ASIA325 Hong Kong Cinema – Creative Project
“Mo Lei Tau”: A Creative Response to A Better Tomorrow
By James Deng, Zhichen Luo, Hadrian Lau, Ryan Feng, and Oliver Yan
“Unlike the original atmosphere of the scene and movie, we decided to create a comedized version of the scene with integrating humorous elements and first person perspectives into the scene. We hope to deliver a more “easy-going” atmosphere and flow for the scene, as well as reconstructing the traditional narrative style, the third person perspective within the scene. One of the very first things we added when we were recreating the scene were nonsensical and humorous elements, known as “mo lei tau.” Obviously, we took this idea from the famous Hong Kong actor and director, Stephen Chow. His style of humor provides us great insights in terms of how the direction of our creative project will go, as well as the way we act in the creative project. The introduction of “mo lei tau” into the recreation of the scene not only provides an easier atmosphere and humor, but also challenges the audiences’ expectations and perceptions of a classic fighting scene in a Hong Kong gangster movie, especially when the original scene is extremely tense and serious.” — Project Rationale
Dr. Helena Wu is the author of 
Renren Yang’s research and teaching span twentieth-and twenty-first-century Chinese literature, cinema, and popular culture, with a focus on issues of authorship, mediation, and hybrid genres in Chinese literary and media scenes. His current book project, “A Media Genealogy of Literary Fame in Modern China: Paper, Stage, Screen, and Sphere,” traces the changing concepts, practices, and politics of celebrity authorship throughout twentieth-century Chinese history with the ongoing shift from the print to the digital regime of letters. He also published articles on Chinese web novels and surveillance cinema. Prior to moving to UBC, he taught first-year seminars at Stanford University.
