Kung Fu Zombie (1981)

Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

Best movie of this year hands down!

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

Okay, so the only reason I ever saw this movie to begin with was because I found the used DVD (the Black Belt Theatre version) on sale for $2 in a local video store in the middle of nowhere. I honestly expected it to stink to high heaven, and only bought it for the funny title. To my surprise, I really enjoyed it! I'm pretty confused at most of the reviews I see on the web for this movie calling it a "horror" film, because this is a comedy pure and simple. Everything is so ridiculous that it's absolutely hilarious, from the "wizard's" goofy dancing whenever he casts "spells," to the scene where they're out "shopping" for corpses, to the protagonist's complete indifference as to whether his obnoxious father lives or dies. The dub is absolutely hilarious (I've seen probably over a hundred dubbed movies/shows and this is, no kidding, one of the most effective ones I've ever seen, though it's obviously much easier to dub a goofy comedy than a drama), and it makes excellent use of music at hilarious times. I also have to give a hearty thanks to the editor for the Americanized version, who clearly edited out at least half an hour of what was clearly dull story, leaving absolutely nothing but kung fu and comedy scenes.If you have the capacity to enjoy goofy, ridiculous movies and slapstick humor, I fully recommend this. The closest thing I can compare it to is a super low-budget version of Kung Fu Hustle. I only wish the DVD transfer were better (it's watchable, but the scenes in dark places can be hard to make out).

Like other reviewers said, Kung Fu Zombie lives up to its title, but other than the character of the vampire, it doesn't go beyond expectations. A rating of a 5 is usually used in the case of a boring and mediocre film, but Kung Fu Zombie is not. It goes insanely back and forth from being a genuinely bizarre (and entertaining) zombie story and kung fu movie, to a pathetic attempt at film-making. The production of the dubbed version is way below kung-fu-film average, with numerous jumps in the plot (which is so ridiculous it's almost dull), hopeless attempts at vaudeville-style humor, and problems in pacing which sometimes makes it hard to sit through. Many of the attempts at humor fail completely, and most of the laughs will come from what is meant to be scary or strange. At the same time, though, Kung Fu Zombie has that insanity and originality that makes it a "good bad film". For example, a drawing on the outside of a jail shoots lasers out of its eyes at a zombie- because, of course, zombies can't enter jails.The fighting in Kung Fu Zombie is surprisingly good. Billy Chong is a terrible actor, but a great athlete. The editing throughout the film is confusing and convoluted enough to ruin several scenes, and although it's noticeable in fight scenes, it somehow doesn't manage to ruin them.It's hard to pin down an audience for Kung Fu Zombie. It might not be best for kung fu fanatics; those who prefer the serious type of kung fu film will abhor it. Probably many of its viewers are people looking for a fun zombie movie (The mainstream 70's zombie flicks had little or no influence on Kung Fu Zombie- 100% Hong Kong horror), or those who are amused by the title- these are the people who are most likely to enjoy it.

Amusing Kung fu horror comedy about a guy seeking to get revenge on the person who sent him to jail by using zombies. He ends up dead himself and needs to have his spirit put into a suitable body. Meanwhile the family of the person who sent the now dead guy to jail is having problems since another family is out for revenge for other reasons.Odd mish mash of genres is actually amusing in a completely less than serious way. The horror elements are creepy, the humor dopey but fun and the action is pretty good. I picked this up for a buck and it actually entertained me more than most films I paid ten or twenty times that amount for. If you can go with the shifting genres I recommend this.Definitely worth a box of popcorn and a soda.

ej's kung-fu capsule review for films of the chop-socky old-school - 1. basic plot type - fantasy comedy, supernatural-'fu 2. plot construction - confusing 3. dramatic - no 4. funny - tries to be, but fails 5. dialog - ridiculous 6. cast performance - poor 7. crew performance - poor 8. amount of fighting - appears to be lots 9. quality of fighting - bad; loses interest 10. special any cast or crew notes - billy chong's worst movie ever, and he plays an unlikeable character; in fact, there are no likable characters in this film; the only thing of historical interest here is the introduction of Japanese anime references into an old-school chop-socky 11. big positive - none 12. big negative - it was ever made bottom-line - who should see this movie - kung-fu completists only