DOCTOR VAMPIRE is your standard campy HK supernatural comedy, but very likeable with a premise that had an east meets west approach on its vampire lore. At times it had me thinking of the Jim Carry starring vehicle "Once Bitten", especially the scenes showcasing the doctor's new dress style. The story follows a Hong Kong surgeon, Dr Kueng (a fitting performance by Bowie Lam), who's on a business trip to Scotland and comes by a castle that's a bordello. Unknowingly to him vampires run the show and he falls under the spell of a Chinese lady, Alice (a wonderfully seductive turn by Ellen Chan). She bites him, without his knowing, and he returns back to Hong King where he starts to show signs of vampire characteristics. Where did she bite him, well, let's just say it wasn't on the neck and this leads to some humorous situations in its discovery. His girlfriend begins worrying about him, and the mysterious Alice suddenly turns up on his doorstep to save him from his affliction, and of course from her master the Count.
This master looks far from threatening and less so when tries to act it out. His appearance is like something of a 80s pop icon and I was a little unsure if he was meant to be an American or English vampire. Anyway the storytelling is so random with guys being guys, comedy of errors making way for sexual innuendos, relationship woes, mistaken perceptions and snappy banter. This is when the principal character starts showing the signs, acting strange and then when a method of reversing the inflictions is of no use, then coming to terms with what he has become. The gags can be self-knowing and the lowest dominator, yet it naturally flows becoming zanier as it goes along. By the third act when a Taoist shows up on the scene, everything is turned right up as now we get a hopping vampire with a hard-on, blue filtered lighting, oversized needles, a breast shish kebab, a laser battle standoff where the masters shoots red beams from his eyes, floating cranky Buddha statue granting special powers, levitating acrobats and an almighty explosion to finish it off. It's completely daft, but the timing of everything, from its shenanigans to thrills is spot on and the effects are lively with plenty of blood. I guess a hospital is a good place than any to stage it.
