Since I am timid, I seldom watch scary ghost films. However, Asian ghost movies usually involve comedy and romance elements which are easier to approach such as the classic Hong Kong movie Mr. Vampire. Ghosts are depicted physically different from humans, but psychologically alike as us. The complicated relationships between humans and ghosts derived from this precondition is always the most controversial topic which arouses audiences’ attention in most of these movies. Housing problems have long-existed in Hong Kong due to the high population density. Dissatisfaction and pressure accumulated under economic transformation and Hong Kong’s handover are largely reflected on the poor living condition inside the small Hong Kong apartment. These apartments are simple and crude, which fits the design of haunted houses in movies, that privileges simplicity and minimalism mentioned in the reading. I guess this is why filmmakers like using Hong Kong apartments as the setting of ghost films. This architecture offers not only the simple structure itself, but also the collective memories and sentiment of failure under the rapid social changes in Hong Kong. The old building consists of staircases, broken doors and illegal attics always help emphasize the loneliness and emptiness of ghosts, who live their whole lives struggling to climb up the social ladders.
– Wong Kwan Ting, 3036074071
Good reflection responding to the reading. I like how you use personal experience to lead in to the topic of ghost films you want to discuss. You are also able to analyze the architectural qualities that housing possesses to facilitate the storytelling process of those films and the relevant social realities.