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Starring
:
Lam
Ching Ying
Richard
Ng
Billy
Lau
Wong
Yuk Waan
Lui
Fong
Hoh
Kin Wai
Fung
Lee
Action
:
Hung
Ga Ban
Lam
Ching Ying
Stephen
Tung Wai
Producer
:
Sammo
Hung
Director
:
Ricky
Lau
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MR.
VAMPIRE 3 (1987)
A.K.A.
- Mister Vampire III
Reviewed
by Tony Ryan
After
the lacklustre sequel to the classic 'Mr.
Vampire', I had fairly low expectations going into this
instalment. Fortunately, Ricky Lau clearly went back to the
original to see what made it so effective and has created a
far more faithful sequel here.
The
problem with part 2 was mainly the modern setting and the
minimal convergence between the 2 disparate storylines.
However, in this addition to the series we go back to a period
setting and focus purely on the one adventure. Lam Ching Ying
has again reprised his role as the titular Mr. Vampire and is
as assured as ever. His screen presence is excellent as
always, and cleverly strikes a balance between playing it
straight but not taking things too seriously. The main enemy
on this occasion is not a Vampire, but a Witch played
brilliantly by Wong Yuk Waan. Richard Ng provides comic relief
as a bumbling Taoist priest aided by 2 ghosts, whom he uses to
scare people into hiring him. He inadvertently joins forces
with Lam and his students to fight the Witch, and is as
reliable as ever getting plenty of dialogue, screen time and
the bulk of comedy moments.
As
mentioned, this film is far more similar to the original, and
as a result is a more enjoyable experience than the
disappointing part 2. However, it still fails to recreate much
of the magic that made the original such a fan favourite. As
expected, it is less fresh, but it also feels a little rushed,
and none of the characters are particularly well developed.
Perhaps the director felt we all knew what to expect, but
making the audience care about the characters’ fate is an
important ingredient in films such as this.
Overall,
this is a worthy purchase for fans of the genre, and the
minimal action is well handled and true to the spirit of the
genre. As ever, Lam Ching Ying steals the show and reminds us
all what an underrated performer he was.
Rating:
  
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