, Siu-Ho Chin, Billy Lau, Fat Chang, Mun Li, Fung Wu, Richard Ng and Fong Lui.
SUMMARY:
A box set of four sequels to the classic Chinese horror comedy and martial arts Mr. Vampires .
It's been almost three years, but the masters at Eureka have finally released a series of "several" sequels to the highly influential 1985 martial arts horror comedy, including Mr. Vampire , that sit comfortably on your shelf in harmony perfect. ideal. "Some" because Mister Vampire , like the Italian masterpiece The Devil and the Flesh Eater Zombie , has had so many sequels, spin-offs, knockoffs and homages - mostly unofficial - that a comprehensive box set containing them all is impossible ( but oh lucky).
However, this pack contains three official sequels - Mr. Vampire II in 1986, Mr. Vampire III from 1987 and Mr. Vampire Saga IV 1989 directed by Ricky Lau and starring thematically similar but unrelated Lam Ching-Ying - Vampire Vs. Vampire from the scene of 1989 where Mr. Ricky Lau's Vampire 1992, the only sequel that is actually a "proper" sequel to the original film.
So what do we have in this set? It would be cruel to say we're getting more of the same vampy crackling as Mr. Black. Vampire , but the short answer is: these movies are just that, but given that Mr. Vampires manages to balance action, horror and comedy in a way that is entertaining. Do these films have priority or do they follow the traditional rule of diminishing returns? To be honest, both.
Set in the present day, as opposed to the original period, in Lord Vampire II , a team of archaeologists discover the preserved body of a vampire family consisting of a mother, father and a baby vampire. Of course, the silencing spell was lifted and there was some hilarity as the headmaster and his two idiot students tried to keep control. However, this is only part of the plot, as there is another theme about a vampire child who escapes and befriends human children who live nearby, the two plot themes converge at the end when the series is with Lam Ching-Ying. Master Lam (he was Master Gau in the previous film) practices supernatural kung fu.
To add to the comedy and lessen the horror, Mr. Vampire 2 is the lightest film of the bunch; in fact, you could say it's almost a family film with very little gore, violence or anything dark or weird. Don't let that put you off, because despite its funny tone, Mr. Vampire 2 is a real pain in the ass - how could it be otherwise? She has a crackling vampire in her and manages to stay pretty cool. You can bet Hollywood isn't going to make ten minute slow motion car chase comedies, but Ricky Lau does and it doesn't bother him after the first few minutes.
Lam Ching-Ying returns to Mr. Vampire III , only this time he plays Uncle Nain, a Taoist priest who fights a dancing vampire alongside Uncle Ming (Richard Ng), also a Taoist, but not godly and not successful in his supernatural abilities, if not ninth. Ming is followed by two ghost friends, but is forced to chase them away after Nine convinces him to get rid of them as they will only bring him trouble, but their ghosts fall prey to Lady Demon, a witch who leads the thugs. with supernatural powers that unite two priests when an evil sorcerer comes to town to free his two slaves from prison. Will Uncle Ming be able to appear and become as strong as Uncle Nain to help his spirit friend?
Well, you just have to see it, but Mr. Vampire 3 is a huge improvement over the previous film, bringing back the horror and action, keeping the laughs and turning back time. So far, Lam Ching-Ying has been confirmed as the series' hero, his red-brown priest character has become iconic, and Richard Ng stands out as the incompetent Uncle Ming, who is in love despite making some pretty stupid decisions. The tone of this film is much stranger than the previous films, and the addition of a female demon to the growing list of villains that Lam Ching-Ying will face is a great success, because she is so scary that even her pocket looks more like a ghost. than a vampire. It may be half the original in terms of consistency, but fans of the film will definitely not be disappointed with this fun and silly sequel.
What are we at Mr. Vampire Saga IV , and here things get a little off because the first half of the movie is a kung fu comedy about a Taoist priest and a Buddhist priest who live next door and don't drive. The respective students they live with know, but the atmosphere is very much like that of a 1970s sitcom, with two feuding priests mocking each other for the first 50 minutes. Sure, it's all set up when they finally have to work together, and they do, which leads to a final performance that ramps up the pace and throws as much Evil Dead II into the slapstick mix as possible, but it all also feels a little bit a little late with very long tempos, the comedy is not very funny and the film misses Lam Ching-Ying who has not seen the film. There are moments, but the quirky tone doesn't stand out.
Then there's Vampire Vs. Vampire , which saw Lam Ching-Ying return as the lead character and director. In it, the one-eyed priest Ying and two of his students discover that the plumbing in a nearby village is infested with bats, leading to an excavation that unearths the corpse of a European vampire. Of course, the corpse was splattered with blood and the old coon was about to go mad, although he wasn't the only supernatural being causing trouble, as there was also a countess, some ghosts, and an evil vampire child. our hero is running away.
Trying to capture the same atmosphere as Mister Vampire III with its collection of ghosts inspired by Scooby-Doo , Vampire vs. Vampires is a bit of a mess, trying to do too much with too little, and none of it works satisfactorily. Lam Ching-Ying is fantastic as usual, but the plot is too twisted and the humor doesn't work at all, even with the introduction of a very stupid non-character, making it feel like a sequel... but without the charm. . . The action is very good though and the final act where the One-Eyed Priest fights the Count is a lot of fun with Lam Ching-Ying pulling off some moves that Jackie Chan would be proud of and the sudden ending is very surprising as well as very funny.
All of this makes this box set a lot of fun if you like jianshi (corpse jumping) movies, even small ones. Mr. Vampire III is an incredible film that mixes horror, action and comedy in the same way as the original, but all the other films had their merits, even the less impressive Mr. Vampire. Saga IV is still worth a look. Watch and eat. much better than some of the non-exclusive fakes inspired by the original z. Vampires . Extras in the form of two shorts about the dancing vampire and his influences, which also include the original Taoist priest explaining why vampires want to be movie monsters in the first place and, if you want original comedy, an English dub for Mister . Vampire II is definitely worth buying. Early prints also come with an O-Card holder with new vibrant art and a collector's booklet with illustrations by James Oliver about the film and the jianshi phenomenon.
If you enjoyed Eureka 's awesome release Mr. These movies won't appeal to everyone, as Chinese kung fu vampire comedies aren't the height of mainstream popularity, but Eureka's commitment to bringing this HD restoration to the public is commendable and if you want to try something different , if sir. Vampire is a good place to start. Now for Mr. Blue Ray. Vampires 1992.
Evaluation of burning myths - Mr. Vampire 2 - Movie: ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
The Flashing Myth Rating – Lord of the Vampires III – Movie: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Igniting Myths Rating - Lord Vampire Saga IV - Movie: ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★
Rating of Burning Myth - Vampire Vs. Vampires - Movies: ★ ★ / Movies: ★ ★ ★
Chris Ward
