Mr. Vampire III (1987)

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Lam Ching Ying returns as Master Gau the Vampire Buster in this unofficial sequel of "Mr. Vampire" (1985). Here, he is joined by another fellow Taoist priest named Mao Ming, played by Richard Ng of the "Pom Pom" and "Five Lucky Stars" movie series.While this film is titled "Mr. Vampire Part 3," the usual hopping vampires do not make an appearance in this movie. However, this story is still full of horror fun and an intriguing plot to follow; the two Taoists priests attempt to rid their village of an evil Sorceress and her henchmen, bent on conquest of the human race, with the help of Master Gau's slapstick disciples and Mao Ming's friendly ghost companions. Thrown into the mix is a sequence where live bats attack the protagonists and a mummy-like ghost in pursuance of Ming - providing originality in the film.Plenty of action, humor and suspense to entertain you throughout the movie, again overseen by Mr. Vampire director Ricky Lau. All these elements plus a delightful music score by Anders Nelsson make this film a great classic of the fantasy, horror and ghost genre and certainly a worthy "sequel" in the Mr. Vampire series.Grade A

Insane Hong Kong presentation! Maybe even more so than its previous outings. Coming out a year after the very average 1986 "Mr Vampire II", which kept the same idea but set the madness within modern times in a more family friendly tone. However director Ricky Leu's conviction would see the third entry of this atypical cult series goes back to its roots, presenting a period fantasy horror comedy that never lets up on its arrant lunacy... fear or the humour.A priest who rock ups in a town has two ghosts (his nephews) that he uses to scam people, by using them to do a haunting while then being hired to get rid of them. But that gets put on the back-burner when he bumps into the master and his loyal men. Putting things aside they join together to vanquish a witch and her army, but it ends up being no easy task..An abundance of endearing slapstick humour, vividly staged costume and set-designs, flamboyantly up-tempo martial arts / choreographed stunts, wacky performances and gimmicky, but cleverly used special effects. Everything is piled on, while not always coming off (namely the humour -- as it's really in-your-face); it just remains too much fun and the rapid pacing means it never gets bog down for long. The story is busy, busy, busy and Leu's direction is expansively flashy. The atmospheric horror actually installs some intriguingly artistic visuals with the imaginatively violent thrills being evenly served alongside the comedy of errors the characters were finding themselves stuck in. Vampires might no feature, but you get some spooky, menacing demons / spirits for the motley, but dedicated crew to take on. Lam Ching-Ying returns again as the straight-face master, in quite a rock-solid and assured performance. Around him everyone is chipping in with playfully palatable turns; Richard Ng, Billy Lau and Ho Kin Wai.Part 3 is a worthy, entertaining sequel.

Again, the Mr. Vampire series takes another turn with this installment. Rather than vampires as the evil force (as in the first two films), the Taoist priest (Lam Ching-Ying) must take on three demons.Nothing is really brought from the "Mr. Vampire" film, apart from maybe Lam Ching-Ying's character, (whether he is supposed to be the same actual man is never explained), but it doesn't really matter. The fantasy and horror elements in this film are great.It has great comedy and great action sequences. The use of the magical and superstitious ideas are fascinating. And the Taoist priest rituals are very entertaining. The fight sequences have that typical chaotic Honk Kong cinema feel, but the continuity is fine and it holds up well to this day - it's sense of humour definitely helps.It's much better than the second one, and for my tastes, as good as the first but in a different sense - it is not as accessible and requires that you be a least a little familiar with the background of the series, (however shallow that may be).Skip the second one and treat this as the REAL sequel, I say.

I went into this picture unsure whether I would even get through it. I hate scary films for the most part, and my husband isn't a big fan of that style either. But we were both pleasantly surprised with this movie! It is a pretty basic formula- Master teaching students how to fight Evil- but there is a humor that is consistent and leavens the spooky parts and the Big Bads. The two "pet" ghosts were a hoot too! I know that I may have enjoyed it more if I knew more about the culture and/or the two previous movies, but it was a fun/spooky ride! If you have kids that regularly take in Halloween or Scream-type movies, this will either be a massive bore or a fun change of pace.I had read a brief synopsis of this and went in hoping for some laughs, a couple of good scares and to be entertained. That is exactly what I got, which is not an everyday occurrence!