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Extremism has always been Stephen Chow’s game： a confusingly apocalyptic amalgam of gut-wrenching laughter， equally gut-wrenching violence， and feel-good storytelling. While his movies tend to fall loosely under the umbrella of the comedic genre， the growth in intensity of violence across his films has， in recent years， had viewers wincing more and more. While Chow doesn’t ever show up on screen in Journey to the West： Conquering the Demons， his latest blockbuster belt-notch， the elements of his directorial handiwork are clear： the linguistic puns， foot-in-mouth jokes， potty humor and （in recent years） increasingly ironic and grandiose CGI action sequences are all there. Chow’s filmmaking has always carried a comedic element that flows from traditional Chinese comedy. Puns and toilet humor are deeply rooted in Chinese culture. Chow’s comedic lineage derives from the extremes among these rich elements： language， rhythm， and， of course， action. Action， this time around， is different； the hyper-violent ways in which evil dismembers its victims reveal a darker element to Chow’s directorial vision—one that has， perhaps， been there all this time but reveals itself more characteristically with him behind the wheel. Babies are devoured， victims hung， skewered， from meat hooks， and slaughtered by grotesque weapons. These kinds of over-the-top images serve to accentuate Chow’s goal： to have the viewer simultaneously laughing， gagging and aww’ing， by the end of the film.
But Chow’s films have a decidedly postmodern （albeit commercial） flavor to them， evidenced by his willingness to satirize modern stereotypes by inserting them into his films. By allowing actors to speak in their native dialects， Chow allows for a multiethnic cinematic vision—one that challenges the harmonious and uniform standard Mandarin overdubbing of modern Chinese film. Actor and Shaolin Monk Shi Xingyu， playing the Fist of the North Star， another demon hunter， screams and cavorts in his rough-and-tumble， native Shandong dialect， while Show Luo （罗志祥） lisps through pretty-boy formalities with a Taiwanese accent. It pokes fun at one of the most commonly understood problems in modern China—the difficulty of communication. This linguistic conflict has always been an element in Chow’s movies—a long-running joke that pokes fun at the diversity of tongues in Chinese society. In Chow’s 2004 Kung Fu Hustle（《功夫》G4ngfu）， Shi Xingyu plays a dying kung fu master who suddenly begins to blabber in English， and his fellow villagers yell that they can’t understand what he’s saying. Even gender and sexuality in modern Chinese society seem to be an open target for Chow. Of course， all modern storytelling requires a romantic lead， and in Journey， it’s Duan （Shu Qi）， a beautiful and simultaneously aggressive fellow demon hunter who pays more homage to Golden Swallow， the female protagonist of King Hu’s 1966 Come Drink With Me （《大醉侠》D3zu#xi1）， than the typical， coquettish damsel in distress. When asked to dance suggestively， she performs the only routine she knows， an aggressive martial arts form； ironically， it’s up to the Monkey King（Huang Bo） to teach her how to move with sensuality.
the hilarity of the dialogue， often creating the effect of letting the camera run beyond the dramatic potential of the scene， as if the characters continue to argue with each other or speak beyond their designated lines. Often， any literary Mandarin is punctuated by modern （and often vulgar） phrases and dialogues.
Show Luo’s pretty-boy character Prince Important constantly mixes up the words “impotent” and “important”， in Chinese.
你给我听清楚哦， 话不要乱讲。这两个字会不会读？是“肾虚”，不不不，是“空虚”！我是肾虚公子！ 不不不， 我不是空虚公子，我是肾虚……我告诉你哦，我从小肾就……不， 我从小就很空虚！
As far as blockbusters go， Journey is a trend-setter； according to The Wall Street Journal， the film has grossed 762.3 million yuan （$122.6 million） since opening February 10， becoming the second highest-earning domestically produced movie in Chinese history. While Journey is entertaining， it is， simply， just that. If you plan on catching this film when it releases in the U.S.， be prepared to be entertained but not much else. Chow gives us a one-of-a-kind action-comedy that fits snugly into his own acting style. The bells and whistles are amusing， the laughter contagious and the deaths brutal. It’s not Cannes material， but it makes for weekend fun and a good bit of language learning. - TEREnCE hSiEh（谢燕辉）
But Chow’s films have a decidedly postmodern （albeit commercial） flavor to them， evidenced by his willingness to satirize modern stereotypes by inserting them into his films. By allowing actors to speak in their native dialects， Chow allows for a multiethnic cinematic vision—one that challenges the harmonious and uniform standard Mandarin overdubbing of modern Chinese film. Actor and Shaolin Monk Shi Xingyu， playing the Fist of the North Star， another demon hunter， screams and cavorts in his rough-and-tumble， native Shandong dialect， while Show Luo （罗志祥） lisps through pretty-boy formalities with a Taiwanese accent. It pokes fun at one of the most commonly understood problems in modern China—the difficulty of communication. This linguistic conflict has always been an element in Chow’s movies—a long-running joke that pokes fun at the diversity of tongues in Chinese society. In Chow’s 2004 Kung Fu Hustle（《功夫》G4ngfu）， Shi Xingyu plays a dying kung fu master who suddenly begins to blabber in English， and his fellow villagers yell that they can’t understand what he’s saying. Even gender and sexuality in modern Chinese society seem to be an open target for Chow. Of course， all modern storytelling requires a romantic lead， and in Journey， it’s Duan （Shu Qi）， a beautiful and simultaneously aggressive fellow demon hunter who pays more homage to Golden Swallow， the female protagonist of King Hu’s 1966 Come Drink With Me （《大醉侠》D3zu#xi1）， than the typical， coquettish damsel in distress. When asked to dance suggestively， she performs the only routine she knows， an aggressive martial arts form； ironically， it’s up to the Monkey King（Huang Bo） to teach her how to move with sensuality.
the hilarity of the dialogue， often creating the effect of letting the camera run beyond the dramatic potential of the scene， as if the characters continue to argue with each other or speak beyond their designated lines. Often， any literary Mandarin is punctuated by modern （and often vulgar） phrases and dialogues.
Show Luo’s pretty-boy character Prince Important constantly mixes up the words “impotent” and “important”， in Chinese.
你给我听清楚哦， 话不要乱讲。这两个字会不会读？是“肾虚”，不不不，是“空虚”！我是肾虚公子！ 不不不， 我不是空虚公子，我是肾虚……我告诉你哦，我从小肾就……不， 我从小就很空虚！
As far as blockbusters go， Journey is a trend-setter； according to The Wall Street Journal， the film has grossed 762.3 million yuan （$122.6 million） since opening February 10， becoming the second highest-earning domestically produced movie in Chinese history. While Journey is entertaining， it is， simply， just that. If you plan on catching this film when it releases in the U.S.， be prepared to be entertained but not much else. Chow gives us a one-of-a-kind action-comedy that fits snugly into his own acting style. The bells and whistles are amusing， the laughter contagious and the deaths brutal. It’s not Cannes material， but it makes for weekend fun and a good bit of language learning. - TEREnCE hSiEh（谢燕辉）