- Mr. Vampire
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Mr. Vampire 
Original Hong Kong film posterTraditional 僵屍先生 Simplified 僵尸先生 Mandarin Jiāngshī Xiānshēng Cantonese Goeng1 Si1 Sin1 Sang1 Directed by Ricky Lau Produced by Sammo Hung Screenplay by Sze-to Cheuk-hon
Barry Wong
Wong YingStarring Lam Ching-ying
Ricky Hui
Chin Siu-ho
Moon LeeMusic by Anders Nelsson
Alastair Monteith-Hodge
The Melody BankCinematography Peter Ngor Editing by Peter Cheung Studio Bo Ho Films Co., Ltd.
Paragon Films Ltd.Distributed by Golden Harvest Release date(s) 7 November 1985 Running time 96 minutes Country Hong Kong Language Cantonese Gross revenue HK$20,092,129 Mr. Vampire, also known as Geung-si Sin-sang, is a 1985 Hong Kong comedy horror film directed by Ricky Lau and produced by Sammo Hung. The film's box office success led to the creation of a Mr. Vampire franchise, with the release of four sequels directed by Ricky Lau from 1986 to 1992, and subsequent similarly themed films with different directors released between 1987 and 1991.
Contents
Plot
Taoist priest Kau is engaged to perform a reburial for a deceased rich man. Together with his inept students Man-choi and Chau-sang, Kau discovers that the corpse is still almost intact and looks alive. They attempt to prevent the corpse from resurrecting by drawing magical lines all over the coffin, but the corpse still breaks out and becomes a geung si (Chinese "hopping" vampire).
The vampire runs amok and starts killing many people while Kau and his students try to stop it. In one battle, Man-choi is bitten by the vampire and infected with the "vampire virus", causing him to almost turn into a vampire as well. Meanwhile, Chau-sang is seduced by a female ghost and nearly loses his soul to her. Kau has a hard time dealing with his students' problems and putting an end to the vampire's rampage.
Cast
- Lam Ching-ying as Master Kau (九叔), a unibrowed priest specialising in Taoist supernatural arts
- Ricky Hui as Man-choi (文才), Kau's student
- Chin Siu-ho as Chau-sang (秋生), Kau's student
- Moon Lee as Ting-ting (婷婷), Master Yam's daughter
- Huang Ha as Master Yam (任老爺), a rich man. He is apparently killed by the vampire but later rises from the dead to become like his late father.
- Anthony Chan as Priest Four Eyes (四目道長), Kau's friend. He uses magic to control "hopping" corpses and transport them to their hometowns for burial.
- Yuen Wah as the Vampire, Master Yam's deceased father
- Wong Siu-fung as Jade (董小玉), a female ghost who seduces Chau-sang
- Billy Lau as Wai (阿威), the cowardly police inspector. He is also Ting-ting's cousin.
- Ho Pak-kwong as a villager
- Ka Lee as the night watchman
- Wu Ma as the rice shop owner
- Wong Wan-si as the rice shop owner's wife
- Tin Kai-Man as the rice shop owner's idiotic son
- Yuen Miu as a policeman
- Yuen Biao as a "hopping" corpse
- Pang Yun-cheung as a policeman
- Chow Gam-kong as a policeman
- Chin Sing-wai as a policeman
- Cheung Wing-cheung
Release
Highly successful at the time, both in Hong Kong and as a cult film favorite with overseas enthusiasts of Hong Kong cinema, Mr. Vampire spawned four sequels, inspired numerous parodies and homage films. The film launched Lam Ching-ying's character, the unibrowed Taoist exorcist, whom he would portray not only in the Mr. Vampire sequels, but also in many other films, including unrelated ones.
Awards and nominations
Mr. Vampire won Best Original Film Score at the 5th Hong Kong Film Awards in 1986. It was also nominated for another 11 other awards as follows.
- Best Film
- Best Director (Ricky Lau)
- Best Supporting Actor (Lam Ching-ying, Billy Lau)
- Best New Performer (Billy Lau)
- Best Screenplay (Wong Ying, Barry Wong, Sze-to Cheuk-hon)
- Best Cinematography (Peter Ngor)
- Best Art Direction (Lam Sai-lok)
- Best Action Direction (Sammo Hung Stunt Team)
- Best Original Film Song (Gwai San Noeng)
Theme song
The film's theme song, Gwai San Noeng (鬼新娘; Ghost Bride), was performed by the Jie'er Choir (傑兒合唱團).
Sequels
Mr. Vampire spawned a number of sequels, including Mr. Vampire II, Mr. Vampire III and Mr. Vampire IV. Most do not relate to the first film but are set on the same themes. The same cast members appear in some films but they are recast in different roles. They are also other films of the Chinese vampire genre starring Lam Ching-ying, such as Encounters of the Spooky Kind II (1990) and Magic Cop (1990), or directed by Lam himself, such as Vampire Vs. Vampire (1989), which are all separate from the Mr. Vampire franchise.[1] In addition, Lam uses his real name for his character in some of the films he acted in.
A related television series titled Vampire Expert (殭屍道長) starring Lam Ching-ying was broadcast from 1996 to 1997. However, during the filming of the third season, Lam developed liver cancer and died before the project was completed. The first season of My Date with a Vampire, a television series produced by ATV, was specially dedicated to Lam, and the story was based on future events in Vampire Expert.
Theatrical play
Mr. Vampire was adapted into a theatrical play and was performed at the Cultural Centre's Studio Theatre in Hong Kong from 29 to 30 October 2010 as part of a Halloween theme.[2]
Home media
VHS
Release date Country Classifaction Publisher Format Language Subtitles Notes REF Unknown United States Unknown Rainbow Audio and Video Incorporation NTSC Cantonese English [3] 21 September 1988 Japan Unknown Pony Video NTSC Japanese(Dubbed) None [4] 19 June 1998 United States Unknown Tai Seng Entertainment NTSC Cantonese English [5] 19 October 1999 France Unknown HK Video NTSC Cantonese English [6] 24 January 2000 United Kingdom 15 Made in Hong Kong PAL Cantonese English [7] Laserdisc
Release date Country Classifaction Publisher Catalog No Format Language Subtitles Notes REF 1988 Japan N/A Pony Video LaserVision G88F0112 CLV / NTSC Cantonese Japanese Audio Mono [8] VCD
Release date Country Classifaction Publisher Format Language Subtitles Notes REF Unknown Hong Kong N/A Megastar (HK) NTSC Cantonese, Mandarin English, Chinese 2VCDs [9] Unknown Hong Kong N/A Deltamac (HK) NTSC Cantonese English, Traditional Chinese 2VCDs [10] 5 December 2003 China N/A Jiang Xi Wen Hua Yin Xiang Chu Ban She NTSC Mandarin English, Traditional Chinese 2VCDs [11] 7 Octover 2005 Taiwan N/A Xin Sheng Dai (TW) NTSC Mandarin Traditional Chinese 2VCDs [12] 25 February 2009 Hong Kong N/A Joy Sales (HK) NTSC Cantonese, Mandarin English, Traditional Chinese 2VCDs Digitally Remastered [13] DVD
Release date Country Classifaction Publisher Format Region Language Sound Subtitles Notes REF Unknown Hong Kong N/A Deltamac (HK) NTSC ALL Cantonese, Mandarin Dolby Digital 2.0 English, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese [14] Unknown Japan N/A Universal Pictures Japan NTSC 2 Cantonese, Japanese Dolby Digital Mono Japanese Digitally Re-mastered Box-set [15] 2001 Hong Kong N/A Mega Star NTSC ALL Cantonese and Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1 Cantonese, English, Thai, Vietnamese, Spanish [16] 22 April 2002 United Kingdom 15 Hong Kong Legends PAL 2 Cantonese,
English (Dubbed)Dolby Digital 5.1 English Digitally Re-mastered [17] 19 February 2004 France N/A HK Video PAL 2 Cantonese Dolby Digital French Box-set [18] 7 September 2004 United States PG-13 20th Century Fox NTSC 1 Cantonese,
English (Dubbed)Dolby Digital 5.1 English Digitally Re-mastered [19] 26 June 2005 Hong Kong N/A Joy Sales (HK) NTSC ALL Cantonese, Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS Digital Surround English, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese Digitally Re-mastered [20][21] 5 December 2007 Australia/
New ZealandM Magna Pacific PAL 4 Cantonese,
English (Dubbed)Dolby Digital 5.1 English Digitally Re-mastered [22] 8 July 2011 Japan N/A Paramount Home
Entertainment JapanNTSC 2 Cantonese Dolby Digital Japanese [23] References
- ^ IMDB database
- ^ "Mr. Vampire Theater". timeout.com.hk. http://www.timeout.com.hk/stage/features/37895/mr-vampire.html. Retrieved 12 November 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire (Geung si sin sang) (1985) - 1986 Golden Harvest Ltd./Rainbow Audio VHS". ghoulbasement.com. http://www.ghoulbasement.com/2011/07/mr-vampire-geung-si-sin-sang-1985-1986.html. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
- ^ "aoist spiritual vision (Japanese dub version) [VHS"]. amazon.co.jp. http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E9%9C%8A%E5%B9%BB%E9%81%93%E5%A3%AB-%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E8%AA%9E%E5%90%B9%E6%9B%BF%E7%89%88-VHS-%E3%83%AA%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC%E3%83%BB%E3%83%AA%E3%83%A5%E3%82%A6/dp/B00005MYVX. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
- ^ "Geung si sin sang [VHS"]. Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/Geung-si-sin-sang-VHS/dp/B000009N6I/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1316359259&sr=1-1. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr Vampire French". hkvideo.fr. http://www.hkvideo.fr/ficheVhs/31/. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr.Vampire [VHS"]. Amazon.co.uk. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mr-Vampire-VHS-Mr-Vampire/dp/B00004CUWL/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1316281009&sr=8-1. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire (Geung si sin sang) [IU81"]. urabanchou.com. http://www.urabanchou.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=928_944&products_id=77601. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
- ^ [http://www.cinemasie.com/en/fiche/video/2651/ "VCD Mr Vampire Megastar"]. cinemasie.com. http://www.cinemasie.com/en/fiche/video/2651/. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire VCD". yesasia.com. http://www.yesasia.com/us/mr-vampire/2319-0-0-0-en/info.html. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire (VCD) (China Version) VCD". yesasia.com. http://www.yesasia.com/us/mr-vampire-vcd-china-version/1002975813-0-0-0-en/info.html. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire (Taiwan Version) VCD". yesasia.com. http://www.yesasia.com/us/mr-vampire-taiwan-version/1004077436-0-0-0-en/info.html. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire (VCD) (Digitally Remastered) (Hong Kong Version) VCD". yesasia.com. http://www.yesasia.com/us/mr-vampire-vcd-digitally-remastered-hong-kong-version/1014419463-0-0-0-en/info.html. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire DVD Region All". yesasia.com. http://www.yesasia.com/us/mr-vampire/1000030202-0-0-0-en/info.html. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr.Vampire DVD Box [Limited Release"]. cdjapan.co.jp. http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=UALD-48819. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr.Vampire DVD Comparison". dvdbeaver.com. http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompare5/mrvampire.htm. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr Vampire [1985 [DVD]"]. amazon.co.uk. http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0000634DO/ref=nosim?tag=dvdbeaver-21&link_code=as2&creativeASIN=B0000634DO&creative=374929&camp=211189. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
- ^ "Mister Vampire : L'intégrale - Coffret 4 DVD". amazon.fr. http://www.amazon.fr/Mister-Vampire-Lint%C3%A9grale-Coffret-DVD/dp/B0001501Z8/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1316356868&sr=1-1. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire". amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0002CR08Q/devildead. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire (DVD) (Digitally Remastered) (Hong Kong Version) DVD Region All". yesasia.com. http://www.yesasia.com/us/mr-vampire-dvd-digitally-remastered-hong-kong-version/1004027212-0-0-0-en/info.html. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr.Vampire DVD Comparison". dvdbeaver.com. http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompare5/mrvampire.htm. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
- ^ "Mr. Vampire 12680". magnapacific.com.au. http://www.magnapacific.com.au/index.php?option=com_jmovies&Itemid=2&task=detail&id=228. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
- ^ "霊幻道士 デジタル・リマスター版 [DVD"]. amazon.co.jp. http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E9%9C%8A%E5%B9%BB%E9%81%93%E5%A3%AB-%E3%83%87%E3%82%B8%E3%82%BF%E3%83%AB%E3%83%BB%E3%83%AA%E3%83%9E%E3%82%B9%E3%82%BF%E3%83%BC%E7%89%88-DVD-%E3%83%AA%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC%E3%83%BB%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A6/dp/B004VC2T20/ref=sr_1_22?ie=UTF8&qid=1316357831&sr=8-22. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
External links
- Mr. Vampire at the Internet Movie Database
- Mr. Vampire at AllRovi
- Mr. Vampire at the Hong Kong Movie DataBase
The Mr. Vampire franchise Films directed by Ricky Lau Mr. Vampire (1985) • Mr. Vampire II (1986) • Mr. Vampire III (1987) • Mr. Vampire IV (1988) • Mr. Vampire 1992 (1992)Films directed by other directors New Mr. Vampire (1987) • Vampire Vs. Vampire (1989) • The Musical Vampire (1990) • Crazy Safari (1991) • The Ultimate Vampire (1991) • Exorcist Master (1993)Categories:- Hong Kong films
- 1985 films
- Hong Kong horror films
- 1980s comedy films
- 1980s horror films
- Comedy horror films
- Vampires in film and television
- Golden Harvest films
- Martial arts comedy films
- Martial arts horror films
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