He Lives by Night (1982) User Reviews

He Lives by Night

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 25 April 2011]

Sissy, a radio host, doesn't have a clue that her comments about a psychopath prowling the busy, glitzy neon nights of Hong Kong, were actually taken to heart by this crazy who listens to her show. Her ex-boyfriend, "Lousy" Wong , is a detective working a homicide case involving a French nightclub performer's murder while walking down an alley, falling victim to the lurking killer who traps her in the middle of dangling colorful sheets (cool visual dynamo, the way the director entraps the poor girl, the sounds of rips without actually showing the box-cutter razor slicing the sheets or actually seeing the killer), the girl having no method of escape, later strangled with one of her stockings. It seems that the killer, who could be a woman or transvestite, enjoys strangling his/her victims with white stockings.

The mystery of the killer I felt was given away a bit too early, but observant viewers should figure it out even before the director unveils the person behind the disguise. I think those accustomed to the slasher genre as a whole, no matter the country, will recognize that the too obvious weirdo, the one who has enshrined his home with photographs of Sissy, harassing her on the phone, constantly calling the radio station, claiming he is the psycho-killer sought after, is a red herring—while the true killer has an aura of mystery around him/her. He/she draws a portrait of himself/herself, while a photograph in a picture frame has a person ripped from it. Little details which conceal the motives of the killer do give a quality slasher an advantage over the run-of-the-mill offerings which kept coming in the early-to-mid 80s.

To be honest, I do think some slasher fans might find the humor and animated faces (what some might consider "Kabuki theater" kind of reactions between Sissy, Wong, and Wong's boss) a bit over-the-top and theatrical (I'll put it this way, the acting sure isn't subdued), but this kind of acting didn't bother me too much because I'm used to this style of performance known to come out of Hong Kong—and acting in American slasher movies wasn't exactly an artform.

Surprisingly, HE LIVES BY NIGHT has several tropes identifiable to slasher fans such as the use of the point-of-view camera from the killer's perspective and the heart beat on the soundtrack—not to mention, the synth score—as he/she draws near to the home of another potential victim, chosen for execution solely because she wore silk white stockings while trying on shoes at a shoestore. This is probably director Po-Chih Leong's best set piece: the stalking of Suzie throughout her house, the effective use of a volleyball included in this scene, as she attempts to hide from him/her, crawling in fright across her carpet behind furniture hoping to evade the killer. The camera work is very energetic, a strong sense of style and verve, cinematography by Arthur Wong a major asset in how the murders are presented in a striking, visceral manner. What might set this apart from the standard slasher output is the change of venue, Hong Kong, and the way the camera really grabs you by the jugular (there are moments where it seems as if you are the one being murdered such as when the killer ties the stocking around the camera, or how he/she looks directly at us before attacking). There's even a bit of giallo in the movie as we are privy to a flashback memory which explains to us the psychological issues plaguing the killer, why he/she snaps when the mere sight of a white stocking catches his/her gaze, and the reason behind the use of the box cutter razor.

The thing is, I don't necessarily disapprove of comedy relief, but HE LIVES BY NIGHT puts such an emphasis on the goofy shenanigans of the Lousy Wong and the boss' competition for Sissy that the horror element almost takes a back seat at times. And this is a shame because when the slasher sequences appear, Po-Chih Leong knows how to deliver in a thrilling fashion. Again, what is this movie? A comedy or a psycho-thriller? They try to have it both ways..maybe for some this isn't a problem, but there were times where I wanted the movie to hit me right in the gut like that opening kill, and Suzie's murder sequence, but alas the filmmakers hearts were in tickling my funnybone. HE LIVES BY NIGHT does conclude strong with the familiar chase at the end when the killer stalks Sissy in her radio station while the police are out after who they believe is the killer (the red herring who is just an oddball). It even has the typical *final girl seems to have killed psycho, but did she?* moment towards the end when she seems to have gained an upper hand only for the killer to somehow miraculously survive an incident that would've killed any ordinary person. What is cool about the "two chases" at the end is that the steady diet of humor and horror works especially well, such as the 7-up soda machine gag, the police having to disrobe to their skivvies due to the killer's disguising himself as an officer, or the shelves in the radio station full of records used as weapons (both the records and the shelves!), with Sissy in a fight for her life, her resourcefulness (and smaller stature) keeping the killer, wicked grin and all, at bay. Mentioning that 7-up machine, it plays an important part in how the film finally resolves the chase between heroine and murderer, and, as is often the case in movies like this, the police are late to the party with Sissy having to fend for herself. Slasher fans owe it to themselves to find a copy of this somehow—it is a sleeper which should be of interest.

Beautifully shot and bizarre Hong Kong slasher!

[The_Void · 8/10 · 18 August 2008]

He Lives by Night is a little known, yet excellent, Hong Kong slasher flick! Unfortunately I don't have a lot to compare it to having seen less than half a dozen of this sort of film; but as a film in its own right; this is an excellent mix of horror, romance and comedy! Director Po-Chih Leong takes a basic idea for a plot and really runs with it; managing to inject a cheesy love story and a boatload of twisted humour into the tale without it seeming forced or out of place. The film takes place in an urban metropolis and focuses on a killer that stalks and kills female victims; the only similarity between the murders being the fact that they were all committed with a similar weapon; that being the victims' own white stockings! Meanwhile, a young 'tomboy' radio DJ known as Sissy is covering the murders while getting attention from the town's fat police chief. It later transpires that the female killer is actually a man in drag and the two central plot lines combine when the radio DJ is stalked by the psychopathic killer.

The cinematography in this film is great and despite the plot line, He Lives by Night is very beautiful. Hong Kong's cinema is generally known for being bloody and brutal; but this film isn't. There's a surprising lack of blood and even the murder scenes are tame compared to those seen in later films such as The Untold Story. They are very well done, however, and one that takes place in a bathroom is very well shot. There's not a great deal of sex and sleaze either - and this is mostly made up for by the comedy. That's not a big problem, however. The comedy is very funny and the storyline itself is deliciously sick and twisted enough to account for a lack of visceral horror. The idea of a transvestite killer has been used many times before in horror films; but it's a bit different here as the fact that the killer is a transvestite is never really dwelt on and provides the story with little more than a bizarre twist. Overall, He Lives by Night is a stylishly shot and very interesting slice of Hong Kong horror and comes highly recommended to fans of this stuff.

"Dressed to Kill" from Hong Kong.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 7/10 · 18 December 2010]

A deranged transvestite killer stalks an murders women wearing white stockings. A couple of detectives are investigating the case.The next potential victim of murderous transvestite will be a Radio DJ Sissy."He Lives By Night" blends silly comedy with slasher sub-genre.The script is obviously influenced by Dario Argento's colorful horror movies and De Palma's "Dressed to Kill".The first killing is an obvious nod to masterful "Suspiria".The killings are stylish and tame.The performances by Simon Yam,Kent Cheng and Sylvia Chang are great.I don't particularly like blending comedy with horror,but I enjoyed "He Lives By Night".7 out of 10.

A Hong Kong giallo comedy.

[BA_Harrison · 7/10 · 29 January 2021]

He Lives By Night is what you get if you mix a giallo movie with a Hong Kong comedy, the film combining stylish, mean spirited murder scenes (the killer using a retractable craft knife before strangling his victims) with really daft humour of the kind that often leaves me baffled. The result is a strange concoction, but one that is certainly never boring.

The film opens with a murder set-piece that immediately draws comparison with Argento: a women walking home alone at night encounters the maniac while navigating her way through washing lines hung with coloured sheets. The killer cuts the sheets, the woman running wildly amidst the fabric, her terrified face framed by one of the slashes (shades of Tenebre). Suffering several wounds, the lady crawls free of the sheets, but is grabbed by the maniac, who uses the victim's white fishnet stockings to strangle her.

The film then enters comedy mode as we are introduced to policeman Lousy Wong (an early role for Simon Yam), his overweight buffoon of a boss, Dragon (Kent Cheng), and tomboy radio DJ Sissy (Sylvia Chang), who Dragon takes an immediate liking to. Dragon's attraction to Sissy provides much of the film's goofy humour. But Dragon isn't the only man interested in the disc jockey: a nut-job obsessed with Sissy keeps calling the radio station, and makes violent threats when his advances are rebuffed. He, it is quickly revealed, is a red herring, as it is not long before the real killer is shown to be a transvestite (inspired by De Palma's Dressed to Kill?), who lost his marbles when he caught his wife (wearing white stockings) in bed with another man (dressed as a woman). Now, his murderous rage is triggered whenever he sees a woman wearing white silk stockings.

There's a little more wacky comedy, when Dragon takes Lousy and Sissy to a restaurant for a slap up feed, but the film returns to horror after the nutter - a shoe's salesman by day - serves two women, one of whom is wearing stockings. He breaks into their home, and attacks one of the women while her friend is taking a bath, using his trusty knife/strangulation modus operandi. He doesn't notice the other lady hiding behind the shower curtain, but she sees him, wrongly identifying him to the police as a woman. Fortunately for Dragon and Lousy, Sissy is something of a sleuth herself, and works out that the killer is a man in drag. She agrees to act as bait for the sicko, appearing on TV in stockings, luring the murderer to her radio station.

The final act is a lot of fun, the DJ having to keep the killer at bay while the police wrongly pursue the red herring. The action gets more and more insane, Sissy defending herself with a samurai sword, electrocuting the maniac, and finally defeating her attacker when he tries to crush her with a drinks dispensing machine (the product placement for 7-Up is hardly subtle).

6.5/10, rounded up to 7 for Eric Tsang in punk/new wave make-up, and for two inexplicably strange comedic scenes: Dragon tries to woo Sissy in his apartment by wearing glittery eyeshadow and PVC trousers (always a winner with the ladies), and Sissy and Dragon doing a silly dance in dungarees. Oh, and be sure to watch to the very end of the credits for a surprise.

Goofy slasher fun from Hong Kong

[chaos-rampant · 21 January 2009]

If there's one thing you can't criticize HE LIVES BY NIGHT is that it takes itself too serious. A campy slasher flick that revels in its own silliness, the movie chronicles the efforts of a radio deejay and a fat police captain trying to apprehend a crossdressing shoe-salesman with a murderous silk stocking fetish. The sexual handicup at the root of the killer's problem and the flashback that explains it, an opening murder that recalls Argento's PROFONDO ROSSO and a generally more refined stylish bravado than its American counterparts from the same time, all point to a certain Italian giallo influence. The film ends however with a long chase scene between victim and killer that seems plucked straight from American slasher. For a movie walking a tightrope between two traditionally horrific subgenres, He Lives By Night is oddly enough defined more by its comedy. I guess a lot is lost in the translation, but what is left is typical HK antics, a general buffoonery that is as sure to make you cringe as it is to get you hooked with its peculiar charm. Accompanied by one of the goofiest casiotone synth scores you're likely to listen, He Lives By Night is an odd but entertaining slice of goofball hack and slash that deserves more attention,

A blast!

[BandSAboutMovies · 7/10 · 13 October 2021]

A happily married graphic designer soon learns that his marriage isn't all that happy, as his wife is cucking him with a man who dresses up in woman's white fish-net stockings. The married man goes insane and now feels the urge to dress up in women's clothes and murder any woman who dares to wear the same white stockings. Now he has his sights set on a female disc jockey.

This movie's a weird combination of giallo-infused slasher with romantic comedy, which I haven't seen done before. It's also packed with wacky moments, like a girl being born out of a slot machine in a stage show, directly followed by a kill that is lifted directly from Tenebre. He Lives By Night actually feels like a movie that has heard the "are DePalma and Argento aware of one another?" question and says, "What if we made a movie that's all Dressed to Kill and split screens and hazy photography but with the neon hues of Bava's best student?"

Making this a movie that's suddently shot up on my list of films is the fact that it has some of the most garish movie punks ever lensed by a camera. Have any punk rockers worn KISS makeup at any point other than in movies and All Japan Women's Pro Wrestling? Regardless, I love every minute of this and the scene where the two shoplifting punks are met by the killer is great.

I've also never seen a movie where the killer makes use of a 7-UP machine.

Just to settle the "Is it a giallo or slasher?" debate - spoiler warning - the bad guy goes through a window and falls to his doom, cementing its place in the former genre. But it's really a movie all on its own, where despite the fumbling in the dark comedic cops, it succeeds.

Director Po-Chih Leong has had a wild career. Born in England, he made most of his early movies in Hong Kong, including Foxbat, which was written by Terence Young and stars Henry Silva. He also made the arty Jude Law vampire film The Wisdom of Crocodiles, the Canadian slasher Cabin by the Lake movies and even some action films with Wesley Snipes and Steven Segal (what JCVD was too busy to work with another HK director?) and a Joe Mantegna Spenser TV move before going back to Hong Kong to create The Jade Pendant, The Bounty Hunter and Baby Blues.

A killer that saves little girls from cars. An all-night talk show DJ who is also a nightclub showgirl. Ineffectual cops. Punks. Murder. Yes, He Lives by Night has it all and then some.

The Stocking Strangler Is On The Prowl, And He Wants You To Watch. 1-2-Watch.

[P3n-E-W1s3 · 7/10 · 7 August 2022]

Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of He Lives By Night; here's the breakdown of my ratings:

Story: 1.25 Direction: 1.50 Pace: 1.25 Acting: 1.50 Enjoyment: 1.50

TOTAL: 7 out of 10.00

He Lives By Night is a superb Dark Thriller with comedic elements. It tells the story of Sissy, a radio DJ and sometimes reporter. She stumbles into the ongoing investigation of strangled females in the city. The only clue the police possess is the victims' white stockings, which asphyxiated them. As the nights in Hong Kong pass, more women expire as they fall foul of the stocking strangler. It doesn't take long before Sissy finds herself on the mysterious throttler's hit list. Will she solve the secret of the crime before the killer chokes the last breath from her body?

Writer Kin Lo adds to this thriller a dark and twisted modus vivendi for the killer - well, back in the early 80s, some people still considered it deviant for a man to dress as a woman, and it's still frowned upon in some cultures and religions. But if you ignore the idea that being a transvestite meant you were likely to be an aberrant psychopath, you'll get along fine with the concept that the transvestite could be your regular type of psycho: And the women's clothes didn't turn them into Los Locos. Lo also scatters in a sprinkling of humour. Though I wouldn't say He Lives By Night is a comedy, it certainly has its funnier moments. Like the concept of the oddball romance of rotund police chief Dragon and the tomboy reporter and radio DJ Sissy. These two are seriously mismatched, and it's Dragon's persistence and actions to woo and win Sissy that possesses the most humour. Many of the comedic scenes are smile producers; there are only a few that may tickle you enough to make you laugh out loud.

What I enjoyed most about this production was Po-Chih Leong's direction. He has an excellent eye for composition, and the first murder displays this thoroughly. A woman walks home alone, and we watch her as she approaches a few lines of pegged-out washing. But this isn't your usual washing line of shirts, trousers, and various smalls. Leong has, in rotation, arranged a profusion of red and yellow sheets on the washing lines. The colours scream a warning of danger and the viewers know something nasty is about to happen. He plays the pace and the camera angles flawlessly to create a sense of tension, dread, and fear. And when the victim's inevitable murder is complete, you will have witnessed a beautifully designed and captured killing. Leong, also knows that less is more. Not every scene is as stylised, and that's a great thing because it stops the audience from becoming complacent with the cinematography. He also possesses the skill to add visual comedic elements. Such as the segment where Sissy initially and actually stumbles across the case. Leong gives the audience some humourous shadows, which are a homage and a parody of Alfred Hitchcock's famous side profile. I particularly liked the scene when Sissy steps out of the shower room. You see her posing sexily in the bathroom doorway. But things aren't as they appear. The sensual image is merely a novelty swinging door. It was easy to imagine Leong seeing the swing door in a shop and thinking - I could use that.

The cast is first-rate, and each gives a more than credible and enjoyable performance. I particularly like Kent Cheng as Dragon. He owns a presence made for the screen. You feel confident that when he's on-screen that all will be well. Add to this the chemistry he has with Sylvia Chang, who plays his reluctant love interest, Sissy, and you have a charming and delightfully bizarre coupling that can't fail to entertain.

I am amazed at how few people have watched He Lives By Night. I would easily recommend it to all movie lovers. It's a dark thriller that is sometimes funny and always expertly filmed, thanks to the writer, director, cast and crew. So if you get the chance to watch the movie, do yourself a favour, and don't miss the opportunity.

Take Off those white fishnets because you're not going out tonight. No, you're going to check out my Killer Thriller Chillers and The Game Is Afoot lists to see where I ranked He Lives By Night.

Take Care & Stay Well.

great fun slasher comedy

[firefly2 · 9/10 · 6 March 2001]

This is a great fun slasher comedy. Unlike 'Scream' the comedy is not dependent upon knowledge of modern horror films but effectively makes its own humour. The killings remain horrific despite the comedy, although the film is more serious at the start, more comedic at the end and there is a great scene in the middle where we successfully get both because the victim and her girlfriend are trying to scare each other as the killer prowls about.

A creepy and funny horror comedy from Hong Kong.

[OllieSuave-007 · 8/10 · 29 May 2015]

This is a horror comedy from Hong Kong, where a serial killer stalks women who wears white silk stockings.

The main plot is the psychopathic killer, who is obsessed with women who wear white silk stalkings because his adulterous wife wore white silk stalkings. This balances out well with the subplot of radio DJ Sissy (Sylvia Chang) who reports the crimes on her station while police detective Dragon (Kent Chang) tries to woo her. The two make a great team and had great on-screen chemistry. Even the character of Lousy Wong (Simon Yam) made a good addition to the team. All three of them serves up some good old-fashion comedy, Hong Kong cinema-style, while not swaying too much away from the main serial killer plot.

When the psychopath stalks up his victims, the scenes were intense and does creep you out and the purpose behind his motive is a great suspense builder. There are some exciting cat and mouse chase scenes and a classic detective-style music score. Great acting and, overall, a fun film.

Grade B+

Hong Kong Slasher Comedy Masterpiece

[BLC88 · 3 July 2004]

HE LIVES BY NIGHT would be considered a cult classic if only it were better known. Unfortunately, most Hong Kong films (horror films in particular -- just check out the *amazing* SEEDING OF A GHOST or DEVIL FETUS) have been completely ignored by Western audiences, and that, my friends, is a damn shame!!!

Now, the first thing you need to know about this film is that it's very tongue-in-cheek. Like many Hong Kong films (but not all of them!), there's lots of humor injected into the story. At times, you'd even think you were watching a romantic comedy. But thankfully, the horror is played completely straight, and some of the murders are quite brutal (but not particularly bloody or explicit).

The plot goes a little something like this: A killer is stalking the streets of the city at night, killing any woman he/she finds wearing white fish-net stalkings. Thanks to a witness left behind at the scene of a crime, the police think it's a woman -- but in reality (and note that this is NOT a spoiler -- it's revealed early on) it's a man DRESSED as a woman, driven insane after finding his wife in bed with another man (wearing women's clothing, complete with white fish-net stalkings).

Meanwhile, late-night radio host Sissy has to contend with not only a bunch of weird prank calls from a freaky fan, but also the undying affection from a goofy fat police inspector trying to crack the case. In the end, he decides to use Sissy for bait, and the poor girl finds herself trapped in the abandoned radio station at night with the killer.

First thing's first -- HE LIVES BY NIGHT is a very strange film. Those expecting Friday THE 13th will be let down, as will those expecting a stylish crime thriller in the vein of Dario Argento. HE LIVES has its own style, its own quirkiness -- which, naturally, makes it all the more interesting.

The characters are loud, brash and constantly cracking jokes and making funny faces at the camera. The killer isn't the dark cipher you'd find in, say, DEEP RED (1975), nor is he the raving lunatic like the one seen in BLACK Christmas (1974). He's, simply put, a troubled, desperate man who wants to live a normal life but can't control his thirst for blood.

Like most Hong Kong films, the photography is great, filled with neon lighting and stylish camera work. HE LIVES also makes for a great time capsule -- just check out the hilarious early 80's "new wave" fashions and see what I mean. The music is fabulous too, a bizarre score that fits the film like a glove.

And, finally, HE LIVES is a great little horror film in its own right. There are some great set pieces here, including the murder of a young woman in her apartment that veers brilliantly from slap stick comedy (!) to blood-splattered intensity. And, oh yeah, the final chase scene between Sissy and the killer puts the end of HALLOWEEN (1978) to shame -- it even goes as far as spoofing that film's final shot!

I love this movie. If you're interested in checking out the wild world of Hong Kong cinema, but don't know where to start, then this is the place. HE LIVES BY NIGHT ranks up there with SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE and HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP as one of the best, quirkiest B-movies from the early 80's. Check it out.