Trigger warning: Mention of suicide, blood and gore
In “Rigor Mortis,” Chin Siu-ho (an actor who is a certified ‘scream king’ and a regular in countless C-horrors since the 80s) portrays a fictionalised version of himself. His alter-ego in the movie has lived many lives as a successful actor but is now ending his own due to soul crushing circumstances. He chooses a supposedly haunted apartment to carry out the deed. However, at the last minute, he is saved from Death’s door by Yau, a good Samaritan (played by Siu-ho’s “Mr. Vampire” co-star, Anthony Chan).
Initially he is cross at this disruption, but Siu-ho begins to befriend the other residents in the building, such as Aunty Meiyi, a helpful seamstress and the neighborhood sorcerer Gau. He also views an opportunity to turn over a new leaf after encountering a widow named Feng and her young son Pak who previously occupied his apartment. Tragedy strikes when Aunty Meiyi loses her politically incorrect and cranky husband Tung in a freak accident. Heartbroken, she desperately enlists Gau’s help in resurrecting him. Unfortunately, reanimating a corpse and expecting it to return with its soul intact comes with a heavy price, endangering the entire apartment block.
A Bloody Affair for Fans of Gore
“Rigor Mortis” is a bloody affair and thus, fans of gore and graphic visuals are bound to appreciate the kills, the blood splatter, bloodstained bathrooms and all the grisly body horror too. It also appeals to the J-horror crowd, with homages to filmmaker Takashi Shimizu’s works such as the stairwell ghost from his “Ju-On” franchise. Shimizu is also credited as a producer.
The movie is also heavy on action and involves hand to hand combat/martial arts sequences between the human characters and the spirits/jiāngshī (Chinese vampires). It is a feat in itself to make hopping vampires look bad-ass but first-time director Juno Mak achieves the impossible with the help of camera tricks, slo-mo, a mix of practical effects and slick VFX. The cinematography, courtesy of Man-Ching Ng boasts of some cool shots. A visual of Peng standing near an unplastered wall in Siu-ho’s apartment is particularly memorable, sharing eerie similarities to the poster of the Hollywood horror “Sinister,” and the movie itself is twice as disturbing. It is also unpredictable and infused with jiāngshī lore such as the creature’s Achilles heel of sticky rice, which is a locked and loaded Chekhov gun cleverly planted earlier on in the movie.
Paw Hee-Ching Delivers a Stellar Performance
However, I was more so drawn to the themes explored in “Rigor Mortis.” Every inch of this movie reeks with the stench of grief and death. The location of the towering building with its peeling façade, resembling the dingy high rise from the “Dredd” remake, itself features as a character. It’s a last abode for the old and lonely, the weak and vulnerable, the dead or dying. Every resident is holding on to bad as well as good memories of a place or person. From spouses who felt like home and whose death leaves behind an irreparable hole, to fathers and husbands who hurt loved ones or caused them trauma from which they are unable to heal. However, nobody can hang on for long or hold out on their fate. Thus, as things spiral out of control for the characters, as a viewer I felt completely helpless watching on.
Among its ensemble cast, I will single out the stellar performances of Paw Hee-ching, Chin Siu-ho, Kara Wai (as Feng) and child actor Morris Ho (as Pak). Paw Hee-ching humanizes the character of Aunty Meiyi, even as she undergoes a monstrous metamorphosis from a widow in utter despair to a shell of her former self. A scene of Meiyi wailing, unable to stand the grotesque sight of her new and unimproved husband with his mouth sewn half-shut due to the severity of his injuries and hidden under a mask of protective feng shui coins, stands out.
Thought Provoking Yet Leaves Some Loose Ends
The trio of Chin Siu-ho, Kara Wai, and Morris Ho share a compelling camaraderie and their interactions together provided the much-required warmth with each progressively cold and hopeless scenario. Chung Fat and Richard Ng (of “Vampire Cleanup Department” fame) are both varying levels of terrifying in their respective roles as the exploitative Gau and the vicious Tung.
The movie begins to show cracks in its third act, with a pacing that could have been more taut, an ending with a few missing pieces /unanswered questions, as well as the use of a particularly lazy and overused trope which might prove divisive or disappointing to some viewers, especially after a nail-biting build-up and the nonlinear storytelling throughout its run time.
But aside from such minor grievances, as an existential horror on the hesitations of crossing over, moving on or pulling through, “Rigor Mortis” certainly left a thought provoking, and simultaneously repulsive impression.
*”Rigor Mortis is currently available on Prime Video and Pluto TV.
