MovieChat Forums > Tong Pak Foo dim Chau Heung (1993) Discussion > Non-speakers of Cantonese

Non-speakers of Cantonese

posted 18 years ago by qatmom
6 replies | jump to latest

Frequently in the discussion of Stephen Chow's movies is the comment that the Cantonese word-play is lost on an audience reading English subtitles. That is true, but despite that, his movies are very funny. I have a number of them, not just his more recent material, but movies from the early 1990s. They're funny even without a complete understanding of the culture or the background of seeing a lot of Hong Kong movies (which I have done). I've loaned these movies to people who have never heard of Stephen Chow, and they find them darn funny.

[–] litok 18 years ago

Very true. But there's yet another observation which you might not know.
I'm myself a cantonese speaker. I realized that not ALL cantonese speakers (esp. those well educated/females) fully understand Stephen's jokes. The reason is that many of his jokes are referential, sometimes subtly, with foul language and/or sex. If one watches it with a "pure mind" or one is not that familiar w/foul language (i mean swearing), then its very probable that he/she will miss a lot! I missed quite a lot when i was watching a child.

[–] blimpintheair 16 years ago

True. The English subtitles are way off. This is purely a Cantonese movie, for commoner Cantonese audiences, just like most of Stephan Chow's classics (the stuff in the early 90s. The stuff he makes now are 90% rubbish)

[–] Ms_RitaFairbanks 18 years ago

I speak Cantonese but am not at all fluent - I'm almost completely illiterate. But Stephen Chow films are still so incredibly funny. I wonder how much more I'd be falling on the floor laughing if it weren't for my shameful grasp of Canto.
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[–] 18 years ago

[deleted]

[–] laomei05 17 years ago

I don't know
but this is a good question

[–] huibie88 15 years ago

I don't think you have to understand Cantonese to appreciate his movies, but I'm aware that I'm missing out on a lot. (I only speak some Mandarin...) It's like when I try to explain a joke by a Dutch (I'm Dutch) comedian to someone who doesn't speak Dutch. You miss subtle links that can't be translated as well as a lot of wordplay etc. Having said that, Chow's movies (especially his older ones) usually contain a lot of slapstick which makes it funny for almost everyone.