Stephen Chow/Zhou Xing-Chi

[Ian_Lee]

Out of the 10 highest Box Office movies in Hong Kong, 8 belong to Stephen Chow's films.

So Chow deserves a word.

Actually Chow may make it to the Hollywood. New York Times Weekly interviewed Chow and described him as Asia's Jim Carrie. Premiere magazine also did an interview on him on the July/August issue. Time magazine even chose Chow as one of the 29 Asian Heroes last year.

But Miramax kept delaying the release of Chow's "Shaolin Soccer" for years in US. However, Chow's US fans cannot wait. "Shaolin Soccer" became one of the top 10 most downloaded films on internet in US.

Chow is popular in HK, Taiwan, SE Asia and even US. But until recently did I know that Chow is even more popular in Mainland especially on college campus. I heard that Chow even made a speech in Beida.

Why is Chow popular in Mainland? Some analysis said that many college students in Mainland are overwhelmed by Chow's manipulation of Chinese language in the movies.

Even Wang Shuo said that he was impressed by Chow's "Journey to the West" (Episode 1 & 2 made in '95 & '96). But these two movies were the rare few which just scored a so-so box office in HK.

It looks like there is a big cultural gap between audiences in HK and Mainland.

But I would say Chow is sadistic towards female. In "Shaolin Soccer", he transformed Mainland beauty Vicki Zhao into the ugliest creature you can imagine!

[skylee]

Chow is an extremely talented actor. I like his movies very much. The two movies 西遊記 - 月光寶盒/仙履奇緣 are particularly good with a great adapted script. But it is really a surprise that they are well received by Mainlanders. How can they understand those Cantonese gags?

[Ian_Lee]

Skylee:

As far as I know, all of Chow's movies in Mainland have been dubbed in Putonghua.

The dialogs may be varying slightly between the Cantonese and Putonghua versions. But probably Chow wrote the Putonghua gags himself.

Even though most people think Chow's movie is "cheap" in HK, undeniably Chow is a trendsetter.

He even modifies the way Cantonese is spoken.

[Quest]

He even modifies the way Cantonese is spoken.

Gun

[Ian_Lee]

Like Jin Yong where there is the study of "Jinology" in Mainland, there is also the emergence of "Chowology" -- study of Stephen Chow in Mainland too.

Chow is shuttling around Mainland campus to give lectures. After making speech in Beida a couple of years ago, Chow has given lectures in Shanghai's Jiaotong University, National Southwestern University and Chinese People University recently.

Moreover, Chow is hired as a Professor in the Chinese People University. Read:

http://www.cjmedia.com.cn/ch/article/20041226/20041226305934_1.xml

[Ian_Lee]

In the Chinese world, there is 周星驰 while in Japan there is a 驰星周

Read the very interesting article from Malasysia's Nanyang.com:

http://www.nanyang.com/index.php?ch=19&pg=71&ac=439640

[Ian_Lee]

Here is a reporter's journal on Stephen Chow's shuttle lecture on Mainland college campuses:

http://cul.sohu.com/20050104/n223781553.shtml

Some interesting notes:

(1) In Shanghai's Jiaotong University, a female student wept and asked to be hugged by Chow in the podium. (Shouldn't she be laughing?)

(2) In Chengdu's Southwestern Nationalities University, the minority female Tibetan and Yi students dressed up in their ethnic costumes to greet Chow at the airport.

(3) In Beijing's Chinese People University, Chow was right away offered a Professor job after invited to chat with its chancellor.

[Ian_Lee]

Here is an article about the guy who dubbed Chow's voice in all the Mandarin versions of his movies:

http://www.csonline.com.cn/newspaper/cswb/a4/t20050102_283102.htm

(Chow speaks very pidgin Mandarin.)

[Becki]

It is nice for him to be recognised in western countries Im a western fan but I have no respect for american films x_X Id much rather watch an asian film over and american film most times, maybe im the minority.

Id hate for Stephen Chow to go to amercia and make films, but then maybe im just selfish.

[Ian_Lee]

The frenziness of Stephen Chow in Taiwan:

http://www.fj.xinhuanet.com/wywy/2005-01/27/content_3644701.htm

练功三年的周星驰，这次借助洋教派好莱坞的外力，2004年年底运起掌功，一记如来神掌来势汹汹，非但把《功夫》推上国际舞台，并在华人圈子吹起偌大一阵旋风。这股旋风扫荡了两岸三地，其中刮得最为深入彻底、也最为诡异的，恐怕不是周星驰老家香港，也不是让周星驰电影成为一种文化现象的内地，而是台湾。

票房已经不是重点，尽管《功夫》确实打破了好几项台北票房纪录（首映票房、单日票房、首周周末票房、上映仅八天半即破一亿台币）。早在《功夫》即将正式上映前，台湾就出现一种异常的周星驰现象，一些知名知识分子、文化精英、甚至政界名人，突然从他们偷偷藏着周星驰电影DVD、VCD的房间里走到阳光下，大声地承认他们其实都爱周星驰的电影，并强调周星驰电影绝非没有品位的低级搞笑，他本人不但是位喜剧大师，电影中更充满着各种后现代啦、解构啦、拼贴啦、挪用啦等等文化意涵。

这些表白之中，最为经典、也最为写实的，要属在两岸三地都极知名的文化评论家南方朔：“我一直喜欢周星驰的电影，但因害怕被那些开口闭口西方电影大师的文化界朋友见笑，总是不太敢张扬。在我们社会里，喜欢周星驰，好像就等于是‘没水准’的代号。因此，最近得知原来还有那么多有名气的人也喜欢周星驰，自己也就变得好像更加理直气壮起来。”他认为，周星驰的“无厘头”并非全无意义，而是有“无意义之意义”，在周星驰的“无厘头”搞笑里，实有微言大义在其中。

霎时间，在台湾，周星驰的电影从“没水准”一跃而成为“没水准的水准”；周星驰三个字，一下子有了从来没有的深度与高度。

这个来得有点令人莫名其妙的周星驰现象，要从一本书说起。这本书的书名就叫做《我爱周星驰》，至于作者呢，封面上写着是“周星驰的fan屎”，究竟谁是“周星驰的fan屎”呢？嗬！来头可大了，包括上面提到的南方朔（他在书中的文章篇名就是《没水准的水准》）、名小说家骆以军、人类学家胡台丽、电视主播李四端、“立法委员”李庆安与蔡煌瑯、影评人蓝祖蔚与闻天祥、爵士乐评人苏重、歌手孙燕姿与周华健等等。此外，书中还收录了来自两岸三地以及韩国、日本、美国等地星迷的网络创作，让人见识到星爷的影响力之外，更讶异于网络世界里存在着一个如此富有创意和生命力的星迷社群。

事实上，《我爱周星驰》从一开始就标榜着有别于一般疯狂追星的写真书。它以漫画杂志的大开本，超过四百张图片和十八万字，“为网络上的搞怪创意追根溯源，并针对持续发烧的周星驰现象，进行文化人类学式的观察”。

这本由台北“商周”于2004年12月配合《功夫》上映出版的书，第一次印刷一上市两天就卖尽一万本。接着，由诚品书店出版的读书杂志《好读》，也推出《大话周星驰》的封面专题，请来两岸三地文化人分析周星驰的电影和周星驰现象。然后，《功夫》票房频频报捷。可见星爷的魅力，是名人百姓两相宜；我爱周星驰，俨然成了台湾的全民运动。这一波周星驰热，固然是星爷个人魅力，加上哥伦比亚公司砸下的好莱坞超级大片规格的行销宣传；但台湾文化界的周星驰现象，《我爱周星驰》一书企划制作人何颖怡实不能不记上一功。何颖怡是“商周”出版选书顾问，她的确有眼光，早在去年6月前，她就计划出一本周星驰专书，怀着将周星驰“正典化”的企图心，预定找出所有喜爱周星驰的名人发声，把周星驰的文化现象放在应有的高度来讨论。

于是6月间，她发出一封Email群组信，向各路名人邀稿。其间许多知名作家如骆以军等，在知道预算不够时，还坚持稿费不是重点，但一定要写到自己心目中想写的那一部周星驰电影。在雪片般交换穿梭的Email之间，最后集成十八万字，也挖掘出许许多多意想不到的超级星迷。

台湾人认识周星驰，当然不是最近的事，就算要说，许多台湾人是看着周星驰电影长大的，也一点都不夸张。因为，自一九九○年代初，周星驰在台湾走红以后，就住进了台湾人的家庭——寄生在普及率超过85％的有线电视频道里。台湾有好几个全天播放华语电影的有线电视频道，而周星驰主演电影的回放频率超高，几乎到了每时每刻都有至少一个频道在播放周星驰电影的地步；他在电视上的搞笑身影，早已不知不觉地融进台湾人的日常生活中。

台湾的周星驰忠实影迷不在少数。近年台湾年轻人在网络上流行的Kuso文化，简单译之即“恶搞文化”，更是深受周星驰电影的影响。Kuso就是以一种不正统、不按理出牌的方式，讲述一件很严肃正经的事，又或者正经八百地讨论一件穷极无聊的事。前者如国父成了“铁拳无敌孙中山”，描述他因见清廷腐败，前往大英帝国学习武功心法，以“五拳宪法”运功，而练成可以明足、明拳、明身的“三明主义”内功心法。而后者最典型的例子，就是有人在网上拍卖坦克、橘子等令人匪夷所思的物品，也有大量买家故作认真提问，在卖家和买家短短对谈之中，大量引用周星驰电影对白，充分显示无厘头本色。

尽管如此，台湾的主流论述仍心照不宣地把周星驰电影视为没水准、低级趣味。台湾接触周星驰的电影，比内地早了好几年，之前却从未像内地那样，在文化论述上吹起周星驰旋风，把无厘头奉为“后现代”解构与颠覆的经典。台湾资深传媒人林照真认为，这是因为台湾在大历史的支配下，背负着沉重的文化包袱和认同危机，社会沉浸在悲情之中，难得轻松；而主流论述映照的是善恶、黑白分明的价值世界，电影或新闻中，总是将小人物塑造成悲苦、无助、善良，很少容得下像周星驰那种不勇敢、不正直、爱说谎的小奸小猾。他指出，台湾不见得非要爱上周星驰不可，但文化精英与知识阶层羞于启齿，才真耐人寻味。

台湾传统主流所崇尚的知识、文化、正统等价值，的确与周星驰电影里小人物的处世观大相径庭。后者是一种典型香港市井小民的生存哲学，反智、反深刻、反崇高，善恶美丑、小人与英雄界限模糊，与黄霑“宁为真小人，莫做伪君子”的精神，是一脉相承的香港精神。不过，在网络时代到来以后，台湾的新新人类也已悄悄地革了传统的命。

台湾知名性别研究学者何春蕤就形容，周星驰文化是很有“生产力”的文化实践，那些挪用、改写周星驰经典名句的年轻人，并不只是在模仿抄袭而已，而是把台词挪移到完全预料不到的脉络中，对周星驰的创意进行举一反三的创意响应；他们对既有的社会文化成规本已进行着抗拒，而在周星驰的作品中找到了范例和灵感，也激发了他们捣乱颠覆之心。

任何一个好的创作者，其作品一旦完成，即不再专属于作者，而有了自己的生命，可引起受众不同诠释，激发更多创意。由此观之，周星驰的电影是有自己的生命的，衍生出年轻人的Kuso文化，引起近日台湾文化界的周星驰现象，就连之前文化界羞于承认爱上周星驰，不也是个值得探讨的文化现象么？

[Gleaves]

Verycd has a pretty sweet collection of most (all?) Stephen Chow movies here. Mandarin/Cantonese audio tracks and simplified/traditional subs.

I just watched a Chinese Odyssey Part I (大话西游之月光宝盒) and loved it. I ordered the DVD set on yesasia.

Edited March 10, 2010 at 04:02 AM by Gleaves