(1980)
Dir - Tsui Hark
Overall: MEH
The sophomore effort from Chinese filmmaker Tsui Hark, We're Going to Eat You, (as the title rather easily demonstrates), is a horror comedy about cannibals because yes. It was not a hit in its native Hong Kong and that is not too surprising upon viewing. The structure is both tedious and inconsistent. All of the characters are either bumbling, limp-willed jackasses or supernaturally dexterous kung-fu warriors depending on who is supposed to escape or get killed in a particular fight. As far as those fights go, there are way too many of them. It gets to the point where the dialog in between scenes of people constantly avoiding machete blows seems to fly by in an instant, leaving an unheralded amount of screen time to more and more boringly choreographed chase and fight scenes. Worse yet, the movie is not very funny. Repeated attempts at humor are made at the expense of a large, alarmingly ugly transvestite who wants to rape the two main guys. Also, the film manages to throw in hi-jinks involving barely fleshed-out secondary characters, including one utterly random scene where a blind guy we do not know almost pees on someone. Before the gags run out of steam and the premise overstays its welcome, it is mildly dumb and unworthy of one's scorn at least.
(1981)
Dir - Ko Young-nam
Overall: GOOD
This low-key, psychological horror outing from prolific director Ko Young-nam, (and scripted by the equally busy Sam-yuk Yoon), is somewhat of a throwback to the British supernatural films of the late 60s and early 70s with a knowing nod to Italian giallos as well. Stylistically, this is a slow boil, perhaps too slow for some tastes as its rather repetitive nature and largely barren soundtrack rev up so gradually that the plausibility of some character's behavior comes into question. On that note, Suddenly At Midnight, (Suddenly in the Dark, Suddenly in Dark Night), has a persistent theme of a housewife whose mental stability is either illogically disregarded or seen as a pestering annoyance for those that expect such women in modern society to behave complacently. Though it arguably pushes this "it is all in your imagination" cliche a little too far, it is still expertly done. As the best of these film's often do, the viewer is never 100% let in on the "reality" of the situation, even during the wonderfully tense and creepy finale. This one is a study of a modern woman's anxiety overwhelming them in a disturbing way, how preoccupied husbands and friends can consistently be unsympathetic, and at the same time, it is a good ole spooky ghost story that has the utmost patience to deliver its chills.
(1987)
Dir - Ching Siu-tung
Overall: MEH
Following in the popular tradition of other such supernatural horror comedies from Hong Kong except utilizing a larger budget, A Chinese Ghost Story became one of the best-regarded movies of its kind. A combination of several works from Qing dynasty author Pu Songling's Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio, the film spawned a few sequels, (including an animated one), and remake since no profitable horror franchise can ever be left alone. While fun and over the top in several instances, it is still imperfect. Only the third film from Ching Siu-tung, the pacing is actually too brisk, as set pieces cruise by so fast that hardly any of the mythology gets a chance to be explained. Still, viewers who are already familiar with much of the cinematic folklore about evil, Chinese spirits via the likes of say Mr. Vampire will be able to follow along without any issues. Unlike Category III exploitation movies from the era, gore and macabre visuals instead give way to a lighthearted fairy-tale framework, even though a giant demon tongue does attack some characters for one of its most memorable moments. Ineffective and incessant musical cues also become off-putting and downright bizarre in one instance when Wu Ma's Taost swordsman spontaneously turns the movie into a musical for one scene and one scene only.
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