Movies
Hocus Pocus came a year before Ricky Lau's Mr. Vampire, so I guess director Yuet-Sang Chin deserves his share of the credit for kick-starting this whole comedy/horror/action craze. The genre balance may not be perfect, but there's a lot of fun to be had with this film, just make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. Sheng leads an opera troupe and is big on ghost stories. His disciples love to listen to his tales, but they get a little annoyed when Chia, when of their fellow actors, takes the whole ghost business a step too far. They decide to get back at Chia, but by doing that they run into a real ghost. There's a bit of everything here. Comedy and horror are the main genres, but a film like this wouldn't be complete without some martial arts and fantasy elements. Performances are well over-the-top and the comedy's a little lame, but the lore and designs are cool enough and there's a spectacular finale that is more than satisfactory. Good stuff.Read all