This blog post analyzes Stephen Chow’s cinematic world. We examine why his works, including ‘The God of Gamblers’, are regarded as art that satirizes humanity and society, transcending simple comedy.
As we delve into the film analysis
My first encounter with Stephen Chow’s films was in my second year of middle school, during a time when I was obsessed with Hong Kong gambling movies (like ‘God of Gamblers’ and ‘God of Gamblers II’). I was drawn to The God of Gamblers by Chow Yun-fat and Andy Lau’s impressive gambling skills, the protagonists’ nerve-wracking schemes, and their cool demeanor. However, Stephen Chow’s absurd gambling techniques and nonsensical dialogue in that film made me think his movies were lowbrow comedies, rather than being captivated by the cool techniques and dialogue. After seeing Jim Carrey’s The Mask, I happened to watch Hong Kong’s The Mask, which only reinforced my preconceptions about Stephen Chow’s films. The shoddy special effects and Stephen Chow’s less-than-charming appearance compared to Jim Carrey felt more tacky than funny.
After that, I heard polarized opinions about Stephen Chow’s films – either fervent praise or condemnation as lowbrow comedy. I sided with the latter and lost interest in his films. However, I happened to catch Journey to the West: Moonlight Jewel airing on a cable channel. Recalling my fondness for the Journey to the West novel, I decided to watch it. I worried Stephen Chow might ruin the classic with his signature lowbrow humor, but after the film ended, that concern vanished without a trace. Having seen all the sequels up to The Legend of the Sun Wukong, what once felt cheap about Stephen Chow’s lines, gestures, and expressions now struck me as incredibly funny and fascinating.
After that, I often caught reruns of Journey to the West on cable TV, discovering new meanings and enjoyment each time. I also delved deeper into other Stephen Chow films like The God of Cookery, The King of Comedy, and The King of Destruction. I learned that Stephen Chow, as an actor, enjoys immense influence and popularity not only in Korea but also in Hong Kong. Most importantly, many people recognized that Stephen Chow’s film genre couldn’t be simply explained as comedy, and many referred to his films as a distinct “Stephen Chow genre.” Taking this viewing experience as an opportunity, I intend to seriously and systematically analyze why Stephen Chow’s films cannot be simply categorized as slapstick or parody comedy, and why they should be distinguished under the name “Stephen Chow genre.”
General Genre Classification of Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons & Moonlight Blade
This film, based on the fantasy novel Journey to the West, depicts not the adventures or coming-of-age story of Sun Wukong, but rather the journey of the Supreme Treasure (before becoming Sun Wukong). Through a love that transcends humans and demons, and the fleeting nature of that love, he comes to understand life’s truths and converts to Buddhism. This process is portrayed with Stephen Chow’s signature comedic flair. The film’s genre is listed as SF comedy in the movie introduction. It blends the protagonist’s story unfolding across 500 years of time and space, the Moonlight Pearl (time machine) freely traversing past and future, and the SF elements of demons and immortals appearing while characters command clouds at will, all combined with the cast’s comedic performances. Like Stephen Chow’s earlier films (such as Hong Kong Leon and Hong Kong Mask), Journey to the West was made with crude sci-fi technology, making it feel more like a comedy film than a sci-fi film to audiences. I believe it is particularly close to parody comedy within the comedy genre.
A genre characteristic of parody comedy films is the classification based on character types. First, the characters are schizophrenic. They engage in conversations that lack coherence or relevance, exhibiting behavior patterns bordering on wordplay. Second, the characters are physically fragmented. They use their bodies in ways contrary to common sense, such as inflicting self-harm or treating their bodies like machines. Third, the use of visual icons. Infantile icons (childish items, repetitive appearance of childish props, exaggerated icons) appear. This parody comedy provides audiences with what Roland Barthes termed plaisir—a deviant pleasure that subverts all normative elements without any specific purpose. The plot structure of parody comedy abandons rational narrative structure, instead connecting parody-based episodic scenes. This structure creates a unique anticipation for the audience, focusing their attention on each momentary scene rather than expecting a logical sequence of events.
Defining Stephen Chow-Style Films
Examining his representative works like God of Cookery, The King of Comedy, and Shaolin Soccer reveals several common traits. First, they embody the characteristics of parody comedy. The protagonists and supporting characters in his films are individuals who defy common sense. Examples include an elite acting student who studied abroad but ends up coaching thugs and hostesses in real life (The King of Comedy), or a figure who once held absolute power in the culinary world but lost everything, becoming a third-rate chef (God of Cookery). These characters induce laughter by subjecting their bodies to abuse. However, his films differ in that he doesn’t make movies solely for parody; he creates parody as a seasoning to make the film more flavorful.
Second, Stephen Chow and his friends. Not actors blessed with handsome looks and physical prowess, Stephen Chow himself plays roles ranging from fool to dashing nobleman, sometimes from beggar to refined British gentleman, and from corrupt official to loyal subject concerned for the nation’s welfare. His regular supporting cast (Wu Mengda, Zhang Min, Ma Wenwei, Director Yu Jinwei, Li Jianren) elevates his films. It is their presence that transforms Stephen Chow’s films into the distinct Stephen Chow genre.
Third, they are stories of ordinary citizens in everyday life, not heroic tales. Stephen Chow depicts the lives of common people in a way that is both comical and moving. In Stephen Chow’s films, powerful figures are mocked for their sense of authority, pretentiousness, and corrupt images. Ultimately, their hypocrisy and corruption are exposed, dragging them down into the world of ordinary people.
Fourth, it’s the harmony of seriousness and emotion. Stephen Chow’s films may superficially appear like garish, toilet-humor comedy, but within them lies seriousness and emotion. What makes Stephen Chow’s films special is that this seriousness isn’t merely a setup for laughs; it possesses genuine sincerity.
Manifestation of Stephen Chow’s Film Style in Journey to the West
The characters appearing in Journey to the West are Stephen Chow’s crew of friends. Each is lacking something essential and operates outside normal logic. They exhibit the typical physical abuse and exaggerated acting of parody comedy. Furthermore, the rewritten version of ‘Only You’ sung by the Tripitaka Monk is an unapologetic expression of parody comedy.
Zizunbao, the leader of a band of thieves who are all talk, embodies the image of a powerless husband trying to obtain the Moonlight Pearl to save his beloved wife. The film reveals the cowardice of those with power and wealth, delivering a scathing critique of the greed of the privileged.
Stephen Chow’s films aren’t merely for laughs; they contain a seriousness and emotion that make you realize the meaning of love and life. The melodramatic scenes in Stephen Chow’s films add to this seriousness and emotion. He is not just a simple comic actor; his films carry a message about redeeming humanity’s endless greed and resentment.
Conclusion
While grounded in the characteristics of the parody comedy genre, Stephen Chow uses parody comedy as a seasoning to express his own unique cinematic world. His films demonstrate that reality cannot be explained by logical causality, free from absurdity and deviations from logic. Journey to the West: Conquering the Demon King represents the pinnacle of Stephen Chow’s filmmaking, where his distinctive acting style and the unfolding of the screenplay interlock to create a masterpiece.
Praise for Hong Kong or Chinese cinema tends to be limited to directors like John Woo in the noir genre or Zhang Yimou, who have won awards at internationally renowned film festivals. For those with the preconception that Stephen Chow’s films are childish, I hope they can accept his films purely and focus on the message Stephen Chow seeks to convey.
