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 irector Dennis Yu's "The Imp" is a Hong
Kong horror film from the early 1980s, which comes with the heady boast of
being one of the all-time genre greats from its native country. Whilst
this may sound like a rather immodest claim, it is certainly true that the
film has garnered a fair amount of praise over the years and has managed
to establish enough of a fan base to have been remade and re-released
several times. Upon viewing "The Imp", it is quite easy to see
why this has been the case, as although it does not really live up to its
reputation, it does provide an almost archetypal example of the modern
Hong Kong horror film.
Combining a mixture of
traditional practices and beliefs with modern conventions and special
effects, "The Imp" certainly seems to have had a great influence
on the country's horror genre, not least of which in its use of mist and
eerie green neon to generate atmosphere and accentuate the supernatural.
Whilst this is now a device which has long outstayed its welcome, it has
rarely been utilised as skilfully and effectively as it is here, giving
the proceedings a creepy, ominous feel. Unfortunately, the film suffers
from a slow pace and takes itself far too seriously to be considered the
classic it claims to be, though it certainly remains an above average and
worthwhile entry for any fans of the genre.
The plot follows a luckless man, Keung (Charles Chin,
also in Sammo Hung's classic "Eastern
Condors"), who takes a job as a security guard in a shopping mall
to make ends meet and provide for his pregnant wife. Keung's happiness at
finding work soon turns sour after a series of strange events kill several
of his colleagues in grisly, inexplicable fashion. Aided by a mysterious
priest, he investigates the seemingly supernatural deaths, only to find
that the evil forces following him around may have their sights set on his
wife and unborn child.
Yu, who was also responsible for the sadly overlooked
genre entry "Evil
Cat", is a skilled director, and he strikes a nice balance
between the traditional and modern elements in "The Imp". The
result is a convincing and imaginative setting, where sorcerers and evil
spirits stalk the shadowy corridors of the shopping mall, and characters
must rely on ancient magic to survive. Although fairly common in Hong Kong
genre cinema, this approach is relatively under utilised in the West, and
makes for interesting viewing and for a plot which has some semblance of
theological depth. Yu also has a good eye for detail, and goes to some
pains to include a number of smaller aspects of superstition, such as the
link between pregnancy and cooking stoves.
The down side is that the film moves at a fairly slow
pace, and there are a few stretches where very little happens. Although Yu
does throw in some zombies and a nasty surgical scene, he seems mostly
concern with suggesting rather than showing anything menacing. A few extra
scares would certainly not have been gratuitous, and without them, the
film may be a little light on visceral content for modern viewers.
In relation to this, the film does seem to be taking
itself far too seriously, and it lacks much of the energetic,
unpredictable chaos often associated with Hong Kong horror. The rather
po-faced, deadpan approach continues throughout, leading the film to a
fairly surprising, downbeat ending which gives the whole affair a grittier
feel than many of its peers. This does make a few scenes in the film
laughably overwrought in their earnestness, though to Yu's credit he does
at least make the effort of developing the central protagonist, a move
which is all too rare in modern genre films.
Yu does manage to keep things interesting, not only
through the intriguing plot, but also in terms of the film's strong
visuals. Instead of simply relying on shadowy gloom to create an
oppressive atmosphere, he shows an inventive use of green and blue light
which chillingly invokes a truly otherworldly feel. There are a number of
genuinely arresting images in the film, mostly towards the end as the
supernatural activity reaches its peak. As is the case in many of the best
ghost stories, Yu makes excellent use of sounds effects, both in terms of
suggesting the presence of spirits, and in notching up the tension and
giving the viewer a number of quick scares.
Unfortunately, such atmospherics may well be wasted on
some viewers who expect more action and out and out horror, and indeed,
from this perspective, "The Imp" is a little disappointing.
However, for those who enjoy more old fashioned ghost stories which focus
on psychological fear rather than flying viscera, or for those curious to
see one of the progenitors of the modern form of Hong Kong horror,
"The Imp" is certainly well worth checking out.
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