Kai xin gui: Fang shu jia

This is a comedy fantasy movie from Hong Kong, the first sequel to The Happy Ghost, where the ghost of Scholar Stewart Pik has since reincarnated and is now high school teacher Hong Sam Kwai (Raymond Wong). He is the first male instructor of the rowdy all-female class, who plays endless pranks on him. As a result, he counteracts with his gift of magical powers. But, when his job is on the line, he must find a way to get through with his students and restore his reputation.

Like its prequel, this film is one of my favorite Hong Kong movies from my childhood, capturing the innocence and care-freeness like in the first movie and also brings you harmless fun and adventures, from Kwai using his powers to help his students in a water sports competition to Kwai trying to court the lady professor at the boys' college next door. It is funny seeing the pranks the girls play on the professor, but captivating to see the consequences they girls had to face as a result of all their negative behavior.

Clifton Ko did a nice job directing the movie, keeping the plot intriguing and full of zest - even more than the previous movie. The cast of characters all gave a heartfelt and terrific performance in their respective roles. Raymond Wong did great as Kwai. And, Fennie Yuen, May Lo, Charine Chan and Akina Fu, all stars introduced to the screen in this movie, did a good job portraying the girl group, each giving off unique personalities for them: Fennie as the tough-talking Thai Chek-Yee, May Lo as the bespectacled May Kan, Charine Chan as the goody-two-shoes Yiu-King and Gigi Fu as the fashionable Akina.

It is an uplifting movie, but with a touch of ghost horror - a perfect little innocent movie for the entire family. I remember I used to watch this film with my cousins in our younger days, even bringing it with us to watch on a family trip at one time. As a result, it is a very nostalgic movie to this day.

Grade A

Not strictly a sequel, as it is really a brand new cast in a new school, this film stars Raymond Wong, who also co-produced and co-wrote the screenplay, as a teacher who is the reincarnation of the Happy Ghost. He works in a girl's school, where a triumvirate of mischievous girls, including Fennie Yuen in her first role, conspire to wreak havoc on this life. He sees Ms. Lo (the pretty Jeane Kanai), a teacher from another school nearby and falls in love, but a series of mishaps, some started by the girls, thwart his chances. So, you're left wondering if he keeps his sanity and gets the girl. This is better than the first since it has good special effects, its a totally clean film and the characters are good. Headmistress Teresa Carpio in the first film has been replaced by Man-no Chan, who is older but in a few scenes looks nice. However, this is more Raymond Wong's film and he is a likable character who has fashioned a film which is enjoyable. There were three more Happy Ghosts after this, but so far this is the best one.

Right, well this 1985 Hong Kong comedy titled "Happy Ghost II" (aka "Kai xin gui: Fang shu jia") is in fact an archetypical Hong Kong comedy from the mid-1980s. So if you enjoyed movies from back then, then you most certainly will also enjoy this particular movie.

The storyline told in "Happy Ghost II" is pretty straight forward. It is more of a feel-good story than it is an outright comedy, because the laughs - while they are there - are far in between. But that was not an issue, because the storyline and plot was nicely written by writers Clifton Ko, Bing-cheung Mak and Raymond Pak-Ming Wong, and brought to the screen by director Clifton Ko.

There is a good pacing to the storyline told in the movie, which definitely improved on the overall enjoyment of the movie.

Now, I am not familiar with the first movie. I believe I have watched it way back, but I can't recall it, nor have I written a review for it. So just how much of a continuation of the first part this is, I have no idea. Nor can I state if the characters are continuations from the first movie.

While "Happy Ghost II" is an enjoyable enough movie, it is hardly one that warrants more than a single viewing. Or if it does, it would be with years passing in between.

My rating of the 1985 "Happy Ghost II" lands on a six out of ten stars.