NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: 88 Films Blu-ray (April 2024): 88 Films transferred Ngai Choi Lam's Erotic Ghost Story to Blu-ray. back in 2021. There was a LE edition, HERE, that is now OOP (out of print) and this is the standard Blu-ray edition. It is cited as being a "Stunning new and exclusive HD restoration in 1:85:1 aspect ratio". The 1080P is pretty good with no intrusive artifacts, brighter colors and very pleasing detail. Flesh tones, of which there are many, appear authentic. There is frequent depth in the outdoor sequences. 

NOTE: We have added 68 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, 88 Films offer linear PCM dual-mono tracks (16-bit) in both the the original Cantonese or an English language DUB (by default.) Erotic Ghost Story has physical conflicts although not on the scale of a wushu martial arts films. There are a few supernatural effects that come through modestly effective via the soundstage. The score is credited to Fei-Lit Chan (The Prodigal Son), sounding a bit hollow but dialogue - even in the DUB is clean in the lossless transfer. 88 Films offer optional English (translated - very different from the DUB) subtitles on their Region 'B'-locked Blu-ray.

The 88 Films Blu-ray offers two new commentaries. The first is by Asian cinema experts Mike Leeder (editor of 100% Jackie Chan: The Essential Companion) and Arne Venema who have some fun with the film. They usually do commentaries on martial arts movies like The Fearless Hyena and Dragon's Forever. The pair discuss Amy Yip being the Hong Kong equivalent to Pam Anderson or Jayne Mansfield, the camera and editing usage of the "Yip Tease", another of the fox spirits, Japanese Hitomi Kudô, who starred in a handful of pink or 'AV' films within her home country, and the eldest sister Pai So-So (played by So Man - who was also in the sequel Erotic Ghost Story II.) There is discussion of supernatural succubi who seduce men to steal their 'essence', the historical context of these category III films in the Hong Kong film industry, the entire cast, crew and much more. It's great. The second commentary is by film critic Samm Deighan (co-author of Scared Sacred: Idolatry, Religion and Worship in the Horror Film). She talks about Golden Harvest, how she sees this as much more than an erotic film, the career of director, and cinematographer, Ngai Choi Lam, the popularity of 1987's A Chinese Ghost Story setting the mold for these folklore films, genre crossovers with horror, comedy, wushu martial arts and erotic - and she informs us of plenty more. It's very informative - observing elements of the film that I was unaware. Also included is a rather vapid 3/4 hour archival episode of 'Celebrity Talk Show' with James Wong, Ni Kuang and Chua Lam visiting the set of Erotic Ghost Story and talking to the three spirit fox actresses. Lastly are trailers from Hong Kong and an English 'Tai Seng' trailer. The package has a reversible sleeve with original Hong Kong poster artwork.

Ngai Choi Lam's Erotic Ghost Story is right in the mold of Sex and Zen, Robotrix (both with Miss Yip) or restrictive Category III rated efforts. It has prodigious use of the 'Yip Tease', with discrete camera angles, and careful editing so that Amy Yip's nipples were never (contractually) visible - although side shots of her breasts and brief buttocks are present. I was, admittedly, surprised at the full frontal nudity of Erotic Ghost Story showing the other two spirit foxes and the Japanese actress Kiyoko Kamimura (playing the woman washing clothes and seduced by the demon.) The film has themes of classical Chinese 'Liaozhai'; scary stories with romance and there are supernatural fantasy elements in Erotic Ghost Story. While, yeah, it has a lot of boobs and more - but the film shifts to a horror in the final 1/4. I enjoyed the earnest performances. Amy Yip fans don't require my endorsement. She was nicknamed 'boba' ("champion of breasts") which was also adopted as the term for tapioca pearls in Taiwanese bubble tea circa 1980s - as well as a large-sized steamed bun named "Amy Yip Big Pau". There is a book about Amy Yip's life by Chaz Gower, HERE. The 88 Films Blu-ray gives this niche-appealing film a solid HD presentation with double commentaries and more.

Gary Tooze