Unlike the neon-lit skyscrapers typical of Hong Kong cinema, Chan focuses on junkyards and run-down fishing villages, suggesting the "Fragrant Harbour" is beginning to "smell of decay". The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge:

Represents the ancestral or colonial roots, whose involvement includes a disturbing element of incestuous origin. The Elderly Fisherman:

A young, well-meaning but ultimately ineffective man who represents the modern Hong Kong citizen or the semi-autonomous government, trying but failing to find a stable "home" for Mui on land. Key Themes and Symbolism Exploitation and Consumption: