Mr. Vampire II

This wasn't a good film. I'm sure there are those that have nostalgic feelings for this film, but compared with the first film, this film just didn't live up to it at all. Other than having Chinese vampires in the film and Ching-Ying Lam returning (in another role) this film belongs in the category of sequels that got very little to do with the original. It was also made just one year after the original, which makes sense when you see the end result, since this film feels very rushed.

The plot is simple enough, some graverobbers/archaeologist find a cave with three vampires, one male, one female and a kid - a family. The baddies takes the bodies with them and plans on selling them on the black market, but ends up making a mess and release them out into society, where they end up causing havoc, sort of. The vampire kid gets separated from its parents and ends up befriending two normal kids, play around with them and have a fun time.

I made it sound quite easy now, but the plot really is all over the place, The first 30 minutes is all about the graverobbers and how they end up failing with their task to both sell the bodies or just keeping them secure, I had to check the time because I wondered why Ching-Ying Lam hadn't showed up yet, since he was supposed to have the lead role in this film (or that's what I thought at least.) This is more of an ensemble cast film, with many different plots to follow at the same time, but when it doesn't have any interesting characters or any cool world-building as the first film, you got not much left to cheer for with this film. There's not much fighting in the film, which isn't necessary anyway, it's a vampire film, not a kung fu film, but to have a whole side plot with the kid vampire just made this film so awkwardly sweet and not fitting to the rest of the film at all.

The part that made me give this 4 stars instead of 5 was when Ching-Ying Lam broke the fourth wall and told the police his qualifications about his Master Sammo (obviously Sammo Hung) and then listing previous better films than this one that he's been part of (Spooky Encounters, Mr Vampire etc.). It might've worked in Airplane, but not for a film like this. I will most likely not revisit this film since it does very little for the genre. I did not hate it, I was just very disappointed in what it was.

Don't watch it unless you really feel like you need to have seen all of the Chinese Vampire films. But again, this film does very little for the genre and is easily forgotten.

The hopping vampires return as the sequel to the classic Mr. Vampire moves the setting from ancient China to modern-day Hong Kong, and includes a whole family of bloodsuckers. Inevitably, the little vampire comes into contact with a young brother and sister team who confuse him for an illegal Chinese immigrant. Lam Ching Ying returns in his trademark role as he attempts to control and safely transport the vampires to their graves..

This sequel is partially designed for children, with a long heartwarming scene of human children and kid vampire, and the rest is the usual mayhem featuring hopping vampires, some Kung fu and chaotic scenes. I don't mind the modern setting, it suits the story, and though it's not as good the first one, it's still fun, though it gets tiring towards the end.

Zombie-like magic Vampire outbreak Three Stooges slapstick comedy Kung Fu fight scenes Kids movie about friendship Violent 1980's Hong Kong cop movie

You wouldn't think these genres mix but Mr. Vampire 2 somehow manages to mix them all and mix them really well. It creates a very unique and fun atmosphere. A world where anything goes, but somehow everything feels like it belongs together.

The individual elements of the movie work well enough. The action is good to very good. It's nowhere near the peak of 1980's Hong Kong action, but most people will be satisfied with the fighting and explosions. The acting is acceptable for this kind of movie. The story is easy to follow and doesn't get in the way of the fun. It's a decently made wild ride that accomplishes it's goal.

If this is your first time in the Mr. Vampire universe, you need to know ahead of time what you're getting into. This is not like any Hollywood or even standard Hong Kong action movie you'll ever see. You're not going to get a tight three act structure or well developed characters. That's not the point of this kind of movie. This is a live action cartoon. If you go in with an open mind about that you'll probably have a blast.

Technically Mr. Vampire 2 is a sequel to the original Mr. Vampire but it can be watched as it's own stand alone film. It takes place generations after the first film with very little connecting the two movies. If you watch Mr. Vampire 1 first, you'll get some Easter eggs in the second one, but that's about it. Mr. Vampire 1 has better action sequences and higher production values. Mr. Vampire 2 has an easier to follow story and is arguably funnier. Both are well worth watching.

MR. VAMPIRE was a comedy horror classic that very nearly equalled the heights of Sammo Hung's ENCOUNTERS OF THE SPOOKY KIND, so this sequel has its work cut out from the outset. And it's fair to say that it doesn't come close to equalling the power, atmosphere or feel of the original movie. That doesn't mean it's a bad film - in fact, it's a pretty good example of its type - just don't go in expecting more of the same.

This time around, a family of vampires (mother, father, and son) are excavated by an archaeologist (ENCOUNTERS star Fat Chung) and before long the usual hijinks ensue. This time, the film is divided into sub-plots between three groups of characters; one of them involves the archaeologists trying to make amends for their mess, another involves the antics of the vampire kid trying to integrate into family life, and a third sees the return of the one-eyebrowed priest, played by Lam Ching-Ying.

It's disappointing that Lam Ching-Ying gets a lot less screen-time this time around, although the producers do make up for that by casting Yuen Biao in a central role; a disappointment then that Biao doesn't get to take part in much martial arts. Too much of the narrative is taken up by the vampire kid, although things do hit a high note at the climax which offers more of the traditional vampire action that you'd expect. Sadly, the film's centre-point gag, which sees the action taking place in slow motion, goes on for way too long and just isn't very funny.

This film is a complete change in tone from "Mr. Vampire". This sequel is really only an extension of the vampire-gone-loose idea, and is set in modern times. We have very little brought from the original, and what is brought (Lam Ching-Ying), is quite dis-connected anyway.

That said, this film is quite odd. Lam Ching-Ying is excellent as usual as the kind of hard-case Taoist priest, and we seem him up against vampires in the usual sense. Yuen Biao is quite under-used as the Taoist Priest's off-sider, and is quite clumsy and reluctant to engage in kung-fu technique it seems. I was waiting for him to really do something but it never really came for me. Most of this film is wrestling back and forth with a pair of vampires.

The vampires are portrayed (for my tastes), as too human. Whereas in Mr. Vampire 1, the corpse is sort of without personality, and has ceased being human, the vampires in this film are really portrayed as a family unit. We are asked to sympathise with them quite often.

Do not expect anything like Mr. Vampire 1 and you'll be fine. If you do, you may have to see it at least twice as I have to judge it on it's own merits. It really is a very separate film to the original, and the title does it more harm than good I believe.