拍这部电影之际，中国大陆还在积极地实现社会主义的建立之中。封建社会中的思想与结构逐渐消失，资本主义必然灭亡的思虑越来越普遍。没人能说毛主席的时期是完美的，不过该时期的建设共产主义并且铲除封建制度的努力是万分真诚的。不宁唯是，只能看看当时的香港、台湾就发现中华人民共和国的进步才是真正的、为人民采取的。那年头的香港、台湾，尽管是70年代的社会，可仍然跟现代而善良的社会各不相同，而是跟封建主义的社会极其类似。
本故事的背景、主题都在为我们警世，人世间虽没有完美的地方，但仍然有比较公平的。那时候的香港、台湾那样地方并不是这种为人民发展的社会。这种社会的发展就是为了资本、帝国主义与殖民国家服务。很明显的是电影中的敌人都代表封建主义社会的结构，带有一点现代资本主义的元素。工人存在的意向只是为上层社会而效力。上司们固有的权利本来就是剥削劳动者，若劳动者无用了，就冷酷无情地扔到街上。
从主题上的角度来讲，要害为无产阶级人必须联合起来才能获胜。而且，如果在过去做过坏事，可以为人民牺牲自己以便赎回自己。影片之中，工人，包括女人，都联合起来对封建主义的上司斗争。这是共产主义的理念与价值观，只要你是无产阶级人，都应该参与革命、奋斗。《码头大决斗》讲得非常清楚，仅仅是这样的战斗能实现一种公平而无剥削的社会。这种努力的替代方案非常严峻。
At the time of filming this movie, Mainland China was still actively undergoing the construction of a socialist society. Feudalist thought and structures were slowly wearing away, and the genuine belief that capitalism would be destroyed was nearly universal. No one would say that the era of Chairman Mao was perfect, but said era's building of communism and eradication of feudal ideas was completely genuine (something nearly anyone you ask in China today would wholeheartedly agree with, by the way). Moreover, one need only look to Hong Kong and Taiwan to see that The People's Republic of China's progress was both genuine in its execution, and in its efforts being for the people. In those days, Hong Kong and Taiwan, despite being in the then-modern 1970s, bore no similarities to any good or "modern" country, but rather shared many features with feudalist societies we think of as only existing in the past.
This story's setting and themes act as warnings to us all: even though there are no perfect places in this world, there are still those that are at least relatively fair. The development of places like Hong Kong and Taiwan in these times was not for the benefit of the people, but for that of capital, and for imperialist and colonialist countries. The film makes it almost too obvious for us: all of the enemies in this film are stand-ins for the cruel and exploitative relations throughout feudal China, with some modern capitalist elements thrown in for good measure. The workers only exist serve the upper class, and it is the intrinsic right of said upper class to exploit the laborers under them. As the film shows, when the workers are of no use to the feudal-capitalist class, they get thrown out on the street coldly.
Thematically, we're repeatedly drawn to the importance of workers uniting together, and for the importance of those with strength to protect the workers who are weaker than they are. If one has committed misdeeds in the past, serving and sacrificing oneself for one's fellow workers can be a road to redemption. In the film, workers, including women, unite to unite against their modern-day feudal lords. These are the principles and ideas of communism in action, and the movie tells us in no uncertain terms that this is the only way to build a fair society free of exploitation. The alternative to such efforts is grim.
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