The Imp (1996)



	The Imp		Return to Review Archive - I
	Year:	1996	I'm scared: Pang Dan and Mark Cheng
	Director:	Ivan Lai Kai-Ming
	Writer:	Sam Leung Tak-Sum
	Cast:	Pang Dan, Mark Cheng Ho-Nam, Emiko Ishizuka, Ruby Wong Jo-Yi, Cheng Lau, Ho Ka-Kui, Dick Lau Dik-Ji, Willie Wai Gai-Hung
	The Skinny:	Sacrificial offering to "God of Breasts" Pang Dan that masquerades as a Category III horror/thriller. There's enough raunch and creepiness here to satisfy fans of this particular Hong Kong genre.
	Review by Kozo:	This Category III horror/thriller/softcore sexfest is primarily a vehicle for Amy Yip’s successor, the buxom Pang Dan. She plays a Hong Kong woman who's traveling in search of her twin sister, who disappeared leaving nothing more than a native doll, the eponymous imp. Along the way, she hooks up with a mobile film crew, led by Category III veteran Mark Cheng. They discover that something isn’t quite right with the boarding house in which they’re staying. Then they do it. This movie is typical of its specific Hong Kong film genre. It’s creepy, raunchy, and sometimes too involved in its own unbelievable plot. Still, it earns points for stealing from The Shining and Psycho, among others. And the film gleefully goes over the top, which is something most Hong Kong Category III thrillers need to do if they want any sort of cult following. We won't know for a few years whether The Imp will be revered or simply thrown to the trash heap like so many crappy pictures of years past. Maybe that'll depend on the career trajectory of Pang Dan. It's hard to tell from this film. Pang, while possessing impressive attributes, just stands around looking pretty and clueless. (Kozo 1996)
	Availability:	DVD (Hong Kong) Region 0 NTSC Universe Laser Widescreen Cantonese and Mandarin Language Tracks Removable English and Chinese Subtitles
		image courtesy of Universe Laser & Video Co., Ltd.
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