Eureka Entertainment present one of legendary director Sammo Hung’s finest works on Blu-ray (a worldwide debut of this brand-new 2K restoration on home video), for the first time in the UK as part of the Eureka Classics range.
A ground-breaking, genre-making, supernatural, kung-fu horror comedy, starring, written and directed by Sammo Hung. Also known as “Spooky Encounters”, its Chinese name translates as “Ghost Fights Ghost”.
“ENCOUNTER OF THE SPOOKY KIND” releases on Blu-ray: 21st June 2021, pre-order your copy now from Eureka Entertainment and Amazon! STAY TUNED and ENTER our COMPETITION so you can WIN YOUR COPY too!
Trailer
Cast
Sammo Hung stars as “Big Guts/ Bold Cheung”, a kindly but naive villager who is taken advantage of by his wife and the wicked Master Tam.
In a career spanning six decades, Sammo has worked with some of the best in the business, from Bruce Lee to Jackie Chan. His work as a performer, choreographer and director helped to reshape and evolve modern screen- fighting action as we know it.
Yuen Biao was a stunt double
From his earliest works such as “Iron Fisted Monk”, “Warriors Two”, “Knockabout”, “The Prodigal Son”, to his comedies and collaborations with his fellow “Fortunes” opera brothers, including “The Lucky Stars Trilogy”, “Eastern Condors”, “Wheels on Meals”, “Pedicab Driver”, to modern-day hits such as “SPL/ Kill Zone”, “Call of Heroes”, “Ip Man”, “Paradox” and “The Bodyguard”, there are very few others who have delivered such a variety of action to consistently high quality levels over such a long career.
A student of Madame Fan Fok Fa’s Peking Opera School, Chung Fat plays “Priest Tsui”. He started off his movie career as an extra on the movie “Enter The Dragon”, and can be seen as one of the fighters who takes on Bolo Yeung. A frequent collaborator with Sammo, he has appeared in “Warriors Two“, “The Prodigal Son”, “Magnificent Butcher”, “Yes Madam/Police Assassins”, “She Shoots Straight”, to name but a few.
Sammo bares all to protect his soul
A supporting actor in classics such as “Fist of Fury“, “The Iron Fisted Monk“, “Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow“, “Knockabout” and many more, Peter Chan Lung, here plays “Priest Chin Hoi”.
Director, Action Choreographer and actor, Huang Ha, plays the wicked “Master Tam”. He has appeared in “Drunken Master“, “The Odd Couple” and “Mr Vampire“.
The face of the “Jiangshi” (hopping vampire) genre, Lam Ching-ying is “The Inspector”. A star of Sammo’s “The Prodigal Son”, he would go on to find fame in the “Mr Vampire” series of films, and the similarly-themed “Magic Cop”.
Getting to grips with the ghosts
Familiar character actor Wu Ma plays “Ah Chiu Fa Kau”, who challenges Cheung to prove he is the bravest man in the village. Wu Ma appeared in over 240 films and is best known to fans for his roles in “Righting Wrongs”, “Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars” and “A Chinese Ghost Story“.
Plot
Claiming to fear nothing, Bold Cheung is challenged to spend the night in a haunted house during the traditional Chinese Ghost Festival. He must peel an apple in front of a mirror, but if he breaks the skin, then the spirits will come for him! His friend is actually pranking him, but a real spirit appears, and the scene is set for Bold Cheung’s spooky encounters!
Cheung suspects his wife of fooling around
Cheung’s employer Master Tam fears his affair with Cheung’s wife will be discovered. He hires a priest specialising in the supernatural, Chin Hoi, to get rid of Cheung. When Chin mentions this to his partner Priest Tsui, Tsui gets angry. On his way to the trap set for him, Cheung bumps into Tsui, who tells him how to protect himself against the “jiangshi”, or reanimated corpses.
After surviving his encounter with the undead, Cheung returns to town, only to be framed for the murder of his wife. The local Inspector arrests Cheung and throws him into prison.
Escaping from jail, Cheung teams up with Priest Tsui to defeat Priest Chin Hoi and Master Tam, in an epic battle of supernatural wits and martial arts mastery.
Out of The Coffin
Action
Spooky Opening Credits & Chinese Superstitions
As you would expect in a Sammo Hung-led film, the action is the star of this picture. A spooky, opening credits sequence gives us a hint of the mix of superstition, horror and comedy we can expect. As the film begins, it spends some time establishing the authentic Chinese superstitions and comic situations that Bold Cheung will find himself in the middle of.
Sammo Performs the Heaviest of Pratfalls!
Having boasted that he is the bravest man in the village, his first encounter with a spirit turns out to be his friends, who bet him he couldn’t last a night in a haunted house, playing a joke on him. A real spirit appears causing Sammo to perform the heaviest of pratfalls in a demonstration of his great physical comedy abilities.
Fighting a Reanimated Corpse (Jiangshi)
His first martial arts scene arrives in the form of a hand-to-hand duel with a reanimated corpse, known as a Jiangshi. Being corpses, they suffer from rigor mortis, which means their limbs are rigid and they have to hop to get around.
Boo
The Conjuring: Wushu-Style!
They are however supernatural, and have a limited ability to fly about! The Jiangshi in this film are reanimated by the rituals of Priest Chin Hoi. Using a wood Jian or straight sword as a wand, he conjures up the spirits with an acrobatic wushu routine.
Sammo’s Inventive & Funny Choreography
Sammo’s choreography of this fight is very inventive and funny, given the strange physical attributes of his opponent. Sammo throws his large frame about like it was a rag doll as the Jiangshi pursues him relentlessly. It is not to the detriment of the martial arts techniques however, and there are some great fist combinations.
Spirited Combat
Each of Sammo’s Hits Appear to be Full Contact
Sammo does get to fight some human opponents, initially in his escape from prison. As in so many of his films he shows real power in his technique, with each blow looking like it hits full contact.
The Requisite Teahouse Fight is Exquisite…
All the classic kung fu films feature a fight in a teahouse, and this is no exception. In 1979’s “Knockabout”, Sammo leapt about “monkey-style”, and here, he pulls out all the stops.
Taking on multiple opponents, Sammo flips and rolls over, under and off the tables and benches with a grace and lightness that belies his build. Of course, he still manages to include some great martial arts techniques, and uses a bench as a twirling, spinning weapon and shield, and still manages to fit in a comic pay-off at the end!
A wooden bench can be a shield or a weapon
Fast-Pacing, Few Cuts, Maximum Thrills
This scene also allows the Chinese-opera trained Lam Ching-ying to show off his skills too. There are virtually no cuts and the choreography moves at a terrific pace without the need for camera enhancement.
Taking place simultaneously, priests Tsui and Chin Hoi duel with their wooden Jians. A tremendous sword fight in its own right, the speed and timing of the weapons choreography is a great taster for what is to come.
The final 15-20 minutes is dedicated to the battle of the priests and their disciples. Setting up high altars (whoever has the highest is closer to Heaven, and therefore more powerful), they summon different spirit Gods to inhabit the disciples.
Supernatural fun and sublime kung fu choreography
Sammo is Built Like an Elephant, but Moves Like a Monkey
Sammo is possessed by the famous Monkey King, and his opponent by the spirit of the son of the Four Heavenly Kings, who uses a hoop as a weapon. Jackie Chan is quoted as saying that Sammo “is built like an elephant, but moves like a monkey”, and here he demonstrates just that.
Sammo somersaults and leaps over his opponent and every given obstacle as though gravity is just a minor inconvenience. Authentic Monkey Boxing techniques are applied against his opponent’s iron hoop, which is an odd, but difficult weapon to fight with.
Huang Ha has authentic skills in traditional sword work
The Acrobatics are Truly Astonishing
The height both performers achieve in their acrobatics is astonishing and amazes even more when Sammo lands a somersault with both his feet planted firmly on his opponent’s chest.
Among Sammo’s Best-Choreographed Fight Sequences
When Sammo finally faces Master Tam, he hasn’t just saved the best for last, but possibly one of the best-choreographed sequences of his career, when he wields a spear against Huang Ha’s straight sword.
Blistering Speed, Timing & Rhythm in the Weapons Technique
Huang Ha obviously possesses some authentic skills in traditional sword work, and they are put to good use here. The blistering speed, timing and rhythm of the weapons technique from both performers is superb.
Long, Wide, Action Takes Result in a Brilliant, Unparalleled Fight Finale
There is no under-cranking of the camera, and plenty of long, wide shots, so you can really appreciate their technique and timing. Along with Sammo’s traditional weapons duels in “The Odd Couple”, this scene must surely rank among one of the best he, or anyone, has ever filmed.
The action concludes with an impressive full-body burn fire stunt combined with a high fall to the ground below.
Chin Hoi summons the spirit of the son of the Four Heavenly Kings
Summary
I first saw this film on a grainy VHS tape many, many years ago, and I didn’t have the appreciation of Chinese superstition and culture that I now possess. Consequently, some of the humour was lost on me. I still thought the martial arts was impressive, and the teahouse and ending scenes are still among the best examples of traditional kung fu choreography out there.
Now older and (hopefully!) wiser, the jokes make a lot more sense, and Sammo has a real gift for physical comedy in his encounters with the Jiangshi.
Some of the special effects are a bit ropey, but they add to the humour of it all. In terms of the horror aspects, Sammo does a good job of mixing comedy and tension in the scenes where he is trying to hide from the undead. The controversial ritual sacrifice of a chicken may be in bad taste for some viewers, and is certainly not for the squeamish.
Cheung is possessed by the Monkey King
Overall, the film is well shot and edited, with a well-restrained use of slow motion, used only when it will impress most. The limited use of wires is always in context and, for the most part, you are witnessing the performers’ authentic, unassisted physical abilities.
Eureka Entertainment’s Blu ray edition is packaged with colourful new artwork that includes an equally vibrant booklet, featuring an entertaining essay from James Oliver, and lots of photographs from the film’s production.
The film’s 2K restoration looks excellent, which is a godsend with so much of the action taking place in dimly lit spooky interiors! Extra features include an interesting archival interview with Sammo Hung, an informative audio commentary from Frank Djeng, original and alternate soundtracks, newly-translated English subtitles, alternate English opening and closing credits, and original trailers for the film.
An impressive full body burn fire stunt combined with a high fall
Over the years, Sammo Hung has shown that he is comfortable plying his trade in any given genre, be it historical, comedy, drama or contemporary. With this film however, he invigorated a whole new sub-genre. This wasn’t the first supernatural martial arts movie, but it is possibly the most successful at combing the elements of Asian-style action, comedy and horror in one film.
For that reason it is often credited as being the film that kickstarted the “Jiangshi Film Genre”, leading to further classics such as “Mr Vampire”, “The Dead and the Deadly”, and “A Chinese Ghost Story”.
If you like a bit of supernatural fun or just want to marvel at some sublime kung fu choreography, “Encounter of the Spooky Kind” doesn’t disappoint!
Trivia
- When writing this movie Sammo was inspired by the spooky stories from his childhood that the students would tell each other at Yu Jim Yuen’s Opera School.
- One of the priest’s rituals involves the slaughter of a chicken, which was done for real. In most Asian countries this was not considered controversial with many families, including their children, often killing live chickens to cook. In the West the scene was viewed to be a form of animal cruelty and was cut from some editions of the film.
- The superstition that peeling an apple in front of a mirror will summon a spirit if you break the skin is a genuine belief in Far Eastern culture.
- Yuen Biao was a stunt double for many of the acrobatic moves performed throughout the movie.
Encounter of the Spooky Kind – Blu-ray version, OUT 21 JUNE!
Film Rating: 9/10
“ENCOUNTER OF THE SPOOKY KIND” is out on Blu-ray from 21st June 2021, pre-order your copy now from Eureka Entertainment or Amazon! STAY TUNED to KFK and ENTER OUR COMPETITION to WIN YOUR COPY in the next few days!
