The new box set- Made in Hong Kong: Volume One– from Vinegar Syndrome is a deliciously demented collection of three Category III shockers.
I’ve always been such a fan of the infamous Category III films and have written about my favorites here. With the passing of Hong Kong’s film censorship law in 1988, it banned anyone under the age of 18 from seeing these films, much like America’s NC-17. But rather than ghettoizing, Category III ripped open the floodgates for taboo-busting films filled with sex, violence and whacked-out humor and were financial hits. Actors like Anthony Wong, who was a primary force in these films was able to jump back and forth working with mainstream directors like Ringo Lam and John Woo and then back to turning out deranged Category III sickies like The Untold Story and Ebola Syndrome. On this box set is an entertaining extra: Anthony Wong: The Category III King. The films in this collection (and, dear God, hopefully there will be more) were made late in the game, after the handover from the British, but still ripple with deranged outrages.
I so miss my days roaming through Chinatown with my checklist, browsing the bins of DVDs and VCDs at several stores I frequented weekly. Often titles I hunted for were only available on VCDs, which looked even crappier than an old VHS tape. So, to see these three in pristine glory, scanned from negatives, is astounding to me.
The Demon’s Baby (1998) Director and writer Kant Leung’s (Violent Cop) period costume piece set during the Ching dynasty about a greedy General (Elvis Tsui– another Category III legend) who foolishly breaks open a sacred crypt and discovers and brings home four jars with trapped demonic spirits inside. When the entities break free they infect the General’s four pregnant wives. It’s up to a chef- Day-Six (Emotion Cheung) and Little Fish (Annie Wu), the pretty maid he is in love with, to stop the evil from spreading.
Anthony Wong shows up as a weirdo priest who sleeps in coffins and begrudgingly agrees to help the cook fight the demonic forces.
The film really livens up when the pregnant wives break open to reveal toothy creatures in their bellies hungry for live chickens, dogs and eventually members of the Court.
Erotic Nightmare (1999) my personal favorite of the set (and a nod to A Nightmare on Elm Street) directed by Wai-Man Cheng (Troublesome Night). The sublime Anthony Wong stars as a sexually frustrated married businessman named Lok Yep, whose wife’s delicate health keeps them from conjugal bliss.
While on the job, he is approached by a strange bald sorcerer named Fong (Ting Yip Ng) who offers him satisfying erotic dreams at $1,000 a pop.
But the dreams come with lethal consequences- first killing off his dog and then his mother’s body is discovered dismembered and jammed in a suitcase. He keeps paying Fong to remove the curse but things only get worse. His brother Lok Man (Tin-chiu Wan) comes from Malaysia with sorcery of his own and goes to battle with the evil Fong, also freeing Fong’s horrifyingly abused wife. The final magical comeuppance is so outrageous and twisted it reminded me how refreshingly politically incorrect these movies can be.
The Deadly Camp (1999) Usually referred to as the Hong Kong Friday the 13th, this horror film owes more to movies like Anthropophagus or Horror on Snape Island. A bunch of kids head off to a remote island for fun and games. Well, we know how that will end.
There is a marauding killer living deep in the jungle, covered in bloody bandages and he begins violently dispatching the kids with a machete and booby traps laid out in the wilds.
Anthony Wong shows up as a very unlucky, horny vacationer.
There are illuminating audio commentaries and video essays by film historians. Also, an excellent insert booklet with terrific essays by Bruce Holecheck, Erica Schltz and Kam Po Lam.
A cause for sick celebration.
Looking very exciting!