Encounters of the Spooky Kind

 

Encounters of the Spooky Kind     鬼打鬼

1980

Director- Sammo Hung

Cast- Sammo Hung, Chung Fat, Lam Ching-ying, Jonny Chan, To Siu-ming, Huang Ha, Leung Suet-mei

From Hong Kong

 

                Martial arts legend Sammo Hung plays Bold Cheung, a blue collar guy with a reputation for being fearless and the toughest guy around. Despite this rep he’s a pretty down to Earth guy, just trying to make a buck and deal with his wife who makes it pretty obvious that she doesn’t think too highly of him.

                Early in the story he takes a bet with his friends. He has to sit in front of a mirror in a cemetery and peel an apple with one cut (this was apparently their version of Bloody Mary). It’s supposed to be a prank but a real ghost appears though Cheung is able to fight it off.

                When he’s not getting into supernatural shenanigans, Cheung makes end’s meet by taxiing a local politician around town. Little does Cheung know that this same politician is carrying on an affair with his wife.  Cheung discovers that his wife has been unfaithful but doesn’t know who she’s been with. The politician, fearing that Cheung will ruin him, puts out a hit on Cheung. However, Cheung has a rep of being tough so rather than going with a hitman, the politician decides to go with black magic.

                He hires a rogue Taoist priest who promises to kill Cheung with sorcery. Cheung is lured into an abandoned temple where he must fend off a Jiangshi (hopping vampire). Luckily for Cheung, the evil Taoist has a brother, Priest Tsui (Chung Fat) who practices good magic and does his best to help Cheung. Amidst all of this, Cheung’s wife has gone missing and Cheung is framed for murder. The local police inspector (Lam Ching-ying) is looking for Cheung. Cheung has to duck the police, while looking for his wife and studying  with Priest Tsui to learn how to protect himself from more black magic.

                Encounters of the Spooky Kind is a great example of the creative movies that were being made in Hong Kong during the 80s and 90s.  It blends multiple genres (in this case, horror, comedy and action) to make a very entertaining story. A lot of the linguistic humor is lost in translation but there is still plenty of effective slapstick. The martial arts is as good as Shaw Brothers ( though certainly not as intense).

                Sammo’s fingerprints are all over this movie. Besides being the main character, he also wrote and directed the film. If you are wanting something genuinely scary, this is not the film for you. However, if you want to see a master at action and see a type of film making that is frankly rare nowadays, check out Encounters of the Spooky Kind.

Fun fact- Chung Fat and Lam Ching-ying would have other run ins with hopping vampires besides this film. Lam Ching-ying was the star of the immensely popular Mr. Vampire. Chung Fat starred in some Mr. Vampire sequels as well as the modern Mr. Vampire homage, Rigor Mortis.

Fun fact #2- All three of the main stars, Sammo Hung, Chung Fat and Lam Ching-ying worked with Bruce Lee on Enter the Dragon.

Want more Hong Kong magnificence? Check out Chinese Ghost Story!