Lam Ching Ying

From the middle of the 80s' till the beginning of the 90s' Lam was very busy. He made five to ten films a year without stopping. Worked of course as an actor, as an action director, and even produced a few movies. His friendship with Sammo perfected, as they worked together day and night. Ching Ying was considered as a member of the Hung Family. Sammo remembers him as a very serious guy, who did not understand jokes easily, and it was hard to make him laugh. Despite of Ying's aloof manner, they had a very good time, and often enjoyed a few drinks together. Those were the moments when Ching Ying sometimes lost his coolness... Sammo remembers when they were both young, got into a fight. Ying was arrested by the police again, who treated him as a real criminal, without asking, started to beat him up. He did not make a sound. That's how tough he was. The other occasion Sammo will never ever forget, and will always tell when he'll be asked about Lam. They filmed in Canada, and they had had a few drinks already. Sammo went to the toilet, and by the time he returned the whole bar was in a total riot, Ching Ying in the middle returning blow for blow. Late he explained why he lost his temper: "The American guys looked at me wickedly..." He really had a style! But as he got older, he calmed down, became wiser and learned to control his temper.

Not to aim at completeness, but I feel the need to mention some of his works from this time. I would like to prove that he was a great actor, and he had a wide range of feelings to express through his roles. He could play a baddie very easily and convincingly, the next time a deaf-mute henchman, who was trapped between love and duty. There is really no one who can professionally top him.

Heroes Shed No Tears - He is a cruel Vietnamese general in this one. He pretty much rises above all aspects of the entire film. He makes up for any lack of character depth by just showing an extreme determination and relentlessness. All he needs to do is to switch to his meanest glaze and the whole screen is his. The end fight is just rough, bloody and cruel!

Eastern Condors - Yet an other rough movie about the Vietnamese war. Lam is a Chinese military commander who takes a bunch of criminals into battle. Their mission is canceled, but it's too late to turn back. They have to fight for their lives. Ching Ying plays a calm, very hard-headed leader, who keeps his tranquility through suffering and agony. Finally he sacrifices himself to the mission.

School On Fire - This film is considered as his best performance ever. He is playing a concerned police officer, who is trapped between the law and the people too fearful to inform the police. His supporting part is crucial, and his intensity during the final half-hour is terrific.

Lai Chi, China's Last Eunuch - Not a big role, but he can portray a helpless father who can't support his family properly, so regretfully agrees to castrate his own son. He is a loving father, and a grieving father.

Her Vengeance - A very brutal film from start to end. Lam is in a wheelchair with only memories around him and haunting him. At the beginning he refuses to help her ex-wife's sister to take revenge on her father's killers who raped her, but they kill Ching Ying's wife as well, so he is ready to kill relentlessly. He dies a horrible death.

Painted Faces - Maybe his best performance. So helpless, so heartbreaking...The story of the Seven Little Fortunes. He portrays the Sifu's friend, an aging Cantonese opera star, whose battered body can no longer stand the strain of performing for the cameras. He has drinking problems, but he is warm and gentle. His face, the feelings  I can see in his eyes during their conversation in the bar, each time I watch makes me cry. At the end he loses his marbles completely and is vaulting along the lighting framework on the top of the film set, performing opera moves for real. We are waiting with beating heart for his misstep to release him from this painful world. But Sammo climbs up to him and talks him down quietly and safely. Lam takes a bow in front of the frightened boys and filmcrew, as if it was a real, excellent performance and is then led away by the ambulance people... Marvelous.

Vampire Vs Vampire - His first movie he directed and also action directed. It was a production of Dai Lo Film Company created by him and Chua Lam. Due to the production cost going over budget, he didn't take his director's fee. Not a big success, but very enjoyable. Ching Ying is just cute in it with the naughty vampire kid.

Red And Black - Takes place during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. A political and social commentary mixed with supernatural elements. Quite weird for me. Lam is the man of traditional Chinese values who is forsaken by his country during the Revolution. Tony Leung Ka Fei is a Mao follower. They love the same woman. You might think Lam can't be the one who wins the girl heart having Tony Leung on screen. Though he dies at the end, due to his final performance, we do believe that the girl must have loved him more as he was the real hero.

Lover's Tear - Another great performance! Tell love, hate, anger, sadness without words. Pray for forgiveness, tell that you are sorry and ready to sacrifice yourself for your love, with your eyes only... Lam at his best. When he leads her secret love to her real lover's apartment, you can realize, that time was really not enough for Ying to show us his real talent. A must see film.

Magic Cop - Many fans' favorite Lam Ching Ying movie. Ching is a police officer with Taoist skills, who has to survive somehow in the modern Hong Kong. But he doesn't give up easily. He listens to Cantonese Opera, setting up an altar in a super-modern apartment, sleeping on a hammock, and doing Taoist magic on the busy street. He has a funny, severe haircut, huge eyebrows, but somehow he looks good. The moves he makes during his fight between him and the Japanese witch are totally choreographed by himself. They are superb, and prove that he had a great deal of fantasy.

Pom Pom And Hot Hot - They say this was Ching Ying's last great performance. Maybe yes, in a way. He is the master of the guns in this movie. Experts say his last fight is the best gun battle ever put on film. There is no boy who ever seen this film, and does not want to be as competent and cool as Lam.

I named only a few movies he performed in those years. He had a lot lot more in his magical bag. Naturally he did the sequels to Mr. Vampire, had his Mr Vampire spin offs, like Crazy Safary, Gambling Ghost, Money Maker, The Ultimate Vampire, Shyly Spirit, Wizard's Curse, The Musical Vampire... He action directed the famous Hong Kong 1941, Armageddon, Rosa. And there were many many other projects he was involved in.

By the beginning of the 90s' Hong Kong cinema started a decadence and this decline affected Ching Ying's career as well.

                                        Temporary Decadence