View Full Version : Bouncing Chinese Ghosts - What Film?
About 10 years back, over the Christmas season I think, either BBC2 or Channel 4 ran a season of films under the title "Chinese Ghost Stories". I can't remember much about it (lots of "christmas spirit" going around you see ;)) other than it was utterly fantastic and I'd love to track some of these films down on DVD if they are available. I've been crawling through the darkest recesses of the web but can't come up with any details at all. Does anyone remember the names of any of the movies from this season?
In particular I remember one totally bizarre movie featuring bouncing ghosts - I've got a distinct picture in my head of a ghost pogoing along outside a Chinese period building but can't remember anything else whatsoever. If that limited but distinctive memory could help anyone recognise what film I'm on about then I'd be eternally grateful...! :)
sounds like "MR. VAMPIRE" to me.
Brian Blessed Badger
04-11-2001, 19:30
possibly Mr Vampire
lot's of hopping vampires - R0 HK version out now, HKL version due sometime on 2002
Phil
Much thanks guys - going to check on the DVD specs now and if there's English subtitles I'll order myself an early Xmas present I think :). If anyone remembers any of the other movies from this season I'd still be interested to hear...
Most likely:
- Mr Vampire (lam ching-ying)
- Encounters of the spooky kind (Sammo Hung)
reviews for both are at DDUk below.
try www.dddhouse.com for Mr Vampire (good pic with eng subs) for around £7
It will also be released by HKL next June, who have just released the excellent "Encounters of the spooky kind" which is around £10 from play.com and under18.org.uk
Originally posted by tpr007
Most likely:
- Mr Vampire (lam ching-ying)
- Encounters of the spooky kind (Sammo Hung)
reviews for both are at DDUk below.
try www.dddhouse.com for Mr Vampire (good pic with eng subs) for around £7
It will also be released by HKL next June, who have just released the excellent "Encounters of the spooky kind" which is around £10 from play.com and under18.org.uk
Thanks for the info... I've had a dig around on the IMDB and both films sound familiar (and the pic of Mr Vampire is *definitely* familiar) so perhaps they both appeared in the TV season.
Have ordered Mr Vampire now - couldn't find it on dddhouse so had to pay a little more elsewhere. £10.99 for the HKL disc of Encounters from Play seems a bargain so I've gone with that one too :)
I remember watching Mr Vampire all those years ago and still have a copy of it somewhere on video (taped of the telly).
I wonder if it's still as good as I remember, my wife still takes the p about the bouncing Vampires when I mention it.
Sorry just read the rest of your thread so after hunting through my old tapes the films shown at the time were:
ROUGE
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE SPOOKY KIND
ZU - WARRIORS FROM MAGIC MOUNTAIN
SPRITUAL LOVE
and of course our old favourite
MR VAMPIRE
Much thanks indeed <b>Grumpy</b> for checking those tapes of yours... I've been trying to find out what films were in that season for *ages*. Cheers! :D
Mr Vampire & Mr Vampire 2 are in different places on DDDhouse
one is in "Chinese/Hong Kong" section, the other is in "Horror"
with P&P to UK it would have cost just under a tenner anyway!
dangermouse
04-11-2001, 20:52
Yeah I definately remember watching Mr Vampire 2 on Channel 4 a few years ago - really funny it was too! :D
Excellent - managed to find and order 4 out of 5 of the movies from the season (couldn't find Spiritual Love, but I don't recall that one at all so it can't have been much cop!) for around a tenner apiece.
Some nice reviews on your site too <b>tpr007</b> which helped... I'll definitely be bookmarking this for future reference :).
Thanks a lot!
If u r into HK films and the like, there are at least 3 places u should visit:
- Dragons Den (in signature) a growing database of reviews and articles etc. I can be contacted here, and am always keen to help. I'm not the webmaster though.
- http://www.bulletsnbabesdvds.com a good site for HK/Action films. Up to the minute news and UK specific. A great forum too.
- http://www.asiandvdguide.com a site which lists almost every DVD version of released HK films. a forum too, but not as friendly or helpful as the bullets one.
At all these places I am known as tpr007. always happy to be of service!
I also have seen a really good chinese film on channel 4 in the past but I'm having trouble identifying it. If anyone can help me with it i will appreciate it. Heres what i remember: the were a lot of demons in it, a lot of period houses and there was a fight on a log in a river. The title Chinese Ghost story or something like that is familiar but I've checked this on the net and dont recognise the screenshots. Can anyone help?
Thanks
There are 3 films in the "A Chinese Ghost Story" series.
the first part has Definitely been on UK tv. not sure about the other 2
That Channel 4 season seems to be the start of Hong Kong film addiction for a lot of people!
One of my first ever posts in this forum was to ask what that film that was on Channel 4 years ago with the hopping vampires in it!
<a href="http://www.hongkonglegends.co.uk">Hong Kong Legends</a> are doing a special edition Mr Vampire next year. I can't wait!
Mr Vampire
04-11-2001, 23:24
Originally posted by tpr007
- http://www.asiandvdguide.com a site which lists almost every DVD version of released HK films. a forum too, but not as friendly or helpful as the bullets one.
Can't be helped by me, Crazybee, Yellow Hammer et al :p
Seriously, some people do either put lame questions across (things they could do by searching on the Asian DVD Guide for they ask silly questions about) or are very vocal about squat.
You can also have a look at the internatinal forum at http://www.dvdtalk.com/forums and look at the newbie thread for ideas of what to watch. Trigger's usually helpful there.
A post by the Man himself: Mr V!!!!!!!!!!1
nuff said.
I'd assume with a name like that, u like Lam Ching-Ying?
If so, next months Impact mag (UK) has a piece by me on him! Check it out!
Shingster
04-11-2001, 23:30
Originally posted by tpr007
There are 3 films in the "A Chinese Ghost Story" series.
the first part has Definitely been on UK tv. not sure about the other 2
Channel 4 showed part 1 & I think BBC2 showed part 2. I don't think part 3 has graced our screens yet. :(
There's also a follow-up to 'Encounters of the Spooky Kind', imaginatively entitled 'Spooky Encounters'. -Fantastic fight at the end between Sammo Hung and two snake spirits, one of whom is played by HK stuntman supremo Ngai Sing, who is currently strutting his stuff for 'Matrix 2'.
The Dead and the Deadly is also worth a look. Directed by Wu Ma it does not have as many fights as the Spooky Encounters films, but what exists is top drawer!! Also stars the mighty Sammo Hung
Mr Vampire 2 is also fantastic with Jackie Chan 'younger brother' Yuen Biao delivering the goods in all departments
As a side issue, Chinese vampires are much cooler than the Eastern European variety. These guys take themselves much too seriously, floating around at night with their B-movie accents and slicked back hair, sprouting fangs at the slightest mention of a silk -clad virgin.
In any case, anyone who wears a cloak on a regular basis just has to be gay!
If Dracula had been in Mr Vampire, he would have got his ass kicked-big time!!
Hi, chinese vampire fans!
Just to inform you that the grand-daddy of them all is a fantasic, so-far-ahead-of-its-time-its-unbelievable collaboration between HAMMER FILMS (makers of the Christopher Lee/Peter Cushing horror movies) and SHAW BROTHERS ( old-school chinese kung-fu movies from the 70's) called LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES.
This amazing film features Peter Cushing as Van Helsing heading east to take on Dracula in his new hunting ground - China!
anybody with the remotest interest in chinese vampires should get this DVD (i believe there is a good R1 version out there).
Ok from what I vaguely remember (please correct me if I'm wrong) it was...
Circa 1989 - BBC2 screen A Chinese Ghost Story
X-Mas 1990 - Channel 4 screen - Esprit D'Amour, Mr Vampire, Zu & possibly others;
X-mas 1991 - Channel 4 screen - Jackie Chan season (Project A, Police Story, Wheels on Meals, Armour of God)
X-mas 1992 - Channel 4 screen - Godzilla season (Various)
X-mas 1993 - Channel 4 screen - Rouge, Spiritual Love, Mr Vampire, Zu, Encounters of the Spooky Kind
Since then allsorts! :clap:
Cheers all for the excellent info... I've been digging through the various links provided and reading up on this fascinating genre. Although I've been wondering about that old C4 season for ages, I'd recently picked up Bride With White Hair 1 & 2 and A Chinese Ghost Story which I thought were outstanding so I've had an even greater urge to rewatch the movies from all those xmas' ago.
I've asked a few people over the years about "that bouncing ghost movie" but no-one knew what I was on about, so I'm surprised, and really pleased, to see how popular and respected these films are... wish I had asked on here ages ago! I can see that this'll lead to total financial ruin for me now though, as there's a whole stack of films I'd never heard of this time yesterday that now top my "most wanted dvds" list! :D
wong fei hong
06-11-2001, 01:00
Originally posted by Shingster
Channel 4 showed part 1 & I think BBC2 showed part 2. I don't think part 3 has graced our screens yet. :(
All three parts of Chinese Ghost Story have definitely been shown on FilmFour... as usual, the first is by far the best.
BTW, this Wednesday night at 10.30 FilmFour are showing Johnnie To's The Mission... tune in, kids!
barcelona26051999
06-11-2001, 10:14
Originally posted by tpr007
Most likely:
- Mr Vampire (lam ching-ying)
- Encounters of the spooky kind (Sammo Hung)
reviews for both are at DDUk below.
try www.dddhouse.com for Mr Vampire (good pic with eng subs) for around £7
It will also be released by HKL next June, who have just released the excellent "Encounters of the spooky kind" which is around £10 from play.com and under18.org.uk
Thanks for the info on Play 247 regarding Encounters of the spooky kind' which I have just ordered. Can't wait till June 2002 for Mr Vampire. I also really enjoyed Magic Cop, which I believe is Mr Vampire 4 (possible 5) anyone know if this or any other of the Mr Vampire series will be coming out on DVD?
KeyserSoze
06-11-2001, 10:32
can anyone rip the subtitles for Chinese Ghost story for me please ?
not quite sure how to do it though :)
kenedaaaaa !!!
Magic Cop is a seperate film, in a modern day setting. Not technically part of the Mr Vampire series, although it does have Lam Ching-ying fighting dead people. No actual vampires!
my review for Magic Cop is at Dragons Den. I recommend it for those that can find it!
Originally posted by wong fei hong
All three parts of Chinese Ghost Story have definitely been shown on FilmFour... as usual, the first is by far the best.
i prefer the sequel myself...
Shingster
06-11-2001, 16:26
Originally posted by Garry Cowell
Ok from what I vaguely remember (please correct me if I'm wrong) it was...
Circa 1989 - BBC2 screen A Chinese Ghost Story
X-Mas 1990 - Channel 4 screen - Esprit D'Amour, Mr Vampire, Zu & possibly others;
X-mas 1991 - Channel 4 screen - Jackie Chan season (Project A, Police Story, Wheels on Meals, Armour of God)
X-mas 1992 - Channel 4 screen - Godzilla season (Various)
X-mas 1993 - Channel 4 screen - Rouge, Spiritual Love, Mr Vampire, Zu, Encounters of the Spooky Kind
Since then allsorts! :clap:
You shouldn't have listed this Gary, you've sent me into a sentimental haze as the '91 JC seasons created my need for HK cinema. In fact '91-'93 where my favoutrite Christmases ever, so just reminding me of the films from then has put me right back there! Ahh bliss!!!
Chestnuts Roasting on an open fire.....
vBulletin® v3.8.7, Copyright ©2000-2012, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.