Whenever we talk about zombies, the audience often thinks of the image of jumping and wearing official uniforms of the Qing Dynasty. When talking about zombie Taoist priest , people immediately think of Lin Zhengying . In the 1980s and 1990s, Lin Zhengying starred in many blockbuster films such as "Mr. Zombie" and "Zombie Family". In addition to the director Liu Guanwei and the producer Sammo Hung , he can be called He is the master who established the status of Hong Kong zombie movies.
"Mr. Zombie" , released on November 7, 1985, is the first zombie film in which Lin Zhengying plays the leading role. Director Liu Guanwei's uncle is a Maoshan master, and he has heard many stories about Maoshan magic since he was a child. In the film, Liu Guanwei added the plot element of "causing corpses in western Hunan".
"Mr. Zombie" is simply the first guide to dealing with zombies. Lin Zhengying personally demonstrates the use of magic weapons in . For example, putting a yellow paper charm on the forehead can calm zombies. The skillful use of local stunts in the film complements the kung fu comedy, and the magic weapons used to subdue zombies, such as glutinous rice, ink thread, and peach wood sword, give people a feeling of turning decay into magic through Lin Zhengying's fierce skills.
The female ghost played by Wang Xiaofeng is very beautiful when she appears, but she is extremely terrifying once her true nature is revealed. The children's chorus "Ghost Bride" has also become an indelible childhood memory for a generation. The cost of "Mr. Zombie" was only HK$8.5 million. After it was released in Hong Kong, it grossed more than HK$20 million at the box office, ranking fifth among the top ten grossing movies of the year. It immediately triggered a wave of follow-up zombie movies. Among them, director Chen Huiyi "Zombie Revival" is the fastest follower of the trend.
Since 1986, Liu Guanwei has filmed three sequels, "Zombie Family", " Mr. Phantom " and " Uncle Zombie " at a rate of one per year.
"Zombie Family" , released on August 15, 1986, moved the story from the Republic of China to modern times and created the image of a zombie child for the first time. In addition to traditional magic weapons such as yellow paper talismans and peach wood swords, the film also adds a lot of modern scientific elements: after everyone inhales the inert agent, their movements become slower. At this moment, the zombies are no longer frightening horror objects, but Hilarious funny characters.
Due to the proliferation of zombie movies in Hong Kong at that time, as one of the originators of zombie movies, Liu Guanwei boldly abandoned the zombie elements and introduced a large number of witchcraft plots in the third sequel of "Mr. Zombie" "Mr. Phantom" . The action scenes designed by Lin Zhengying himself are very fierce, and the boss at the end of the film continues the ghost look of Wang Xiaofeng in "Mr. Zombie". In addition to various eye-opening Taoist techniques, this film also features a variety of shocking scenes such as fried ghosts for the first time.
All of this makes "Mr. Phantom" the most terrifying one in the "Mr. Zombie" series.
"Uncle Zombie" stars Chen You and Wu Ma Dan as male protagonists. It is also the only film in the "Mr. Zombie" series that does not feature Lin Zhengying.
" Yimei Taoist " was released in 1989. It is the first film directed by Lin Zhengying. The film is quite innovative in terms of plot: it draws on Liu Zhenwei 's "The Ghost Job" and adds Western vampire elements; it continues the zombie film of a shrewd and capable master and a silly apprentice who loves to cause trouble. Standard configuration; and strengthens the parent-child relationship between Lin Zhengying and the little zombie.
In order to save the increasingly sluggish zombie film industry, Lam Ching-ying spent a whole year filming "The Taoist Man". Although this attitude of pursuing excellence regardless of cost failed to make the film profitable in the end, it did not prevent the film from becoming a Hong Kong zombie. The best example of the film "Eastern Learning Spreads to the West".
" New Mr. Zombie " released in 1992 was created by the original crew of "Mr. Zombie". "New Mr. Zombie" tells us that aborted fetuses will change from ordinary "spiritual babies" into scary "evil babies" because of their deep resentment.
There is also a very creative ghost encounter plot in the film: Sandra Ng encounters a red and white evil spirit in the woods. The strong contrast in colors makes the atmosphere even more poignant and strange.
To this day, whenever zombie movies are mentioned, people will immediately think of Lin Zhengying. Time flies, and the vivid image of Lin Zhengying's zombie Taoist priest seems to be still before his eyes. Seriously: The ink-lined glutinous rice is still there today, but Lin Zhengying is nowhere to be seen!
