Talk about ‘Yuletide Cheer.” This incredible box set from Shout! Factory includes 6 whacked-out Hong Kong treats from the early 1990s, many of them of the “adults only” “Category III” persuasion. And all exquisitely remastered with all the sex and violence you could possibly want over the holidays.
There are many things I miss about New York, but I really miss my weekly journey to Chinatown to go through the bins of DVDs and VCDs searching for the most notorious of the Category III shockers. I bought plenty of books on Hong Kong cinema, and any review that described a title as “distasteful,” or “depraved,” made my list to hunt for. During the early 90s the Hong Kong film industry cranked out a ton of tasteless costumed sex comedies or “based on true crime” shockers. I wrote about some of my favorites before, but the quality of the DVDs were often crummy or non-anamorphic. Since it was the best we were going to get of these crackpot films, I never cared. Re-watching these films on this box set was rather a revelation, because you can revel in the incredible art direction and bravery of the actors who disrobed and cavorted in these loony films.
Sex & Zen (1991) was the most top-selling erotic film of all-time in Hong Kong and really set the tone for scores of films to come. Set in the Ming Dynasty and based on a 17th Century novel “The Carnal Prayer Mat,” by Li Yu, it’s about a scholar (Lawrence Ng) who weds a virginal heiress (Amy Yip) but travels for more sexual adventures, distressed by what he lacks in sexual equipment. He meets a magical doctor who actually transplants a horse’s penis onto him during a stormy night (that scene alone will leave you howling, or whinnying). Meanwhile, his sexually frustrated wife, practices vaginal calligraphy with a brush (don’t ask) and embarks on a hot affair with her gardener (Elvis Tsui) who tricks her and sells her to a brothel madam (Carrie Ng). It ends on somewhat of a moral lesson with a monk, but it’s just an excuse to revel in wild sexual hijinks and questionable humor. It’s also a hoot!
One of the extras on these discs is about actress Amy Yip, the buxom queen of these Category III films. Actresses were stigmatized by being in these movies and found it hard to break into more mainstream fare. There are notable exceptions like Taiwanese actress Shu Qi, who won awards for the 1996 film Viva Erotica, or Carrie Ng, who won the 1993 Golden Horse Film Festival “Best Actress” award for her true-crime shocker- Remains of a Woman. What Amy Yip did was different- she refused to show her nipples or private parts. She disrobed but it was side shots or carefully cloaked. It was a savvy marketing device to keep filmgoers coming to see her films in hopes that more would be revealed.
Erotic Ghost Story (1990) is directed by Ngai Choi Lam (who did the jaw-dropping Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky). It’s another period piece where three fairies who have achieved human form (So Man, Hitomi Kudo & Amy Yip), who live in the mountains are about to achieve immortality. But they all ill-advisedly have sex with a sweet, poor, scholar (Lap-Man Tan) who lives in a shack with his books. Unfortunately, he is really the wicked 3-faced demon Wu-Tang and there’s a violent show-down at the end with black magic and devil dolls in this enjoyable, crackpot, sexed-up, fable.
Erotic Ghost Story II (1991) The sexual exploits of evil spirit Wu Tang (Anthony Wong, complete with white fright wig, kabuki makeup and penis-shaped tail), who forces villagers to feed him a steady diet of virgins. Imagine blue midget magicians, underwater sex scenes, chintzy costumes and lots of Lawrence Welk bubbles. The finale sees the virginal heroine melting the block of ice encasing her boyfriend with her nude body.
Erotic Ghost Story III (1992). During the Tang Dynasty, a warrior and his betrothed, take shelter in an abandoned temple where they encounter the magical Reverend Wick (Shing Fu On), who has the power to shrink himself down to microscopic size. The warrior becomes hypnotized by a painting and steps into another dimension where he rescues a vixen from the clutches of an evil queen (who even sports a penis). But if he doesn’t come back to the real world before a coil of incense burns down he risks being trapped in the magical realm forever.
Doctor Vampire (1990) Not part of the “hopping vampire” Chinese horror films. This is more Western-style. Dr. Chiang (Bowie Lam), a young virginal physician, whose car breaks down in England finds a nearby castle which is actually a brothel and hotbed of female vampires, who all do the bidding of their boss (Peter Kjaer). The Vampire Master then toothily samples the hands of his vampire courtesans afterwards and goes nuts over the taste of the young doctor- “This is better than ginseng!” He journeys to Hong Kong to feast. But a female vampire (Ellen Chan) falls for the doctor and tries to protect him from become a full-fledged bloodsucker. There are rude bits- like a living dead corpse in a hospital gown (and boner) chasing down a nurse, and other whacky fights with the lead vampire- who was actually a martial arts stunt man, and whose physical feats make up for his atrocious acting. Just bonkers.
Robotrix (1991) Wild, sexed-up, RoboCop-inspired action film about a policewoman, fatally wounded in a shoot-out, who has her memories put into a curvaceous robotic creation to combat an evil Japanese mastermind. A highlight is another robot (buxom Amy Yip) posing as a prostitute, having rather enthusiastic sex with her customers out of curiosity as to what human sexuality is all about. Even one of the undercover cops puts on a disguise and gets in line to have a romp with her. Lots of action and soft-core sex with a dash of science thrown in for good luck.
Trust me, this deranged box set is better than sitting through A Christmas Story for the zillionth time, that’s for damn sure.
