Rigor Mortis (2013) is an ominous addition to the jiangshi genre. In Chinese folklore, jiangshi are vampires whose bodies are stiff from decay, and therefore have to hop after their victims. Mr. Vampire, a seminal film in the genre, inspired Rigor Mortis and shares many actors with the film. While Mr. Vampire is a horror-comedy, Rigor Mortis is a dark and terrifying adaptation, but it still manages to feel a little campy at times. Notably, the film features slow-motion kung-fu scenes and the character Yau, the vampire hunter turned cook, who runs around in his boxers and robe throughout the film.
The movie stars Chin Siu-ho of Mr. Vampire fame. He plays a famous actor of the same name, who moves to a haunted apartment complex with the intent to kill himself after his family leaves him. However, he becomes wrapped up in the supernatural occurrences that plague the complex. Eventually, he forms bonds with the residents and attempts to rid the complex of evil spirits.
The movie was fun to watch and very suspenseful. The apartment complex is full of ghosts, some vengeful, some just continuing their lives in death, which keeps the movie entertaining while the main plot develops. The film is enriched by having some cultural knowledge of jiangshi and other Chinese folklore, such as the Heibai Wuchang (Chinese grim reapers). But fortunately, prior knowledge is not necessary to enjoy the film.
The practical effects are gruesome – my favorite being the makeup on Uncle Tung as his corpse is prepared for transformation into a jiangshi. The monster designs are quite unnerving and obviously influenced by Producer Takashi Shimizu’s spirits from his work on the Ju-On franchise. Unfortunately, the CGI does not always hold up to the test of time, but that is hardly a unique issue.
My major problem with the film was the ending (spoilers ahead). After all the action and much death, you learn that Chin Siu-ho was successful in his attempt to end his life, and the entire events of the movie were the creation of his dying mind. I was disappointed after the movie because it essentially made everything that happened in the previous hour pointless. However, this ending is likely a result of Chinese censorship prohibiting movies involving ghosts and the supernatural. The cliche and anticlimactic ending might have been necessary for the film to be shown on the Chinese mainland.
Finally, I wished the movie had focused more on the relationships between characters. The only deaths that felt like they had real emotional weight were that of Auntie Mui and Uncle Tung because it was her love for him that turned him into a jiangshi in the first place. The other characters did not have strong enough characterization to make me connect with them or know who they were before they died.
Overall, I thought Rigor Mortis was an enjoyable watch that kept me waiting to see the inevitable creation of the jiangshi. It was not the most profound or impactful horror movie I have ever watched, but it was a good introduction to jiangshi movies, and I was entertained and held in suspense. Although, if you want a more dramatic and meaningful ending, I would stop the film as Chin Siu-ho looks up into the sky and sees ash falling like snow in the apartment complex courtyard.
