Battle at Lake Changjin Breaks China’s All-Time Box Office Record
After over two months on the market, “The Battle at Lake Changjin” has become China’s highest-grossing film of all time. It is also the highest-grossing film of the year, co-directed by a trio of famous directors: Dante Lam, Chen Kaige, and Tsui Hark.
The film broke the Chinese record on Wednesday evening local time, surpassing the RMB5.69 billion total set by “Wolf Warrior II,” another patriotic combat picture, in 2017. According to figures from Ent Group, by lunchtime on Thursday, “Changjin” had risen to RMB5.70 billion, or $892 million at current currency rates.
The achievement was confirmed by state-controlled media, which had predicted it for a long time. According to Chinese media, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian congratulated Wu Jing, the actor who starred in the films “Wolf Warrior” and “Changjin.”
The movie takes place during the 1950-1953 Korean War, which China refers to as the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. While many western historians regard the war, which ended in the split of the Korean peninsula, as a setback for China, the film shows a handful of outnumbered and outgunned Chinese soldiers in a pivotal winter campaign at Lake Changjin, or Chosin Reservoir, as brave resistance fighters.
The picture premiered on September 30th, just in time for the National Day holiday season. The Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year season is a high point in the annual film calendar, however, it is usually smaller than the Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year season.
“Changjin” had the advantage of maybe being released on more screens than “Wolf Warrior II,” but the downside of taking place during a period when the pandemic was still present. Chinese theatres looked to have overcome such limitations in the early part of this year, but temporary capacity restrictions have been restored in some areas since June as fresh COVID-19 cases have been identified.
According to data from consultancy firm Artisan Gateway, the total box office for the year-to-date period is already 25% lower than in 2019 and stands at $6.85 billion as of Sunday.
Given the general decreasing trend in the film business, which goes counter to a newly stated central government plan for the industry, attempts have been taken to keep the film playing well. These include organizing movie screenings in the workplace and at schools.
According to the Global Times newspaper, Huaxia, a state-owned film distributor, has been donating 20% of its proceeds from the film to struggling theatres since last Friday. Huaxia also announced that the film will now be released on December 30.
The film has been released in Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States, but the international box office has been disappointing. According to Box Office Mojo, the film made $105,000 in North America. Nonetheless, “Changjin’s” total in mainland China alone makes it the most popular film of any origin in 2021. According to Box Office Mojo, “Changjin” is ahead of another Chinese picture, “Hi, Mom,” with an $822 million total, and “No Time to Die,” a James Bond franchise film, in third place with $735 million.
According to feedback on popular apps, “Changjin” had passed a quality criterion and received a nine-out-of-ten audience approval rating, maintaining the positive spin. It was the 11th picture in 2021 to achieve so, according to them. The goal was ten, as stated in the five-year plan earlier this month.
The film’s success “confirmed to the industry that the main melody of the picture is the Chinese audience’s favorite theme,” according to a Chinese cinema reviewer quoted by the Global Times. The main melody is a term used to describe mainstream, patriotic, and pro-Communist content that government and privately held studios are required to produce.
The Chinese film industry runs for the interest of the state and the Communist Party, according to the current five-year plan. It backs films that “eulogise the party, the motherland, the people, and heroes in order to pass on red [Communist] genes and continue [the Party’s] lineage,” and calls for more titles that “eulogise the party, the motherland, the people, and heroes in order to pass on red [Communist] genes and continue [the Party’s] lineage.” It recognizes the ongoing 80th anniversary of the Korean War as a historical milestone that should be commemorated in cinema.