Mr. Vampire (1985) October 3rd, 2024

Last October (2023) we got our first taste of the new-to-us hopping-vampire genre with Encounters of the Spooky Kind. This year we sunk our teeth deeper with a feature length sample of Mr. Vampire. After this second helping, I’m in the mood for a whole Kung Fu-Horror-Comedy buffet!

I highly recommend Mr. Vampire for those in the mood for lighthearted slapstick and high quality martial arts acrobatics. Billed as a horror-comedy, Mr. Vampire‘s weighted heavily towards the latter like a Kung Fu cross between Evil Dead II and The Pink Panther. I can’t speak for you, but I love absurd plots involving mismanaged burials, kissing cousins, and a seductive she-ghost supported by a foundation of awesome Kung Fu antics.

The premise requires the audience to accept that in this world skilled mystics and morticians harness the power to control and contain the hopping vampires. These sorceries are hardly foolproof as proven by the antics of our cast of imbecilic apprentices. Listing and, god forbid, explaining each funny blunder would be like driving a stake through the comedic heart of Mr. Vampire… or whatever is the equivalent for hopping vampires. If you’re open to getting some spooky chocolate in some silly peanut butter then look no further than Mr. Vampire.