Sino Silver Screen: Film Studio Announces Miyun Theme Park Plans; 'Charlie's Angels' Secures China Release
This post comes courtesy of our content partners at China Film Insider.
Beijing Culture Buys Land to Build Film Town
On Oct 14, Beijing Jingxi Culture and Tourism Co., Ltd. (abbr. Beijing Culture) announced that the company plans to acquire 100 percent of the share in Beijing Orient Landscape Resort Co., Ltd., which owns usage rights to 29 state-owned pieces of land, as well as one leased plot, in Beijing’s Miyun District. According to Beijing Culture, the company intends to build a cultural tourism town based on films produced by the company, which will include shopping areas, hotels, film studios, a theme park, and restaurants. Upon completion of the deal, Beijing Orient Landscape Resort Co., Ltd. will be Beijing Culture’s wholly-owned subsidiary. Beijing Culture, producer of such films as Wolf Warrior 2, Dying to Survive, and The Wandering Earth, also released its financial performance of the first three quarters of 2019. The net profit of the company was RMB100-130 million, with a year-on-year growth of 116.17-181.03 percent.
Read more on Sina.
These Five Genres of Hollywood Films Are Hard to Sell in China
There is no doubt that Hollywood films have strong box office appeal to Chinese moviegoers. However, there are five Hollywood genres that have largely found success elusive at the Chinese box office. According to Mtime, these five genres are musical (Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Yesterday), non-Disney animation (The Grinch, Isle of Dogs, The Lego Batman Movie), drama (The Mule), biography (Darkest Hour), and sport (Creed II). Most of these films had positive word-of-mouth or decent box office earnings in North America, but generally earned no more than RMB 50 million per film in China. So far, it has been more challenging for foreign films to achieve Chinese box office success when they are imported much later than their original release. However, this is increasingly becoming less of a problem due to the expedition of film import procedures.
Read more on Mtime.
Netflix Original ‘Klaus’ Releases A Trailer Dubbed in Chinese
The trailer for Klaus, the Oscar hopeful and Netflix original animated film, can now be streamed online ahead of its Nov 15 release in China. Notably, besides English, the trailer has also been dubbed in Mandarin Chinese. According to people familiar with the matter, Netflix also hired voice actors from mainland China to dub the platform’s original series Kingdom (South Korea) and The Naked Director (Japan).
Read more on Mtime.
‘Charlie’s Angels’ 2019 Passes Chinese Censorship
It has been announced that the 2019 Charlie’s Angels, directed by Elizabeth Banks, has passed Chinese censorship but the opening date has still yet to be determined. The film studio released a Chinese-version poster of the film in unison with the news. The 2019 reboot stars Kristen Stewart, Ella Balinska, and Naomi Scott (pictured left to right at top) as the leading actors, and in North America, the film is scheduled for a Nov 15 release.
Read more on Mtime.
Zhang Yimou’s New Film ‘Impasse’ Unveiled at PYIFF
Renowned Chinese director Zhang Yimou attended Jia Zhangke’s Pingyao International Film Festival (PYIFF) earlier this month to give a filmmaking masterclass and also revealed details of his new film that he will start shooting at the end of this year. He described the film, titled Impasse, an urban crime drama film and marks the first time that Zhang has dabbled in the genre. In addition to Impasse, Zhang talked about Jian Ru Pan Shi (Hard As A Rock), a spy drama that he just completed and is eyeing a 2020 release once greenlit by the regulators. As for One Second, Zhang's film that was entered the Berlin Film Festival but later withdrawn, he said that he was not sure when it would be released but that he hoped it would see screens soon.
Read more on Mtime.
Three Chinese Films Nominated for Australian Academy’s Best Asian Film Award
On Oct 15, the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) unveiled the films nominated for the 2019 AACTA Award for Best Asian Film. Nominated titles from mainland China are Nezha, The Wandering Earth, and Shadow. The three films will compete against South Korea’s Parasite, Japan’s We Are Little Zombies, Philipines’ Hello Love Goodbye, and three films from India, Andhadhun, Gully Boy, and Super Deluxe. Last year’s winner of the award was Chinese film Dying to Survive. Russell Crowe will serve as this year's the Jury President, and the award ceremony will be held in Syndey on Dec 4.
Read more on Mtime.
Why ‘The Climbers’ Flopped at the Chinese Box Office
As one of the three highly anticipated films released during China’s national day holiday, The Climbers was expected to be a box office hit thanks to a strong cast which included Wu Jing, Zhang Ziyi, Jing Boran, and Hu Ge. However, The Climbers delivered the worst box office performance among the three holiday releases, earning only RMB 770 million (USD 109million ) at the box office. The other two films, My People My Country and The Captain, earned RMB 2.2 billion and 2 billion, respectively. So what contributed to The Climbers' poor showing? According to audience testimonials, film critics, and cinema managers, most of the negative feedback surrounded the romance – or lack thereof – between the two characters played by Wu Jing and Zhang Ziyi, which was described by viewers as "unnecessary" and "unengaging."
Read more on Mtime.
READ: 5 Films to See at the 7th China Women's Film Festival
Images: Vogue, courtesy of China Film Insider
