Course:ASIA325/2025/Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons: Exploring cultural values and directorial styles from multiple perspectives
Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons:Exploring cultural values and directorial styles from multiple perspectives
Based upon Zhou Xingchi's film Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons (Chinese:西游：除魔篇), released in Febryary 2013.
Group Members' Contributions
Distribution of Contributions
| Category | Contributors |
|---|---|
| Introduction | D L |
| Stories Behind the Film | D L |
| History of Reception | J Z |
| Scholarly Literature Review | Z W |
| Comparative Analysis | J Z |
| Alternative Interpretation | D L |
| Conclusion | Z W |
Introduction
Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons is a comedy film released in 2013, directed by Stephen Chow, who made his transformation from an actor to a director. The film is a reinterpretation of the well-known and famous Chinese novel Journey to the West, tells the story that takes place before the original tale begins the story of a timid yet distinctive demon hunter named Xuanzang. Throughout a series of adventures and explorations, Xuanzang finally opens his mind and becomes the legendary Buddhist monk who later guides the story of Journey to the West. As the prequel of the famous novel, the film serves as an expansion of Xuanzang’s character, focusing mainly on his mental transformation.
The film centers on Xuanzang’s transformation from an idealistic demon hunter into an invoked monk who is ready to confront the complex nature of balancing good and evil. Symbolized by the shift from 300 Nursery Rhymes to the Buddha Sutra, audiences witness his shift from a naive demon hunter bound by limited methods to a monk who embraces both compassion and wisdom. At the end, Xuanzang and his reformed demon companions set off on a journey to the West to retrieve the sacred scriptures, beginning their adventure in the original novel.
Director Stephen Chow’s unique blend of comedy and sincerity is what makes his films iconic. With balanced elements of action, philosophical depth, and the humor style of “Mo Lei Tau”, Conquering the Demons explores themes of love, sacrifice, and spiritual growth while being a comedy film.
In terms of the film’s message, Chow’s themes lead audiences to consider the lines drawn between right and wrong, good and evil. Throughout the story, the film only suggests different approaches to problem solving and idealism without a clear conclusion of what the only answer is for the problems and questions the protagonist confronts. The duality of these themes is what makes Stephen Chow’s works have different understandings and interpretations each time their audience goes through them.
Stories Behind the Film
Achievements
In 2013, Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons was released during spring and was a huge success in China’s film market. The film became China’s top-grossing hit in 2013 by “netting 205 million dollars at the box office” [1]. Conquering the Demons includes a wide range of genres, including comedy, fantasy, romance, adventure, and action; moreover, in terms of awards, Conquering the Demons also has 2 wins and 21 nominations from its cast and director in events such as the Hong Kong Film Awards and Golden Horse Film Festival. Although the film was produced in Hong Kong, it was voiced in Mandarin instead of Cantonese, and was filmed in Heng Dian, China[2]. With tremendous success, the film then released its sequel, Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back, four years later in 2017.
Director Stephen Chow, born name Sing-chi Chow, is an actor and director born on June 22, 1962, in Hong Kong[2]. He was a famous actor before he became a director, known for his comedic style presented in his films and shows. Some of his well-known films, such as “Tricky Brains” (1991), “God of Cookery” (1996), and “God of Gamblers 2” (1990) all had a great vogue during the 1990s. Stephen Chow’s unique style of presenting “Mo Lei Tau” humor makes him so recognizable among other films, even until now. After starring in “Kung Fu Hustle”, Stephen Chow fully worked as a director, sitting behind the camera while discovering potential actors/actresses and providing them opportunities to shine on screen.
Top Casts & Fun Facts:
For the top cast actors and actresses in the film, Xuanzang, played by Wen Zhang, who is an actor and director born on June 26, 1984, in Xi’an, China. On the other hand, actress Shu Qi played the character Miss Duan. She is a Taiwanese actress born on April 16, 1976, who won the award in the Golden Horse Awards for best leading actress in the year 2005.
Besides the two protagonists, Xuanzang and Miss Duan, Wukong is also an iconic character in the film. Wukong’s human form was cast by Huang Bo, a famous actor, director, and producer in Mainland China, who was born on 26 August 1974 in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China. He had 31 wins and 48 nominations, including titles of best leading actor and best supporting actor in the Golden Horse Film Festival and other events.
Finally, for an interesting fact from behind-the-scenes footage. From the scene where Wukong in his human form teaches Miss Duan how to dance. This scene was not originally part of the film, it was just a rehearsal between the two actors; however, their natural interactions convinced director Stephen Chow to include this scene to the film as an unexpected surprise[3].
Histories of the Film’s Reception
Chinese audience comments on Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons
Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons reaped a Douban rating of 7.2/10[4]. On Douban and platforms such as Zhihu, viewers who liked the movie thought that Stephen Chow showed deep thoughts through his comedic style and was a very realistic movie about life and the cycle of cause and effect. For example, after the Monkey King killed Ms. Duan, the Flying Ring became a ring on the hand of Xuan Zang to help him summon the Buddha's Palm to defeat the Monkey King. In the end, the Flying Ring became the golden hoop on the head of the Monkey King. This is the embodiment of the moral principles of life as well as the teachings of Buddhism. As a result, the Chinese audience, who deeply understand the movie, have been absolutely delighted with the movie.
However, most people do not have such an understanding, so their knowledge of the movie is limited to the gory images, and many people have reported that they were frightened by the pictures in movie[5]. Most of the audience's feedback was related to China's political and cultural background at that time. In 2013, Xi Jinping had just assumed the presidency of China, and his main emphasis was on disseminating positive energy and the concept of cultural self-confidence. The gory scenes in the movie, such as the pig demon's lair, went against China's cultural aesthetics at the time, leading to public disapproval. Moreover, the Chinese authorities controlled public opinion, i.e., news reporting, to implement such a policy, which may have led to a generally critical attitude when searching for news about the movie. At the same time, Chinese parents were protective of their children, and they were not happy that their children had to see such a gory movie that went against the grain[6]. In addition to the fact that China was still in the midst of a cultural renaissance at the time, there was a low acceptance of the movie's new and unusual sets.
Western audience comments on Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons
Unlike the Chinese audience's appraisal of the movie, the Western audience showed high satisfaction with it. The movie has a 94% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 6.8/10 rating on IMDb[7]. Western audiences generally commented on the movie's thrilling action scenes, comedic elements, and romantic elements on these review sites. Unlike the Chinese audience's attitude towards the Pig Demon's Lair, Western audiences loved it and found it exciting, which also demonstrates Stephen Chow's level of filmmaking. This is in line with the focus of Western cinema, which is to create a sense of excitement in the fights and the humour of the characters in the thrills, which is not unfamiliar to the Western audience and is very easy to accept in this kind of setting. Looking at the reviews published in Western news, the Hollywood Reporter praises the entertainment and quirkiness of the movie[8]. In terms of the deeper meaning of the movie, Western audiences are more concerned about the importance of faith embodied in the movie, i.e., they are interested in Xuan Zang’s belief in exorcism for the sake of his own sake, thus deciding to embark on the path of fetching scriptures. Western audiences focus on the great love that Xuan Zang has and Miss Duan's worldly pursuit of love, and believe that Miss Duan's pursuit challenges Xuan Zang’s faith. This is also an interpretation of the movie. Western movies generally focus on conflict and antagonism between favourable and hostile factions, but pay less attention to the character's growth and the traditional Chinese value that expressing emotions should be subtle. Also, there is little mention in the movie reviews of the Buddhist cultural understanding of characterization since Westerners' beliefs are mainly centred on Christianity, which focuses on the power of faith and fraternity. Therefore, Western audiences will praise the intense colour of faith in the film and the love that Longevity Monk embodies for all things in the world; for example, Western audiences also praise Xuan Zang’s love of taming the demons during the exorcism. At the same time, in 2013, the West was caught up in a socio-cultural boom of diversified identities, which made this movie, full of Chinese cultural colours, widely circulated in the West. Even though the Western audience agreed with the movie's action presentation as well as its set-pieces, but since the West's understanding of cultural diversity is not perfect, they focus more on the novelty and grotesqueness of the movie but lack a deeper understanding of the Buddhist symbolism and the embodiment of traditional Chinese culture in the movie.
Scholarly Literature Review
Artistic style and directorial creation: the absurd and romantic "Chow aesthetics"
Screen International's article about Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, it is stated that although Stephen Chow did not appear in the film, the film still successfully demonstrated his iconic "Chow humor" and absurd fantasy style, showing that as a director, he can also control the rhythm and comedy temperament of the film behind the scenes[9]. Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons is Stephen Chow's "gorgeous return" after CJ7[9]. He successfully created "a thoroughly entertaining action comedy" and made people feel the style of "Hong Kong's most representative comedy director" again. The review particularly emphasized that the film continued Stephen Chow's consistent nonsensical style - "small and unpretentiously bizarre touches of humour that are unquestionably Chow's own" throughout the film.
Although the film was nominally "a Stephen Chow film", it was directed by Derek Kwok in the early stage, and Stephen Chow "only took up his directorial duties – and the head billing – midway through the production"[9]. This reveals the multiple sources of the film's style, which combines Guo Zijian's fantasy rhythm with Stephen Chow's absurd humor, forming an artistic appearance with diverse styles and strong colors. Just like the fish demon, pig demon, monkey demon in the film, "giant animals... do feel very much at home in a fantasy movie as wacky as Conquering the Demons"[9]. They were originally kind people, but turned into demons due to injuries. This article emphasizes the continuation and transformation of the director's style in "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons". The film uses fantasy and absurdity as the aesthetic tone to construct a "Zhou-style" fantasy world that is both familiar and fresh.
Narrative structure and character creation: from "Wukong-centered" to "Xuanzang transformation"
Richard Kuipers explained in the article "Visuals are more dazzling than the storytelling" that the character setting of "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" is very different from Stephen Chow's previous films[10]. The "emotional and weak" Chen Xuanzang is the protagonist, which forms a sharp contrast with the strong female protagonist, reflecting the renewal of characters and structure. The protagonist of the film, Chen Xuanzang, is a gentle "educator" who does not know martial arts.
The film shows a clear role transformation through this setting. The heroine Miss Duan is both beautiful and strong, and she almost "stolen the show" in the film. Just like in the fish demon segment in the movie, Xuanzang witnessed the appearance of the fish demon and failed to persuade the fish demon by singing in the end, while Miss Duan took only half a minute to deal with the fish demon. In the end, the villagers were all thanking Miss Duan, and no one cared about Xuanzang's stay. Miss Duan subverted the marginal status of female characters in previous Zhou films with her active emotional expression and strong action.
The structure of the film intersperses the emotional growth and philosophical understanding of the protagonist in the continuous demon-slaying mission. Miss Duan's love for Xuanzang was commented as "pushing the opposites-attract notion a bit too far"[10], but it highlights the film's construction foundation for the theme of "great love". This film breaks through the previous hero-centered, male-dominated model in character creation and structural arrangement, interweaving emotions, growth and actions into the main line, with a significant modern narrative shift.
Pedagogical significance and cultural value: Moral education under the shell of comedy
Zhu Lin's "Pedagogical Interpretation of the Movie "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons"" points out that the film achieves a deep expression of "educational spirit", "great love thought" and "personality shaping" in absurd comedy through the way of teaching through entertainment and teaching through beauty[11], and is an entertainment film with educational significance. The article mentioned that this film is not only a "box office masterpiece", but also has won social recognition for its "subtle educational function".
In terms of aesthetic education, the film symbolizes "the love, patience and confidence of educators who never abandon or give up"[11] through Chen Xuanzang's behavior of "awakening the goodness of demons with "Three Hundred Children's Songs"". Although Chen Xuanzang in the film has no military power, he completes the mission of conquering demons with the concept of "awakening the truth, goodness and beauty in people's hearts". This educational view is a metaphor for the caring attitude towards "misunderstood people" and "marginal students" in modern education.
In terms of emotional education, the film enhances the spiritual growth of the characters through the concept of "great love": "Love between men and women is also included in the so-called great love"[11], reflecting the sublimation process from "small love" to "great love". The master's education of Xuanzang is also very symbolic: he does not use authority to oppress others, but uses "breaking the precepts and eating goose legs" to explain the dialectical relationship of "being in the secular world but devoting one's heart to Buddhism"[11].
Comparative Analysis
The “nonsense” style of: A Chinese Odyssey, Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons
In A Chinese Odyssey, when Zixia almost loses her life, Joker still asks her to guess whether he loves her.Although it is against normal behaviour, it instantly dwarfs the image of the noble thing through the playful language or behaviour, so that the audience can enjoy the pleasure of the extremely fast psychological gap[12]. In Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, Stephen Chow's usual "nonsensical" style received mixed reviews from the audience. The scene where the pig demon puts a human body in the stomach of a roasted pig shows its absurd and unexpected art style. From the plot of the story, Miss Duan’s intense kisses to Xuanzang made the audience predict what’s going on next, which shows Stephen Chow’s movie "Nonsense" and the detachment of logic. The kissing of Xuanzang by the middle lady also serves the same purpose of breaking the tradition of shaping [12] a new definition of emotional liberalization. This reflects the unique style of Stephen Chow's movie.
The "nonsense" in A Chinese Odyssey primarily intends to entertain the audience, but it shakes the legitimacy of traditional ethics[13]. That is, before facing the fact that Zixia is dying, it is moral and ethical not to continue teasing her but to offer support and hope. In Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, when Xuanzang's "300 Children's Songs" are useless and laughed at, the humour and nonsense portrayed in the book are meaningful and judgmental of human evil[13]. Therefore, there is a difference in the style of Stephen Chow’s "nonsense" between these two films.
Stephen Chow’s narrative approach to content in A Chinese Odyssey and Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons
Both movies are narrated as "one main narrative." Both of Stephen Chow's movies have no obvious rival camps or characters. The main characters, Joker and Xuanzang, have no obvious rival camps or characters, but face the problem of something missing, and their main mission is to find and conquer what they are missing[14]. In A Chinese Odyssey, Joker is missing his responsibility and accountability as the Monkey King. He tries to change and avoid this fact, but in the end, he puts on the gold band to prove that he has taken up his responsibility. In Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, Xuanzang is missing his ability to fight demons. At first, he embarks on a journey to the West to get scriptures because he is not as good at getting rid of demons as others, and eventually, he recites an incantation to subdue the Monkey King[14]. This proves that in the end, Xuanzang overcame the difficulties and gained the ability to get rid of demons.
Stephen Chow's A Chinese Odyssey uses a non-linear narrative style[15] in which Joker uses the Moon Box to travel to the past to save Zixia. Still, after a lot of hard work, he realizes that nothing can be changed, and in the end, Joker puts on the golden hoop and resigns himself to his fate. Stephen Chow's use of this narrative highlights the boundaries of destiny and reality, making people feel the powerlessness of being arranged by fate. On the other hand, in Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, Stephen Chow's narration is based on the typical sequence of events. Xuanzang embarked on the road to fetch the scriptures after the master's mention, and all the plots are on his way to fetch the scriptures; the connectivity between the plots is strong, and there is no similar situation of crossing or timeline disorganization. In Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, Stephen Chow did not use past similar narrative styles, such as a direct narrative way to highlight the movie's theme, i.e., Xuanzang's character growth. From improving the logic of the storyline to reflecting Xuanzang as the traditional incarnation of conformity, the story's theme and characterization echoed. The non-linear narrative style in A Chinese Odyssey corresponds to Joker's cynical and uninhibited characterization.
Educations
A Chinese Odyssey and Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons both use Buddhist teachings to show that great love should be greater than individual love and to demonstrate to the general public that social progress requires everyone to voluntarily take on the appropriate social responsibility and be a contributing member of society. In A Chinese Odyssey, the change in Joker's attitude towards Zixia's love reflects this. Joker is initially obsessed with Zixia, wanting to be with her, but ultimately decides to let go of his love and puts on the golden hoop. This action represents Joker's ultimate choice between personal love and social responsibility. In Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, in the face of Ms. Duan's fierce pursuit, Xuanzang also "fell in love at first sight" with her but has always suppressed himself. When the Monkey King kills Miss Duan, he lets go of his obsession and defeats the Monkey King to accomplishes his mission of subdue the demons. Stephen Chow, in these two movies, such a plot arrangement highlights the concept of "want to become a Buddha must abandon any distractions." which warns people should take social responsibility at the same place, also provides the education concept that if want to do a thing successfully, one must be dedicated, not a double-minded.
Since the two movies are set in different historical eras, they will have different approach regarding the moral values they embody. A Chinese Odyssey, a 1995 movie, shows a skepticism and mockery of morality that is closely related to the moral nihilism that was once prevalent in the 1990s. For example, in the movie, in the moment of crisis, Joker asked his friends to fight while he ran way. This is unethical in modern society and demonstrates an extreme distrust of human nature[16]. In Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, such a plot does not occur. In this era, people's moral consciousness has also changed and increased, and they no longer believe that greed and self-inflicted harm is the true human nature[17]. For example, at the movie's end, Miss Duan, although she knows she cannot defeat the Monkey King, still bravely joins the battle to protect Xuanzang and fulfill her mission as an exorcist. This example shows that from A Chinese Odyssey to Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, Stephen Chow's movies have changed from the previous distrust of human nature to the promotion of mutual trust and the moral concept of righteousness.
Alternative Interpretation
Scene 1: Removing the fangs from the snake
In Ying-Fen Wang’s exploration article, the author discussed how Xuanzang’s concept of demon hunting by awakening their inner goodness corresponds to the original story in Journey to the West. The author stated that the way of demon taming in the film “corresponds to the original work Journey to the West”, where the real realm of demon taming “is not to kill them, but to dissolve their demonic nature and make them sincerely and harmoniously satisfied”[18]. Although Conquering the Demons has a similar idea in general; however, I believe director Stephen Chow has a hidden message within the scenes, which makes this claim not wrong but not precise.
In the film, after the water demon event in the fishing village, Xuanzang’s master told his apprentice to tame demons not by violence but to invoke their inner love and compassion. By doing so, their evil spirits can be purified and therefore become the kind ones that they once were. This idea is portrayed in the film where Xuanzang’s master catches a snake and releases it after removing the snake’s venomous teeth(00:23:35-00:24:10)[19]. Their way of demon hunting is to awaken their inner goodness by removing only their evil, as portrayed as the venomous snake with its teeth removed; however, there can be an alternative interpretation of this scene’s meaning.
Once we view this scene from the snake’s perspective, things suddenly become unrealistic. By removing what it seems to be utterly evil, which are the venomous teeth, the snake is now left with pure goodness according to this idea; however, can this snake survive without its teeth? Not quite possible, that would be the case. By completely removing one aspect from oneself, the inner balance will be broken. Living things are functional because of their ability to self-regulate, and that requires a stable inner balance.
Scene 2: Wukong’s headband
Relating this alternative interpretation to its sequel, The Demons Strike Back, we can locate some evidence that supports our interpretation. The pig demon Bajie was not tamed via invoking love and compassion but by magical gadgets in the first place; however, Bajie still became Xuanzang’s second disciple and assisted him throughout his long journey. Despite Xuanzang’s teachings, Bajie still behaves like a lecher while being one of his Buddhist disciples. In this scene, Bajie’s reaction to the charming spider demons is utterly different from his companions(00:22:05-00:22:23)[20].
Wukong, on the other hand, remains violent and disobeying. When he realizes Xuanzang lost his voice, which disables him from controlling Wukong by spell casting due to sickness, he attempts to attack or might even kill Xuanzang (00:35:12-00:37:07)[20]. Even though Wukong was tamed by Xuanzang via awakening his inner goodness and becoming his first disciple, part of his evil spirit remains.
Back to the story in Conquering the Demons, at the end of the film, Xuanzang placed a headband on Wukong in his human form (01:42:10-01:42:32)[19]. This item allows Xuanzang to stop Wukong from being out of control later on in their journey. Even with the Buddha’s divine power, Xuanzang chooses only to put an emergency lock on Wukong; this indicates that as long as the balance is maintained, there is no need to fully execute things to an absolute, in this case, some of Wukong’s inner nature.
Moreover, magical gadgets used by the other demon hunters represent the violent way to tame demons in the film; therefore, they can be used as a symbol of violence. Throughout the film, it suggests the way to tame demons by awakening their inner goodness, not by violence; however, the magical gadget passed down to Xuanzang by Miss Duan transforms into Wukong’s headband. As an item that symbolizes the violent way to tame demons, Xuanzang uses it to maintain Wukong’s balance of good and evil. This depiction indicates duality; nothing can be absolute. In my opinion, there is no such thing as pure evil or pure goodness; the key is to find a method to suppress inner evil and maintain the balance between good and evil.
Conclusion
Overall, the movie demonstrates Stephen Chow's unique "nonsense" style of filmmaking but with a deeper meaning of compassion and spiritual growth. The movie had high ratings and was better received in the West than in China. Stephen Chow's grotesque graphic design and witty approach provoke moral reflection, emphasizing the values of truth, goodness and beauty while demonstrating self-restraint.
By comparing In Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons to A Chinese Odyssey, we can see the change of values of the times behind the movie and the interpretation of the movie's theme through the characters' portrayal. The film is worth watching and exploring because of its visual style, deep philosophical thinking, and interpretation of reality. For those who like humour but do not lack the depth of content, this is a work worth watching.
References
- ↑ "Behind the Box Office". Beijing Review, February 6, 2014 Thursday. https://advance-lexis-com.eu1.proxy.openathens.net/document/?pdmfid=1519360&crid=af5cfe65-5507-4690-bbef-112d5cf20a1d&pddocfullpath=%2Fshared%2Fdocument%2Fnews%2Furn%3AcontentItem%3A5F9R-BD01-JC5R-24T1-00000-00&pdcontentcomponentid=420421&pdteaserkey=sr1&pditab=allpods&ecomp=hc-yk&earg=sr1&prid=21821d5e-7917-4bd8-8433-765572402579. Accessed June 9, 2025.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 “Xi You: Xiang Mo Pian.” IMDb, 2013, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2017561/. Accessed 11 June.2025.
- ↑ “周星馳《西游.降魔篇》幕後花絮NG篇之3.” YouTube, uploaded by 星樂園（周星馳影迷會), 22 February 2013, https://youtu.be/xOP2R5HyyeQ?si=zM8prO7r-QGB4uEQ.
- ↑ Chow周星驰 Stephen, et al. “西游降魔篇.” 豆瓣, 7 Feb. 2013, movie.douban.com/subject/5308265//. Accessed 15 June 2025.
- ↑ “《西游降魔篇》被指太吓人 周星驰：我自己都怕” Sohu.com, 2018, news.sohu.com/20130205/n365616132.shtml. Accessed 15 June 2025.
- ↑ 《西游降魔篇》吓哭不少孩子.” Zhld.com, 2025, www.zhld.com/zkwb/html/2013-02/20/content_498557.htm. Accessed 15 June 2025.
- ↑ “Journey to the West (2013) - IMDb.” Www.imdb.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt2017561/.
- ↑ Kerr, Elizabeth. “Journey to the West — Conquering the Demons: Film Review.” The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Mar. 2013, www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/journey-west-conquering-demons-film-427199/. Accessed 15 June 2025.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons." Screen International, 2013.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Kuipers, Richard. "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons." Variety, vol. 430, no. 4, 03/10/2013, pp. 16.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 朱琳. "电影《西游：降魔篇》的教育学解读." 河北大学成人教育学院学报, vol. 15, no. 2, 2013, pp. 126-128.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 胡静洁."论周星驰电影的“破”与“立”——基于《大话西游》和《西游降魔篇》的分析." 四川戏剧 .02(2017): pp.159.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 胡静洁."论周星驰电影的“破”与“立”——基于《大话西游》和《西游降魔篇》的分析." 四川戏剧 .02(2017): pp.160.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 龚雪.论周星驰导演的童话情结.2017.西南大学,MA thesis. pp.29.
- ↑ 袁懿宸."从《大话西游》看周星驰的电影风格." 明日风尚 .21(2018):309. doi:CNKI:SUN:MRFS.0.2018-21-298. pp.309.
- ↑ 曲春景,and 张卫军."从颠覆到重建——《西游降魔篇》对《大话西游》的反转见证对核心价值的诉求." 上海大学学报(社会科学版) 30.05(2013):37-49. doi:CNKI:SUN:SHDS.0.2013-05-005. pp.43.
- ↑ 曲春景,and 张卫军."从颠覆到重建——《西游降魔篇》对《大话西游》的反转见证对核心价值的诉求." 上海大学学报(社会科学版) 30.05(2013):37-49. doi:CNKI:SUN:SHDS.0.2013-05-005. pp.44.
- ↑ "以 [情] 作為 [降魔] 與 [成佛] 的中介-《 西遊‧ 降魔篇》 影片探討." 文學新鑰 (2017). pg 11 http://nhuir.nhu.edu.tw/ir/bitstream/987654321/26237/1/4023002601.pdf.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons. Directed by Stephen Chow and Derek Kwok, performances by Wen Zhang, Shu Qi, and Huang Bo, China Film Group Corporation, 2013.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back. Directed by Tsui Hark, performances by Kris Wu, Lin Gengxin, and Yao Chen, written by Stephen Chow and Tsui Hark, H.Brothers, 2017.