The film also balances melodrama and restraint. Supporting characters—friends, rivals, and love interests—humanize Chen and complicate the revenge plot. Scenes of camaraderie and quiet ritual provide contrast to the violence, grounding the film in tradition and community. Cinematography and production design further evoke 1930s Shanghai with a mix of gritty streets and stylized interiors, situating the story in a liminal space between colonial modernity and cultural survival.