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We were poor growing up. There was no food, but my mother still scrambled enough for us.
I was around 7 years old when the Japanese invaded. Every time we heard the air-raid alarm, we had to run to a public shelter.
I began my acting career when my agency found me and said I was perfect to play villains.
My mother didn’t support that decision. People believed that only the morally bankrupt could succeed in showbiz.
One of the accusations was that celebrities were vain. But it was the character who was vain, not the actor.
They understood that you’re not the character in the film: but they believed that
	you must be evil in real life to portray a villain.
People also thought that we were lazy because we woke up late. What they didn’t know was that we filmed overnight.
I decided not to go to the cinema after someone shouted at me in public for being an evil person. I don’t want to talk about that experience.
I love watching horror films. I remember the first horror film I saw, at around 30 years old. It was about bloodsucking vampires.
I was terrified when I went to bed. I dreamed that night a vampire came to suck my blood.
My mother scolded me for being a coward.
I didn’t have any big dreams or goals when I became an actress. I didn’t do well in school, so I didn’t have many options. Acting is what pays.
I was offered the role of lung por [dragon granny] in “Thou Shalt Not Swear” [1994], a film about the Hungry Ghost Festival. After lung por became so popular, similar roles kept coming.
The biggest challenge in playing lung por is to perfect her laughter, which needs to sound creepy but distinctive. There’s no trick. You’ve got to practice. I looked in a mirror and laughed for hours until I got it right.
When shooting a late night scene for “Troublesome Night” [1997], I was told we would be filming in Wo Hop Shek. I panicked. Many said the graveyard is haunted.
We filmed where the bone ashes were stored. In the scene, I got in a taxi and asked to be taken to the graveyard, causing the driver to worry if I was a human or a ghost. There was such a big crew around me it was impossible for me to be scared.
The 1998 movie “Ring,” however, is really not frightening at all—it’s comical even. The last shot, where the ghost crawls out of the television, is ridiculous.
I’ve never encountered a ghost before. Thank goodness.
When I was 5, I had a severe fever and wouldn’t wake up. I was clinically dead. I miraculously awoke after a nun baptized me and prayed for me. It was God’s will.
I’m a Catholic. I didn’t think that starring in ghost movies would go against my religion until a friend asked me about it. I went to a priest. He said as long as I look at it as purely acting, it’s fine. I don’t believe in ghosts just because I have played lung por.
One of my favorite characters is the granny from “Bullets Over Summer” [2000] which won me the Best Actress award. She switches from sane to mad, and it’s interesting to portray and connect her two sides.
My acting career peaked in a much later stage—I only received the Best Actress award at 65 years old.
I have no regrets in terms of my acting. My goal has always been to bring to life every character that comes my way.
My only regret is that when I received my award, my mother had already passed away. If she were here, it’d have been really nice.
I really don’t get smartphones. Phones are for dialing and receiving calls. Besides, it’s not appropriate to talk on the phone in public. It’s not good manners. People will overhear your conversation, and you might be disturbing others. I always call people back when I get home.
When I was very young, I rested on set during an overnight shoot. A group of men came in and talked about their time at a disco. They commented on different women, saying this one was hot and the other was good to touch. I stole a glance at the men. They were all married.
I decided that you can’t rely on men.
I know that not all men are bad. It’s just that back then I didn’t know much.
I’m still single. Some people assume I’m lonely. But I have a loving family. I have God. My nephews call me every other day. What more could I ask for?
I said I didn’t have any philosophy to my acting, but I do have one rule: the minute I walk off the set, I erase all memories of the part and leave with a blank mind. Otherwise, I’d be too absorbed in character and wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.

	This is Law’s fourth year as spokesperson for Hallowe’en at Ocean Park. Want a lung por experience? Check out “Law Lan’s Possessed Possessions,” with haunted tales told in her signature scary voice.


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Helena Law Lan

Magazines

A character actor best known for her “scary old lady” roles, Helena Law Lan is a Hong Kong horror icon. The 78-year-old is also the oldest person to take home the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actress. She talks to Yannie Chan about the supernatural, her religion and playing her signature role.
