Mortuary Blues(1990)

Director: Jeff Lau

Producer: Corey Yuen

Writer: Jeff Lau

Cast: Corey Yuen Kwai, Sandra Ng Kwun-Yu, Lowell Lo Koon-Ting, Sheila Chan Suk Laan, Alex To Tak-Wai, David Lo Dai Wai, Jaclyn Chu, Amy Yip Ji Mei, Tai Bo, Chung Faat, Yuen Miu

Running Time: 89 min.

Plot: The lucrative life of a non-productive, remote island arouses the suspicion of the authorities. Police who investigate become entangled in a bizarre, supernatural web along with a bumbling opera troupe. Stuff happens. Eventually, the movie ends. Then, life goes on.

Availability: This title is available at HKflix.com

NUMSKULL'S REVIEW: Yuen Kwai (aka Yuen Kwei, aka Yuen Quei, aka Yuen Kuei, aka Yuen Quai, aka Cory Yuen, aka Corey Yuen, aka Cory Yuen Kwai, aka Cory Yuen Kwei, aka...fuck this) produces and stars in this supernatural comedy in a vein similar to the Spooky Encounters and Mr. Vampire films. Kwai is an accomplished director of action movies, with a filmography including the justly esteemed Righting Wrongs and the Michelle Yeoh breakout vehicle Yes, Madam!, but his chief claim to fame is his fight choreography; if you've seen any of Jet Li's Hollywood movies, you've seen Yuen Kwai's handiwork (for better or for worse).

There, that's Yuen Kwai 101 out of the way. Mortuary Blues is a rare chance to see him in front of the camera, and although I wouldn't say he lights the screen on fire, he definitely contributes his share of enthusiasm to a film that already has a good amount of it. There's great chemistry between him and the rest of the cast, including two cops under his command, a pair of gold fever-stricken female stage performers, and a sneaky English tutor. Their frantically-paced (but perfectly watchable) misadventure involving three families with a dark secret, a portal to the realm of the dead, and an "ass ghost" is packed with comedy ranging from slapstick to verbal innuendo to toilet humor...ESPECIALLY toilet humor. The film boasts an impressive array of joyously lowbrow body function jokes, including girl farts, an impromptu song about the act of defecation, and a hyperactive rat getting into a man's clothing and exploring his crotch, thus creating the illusion that his penis has gone haywire. Some of the humorous situations get dragged out too long for their own good (*ahem* paging Mr. Hung...Mr. Sammo Hung...) but most of them are funny enough for this to be easily forgivable. There are also a couple of storytelling blunders, like the opera sisters being able to hold their breath long enough for you to go take a shit and wipe your ass (gotta keep with the theme, here) while reading A Tale of Two Cities, wash your hands, come back, and sit down again, but hey...who cares. The movie has a way of making you shrug off its shortcomings and just enjoy the ride. The climax is particularly enjoyable...an ancient emperor has been brought back from the dead and believes himself to still be alive. Our heroes must put him back to rest, so they conduct an elaborate re-enactment of the emperor's last days, complete with Power Rangers-like costumes, high-flying with wires that you are obviously SUPPOSED to be able to see, and a giant foot prop like the one that squishes the Monty Python's Flying Circus logo.

Go in peace now, my children, and may your ass ghosts always be gentle.

NUMSKULL'S RATING: 7/10