Paula Hammond - Features EditorIf you’ve been watching Eureka’s Hong Kong-themed releases with bated breath then you’ll be delighted to know that March is The Month. Yes, Jamie Luk’s Doctor Vampire is finally here!
While Hong Kong horror cinema is more often associated with the jiangshi or “hopping vampires” of Chinese legend, it’s also enthusiastically embraced (and, more often than not, lampooned) the Western vampire tradition. One of the more outrageous films to bring European bloodsuckers to Hong Kong is Doctor Vampire. And it’s that perfect blend of horror and comedy that’s made it a cult classic. Riffing on the likes of Vamp, Fright Night and, of course, Mr Vampire, Doctor Vampire gives a nod to all the films you know and love, as only Hong Kong cinema can.
While on vacation in Britain, surgeon Dr Chiang Ta-Tsung (Bowie Lam, Hard Boiled) wanders into a quaint rural pub in the grounds of a castle, where he quickly falls for hostess Alice (Ellen Chan, Wizard’s Curse). Despite the warning signs, the good doctor fails to realise that the establishment is staffed entirely by vampires – even after Alice bites him during a late-night tryst! On his return to Hong Kong and his long-standing love interest, May Chan (Sheila Chan, Heroes Among Heroes), he attempts to return to his normal life. But things quickly get complicated when he develops an aversion to sunlight and Alice and her undead master – The Count (Peter Kjaer) – come looking for him…
Offering a variation on the jiangshi craze kick-started by Encounter of the Spooky Kind, Doctor Vampire is one of a handful of films – along with Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires and Vampire vs Vampire – to bring Hollywood’s creatures of the night to Hong Kong.
Eureka Classics presents his ghoulish horror-comedy on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK from a brand-new 2k restoration. And it looks as good as it sounds.
Doctor Vampire is a feast of fun for fang-fans everywhere.
