Lou Ye’s ‘Saturday Fiction’ To Hit China Theaters At Last, Nearly Two Years After Abrupt Cancellation

Rebecca Davis editorChina’s box office slowed to one of its lowest points of the year this week, bringing in a total of just $24.6 million over the three-day weekend, the last before the break-out of patriotic National Day holiday blockbusters arriving Sept.

On Friday, “Shang-Chi” passed the $183.4 million domestic run of “Black Widow” to become the highest grossing film in North America since the pandemic began, and this week it is set to become the first film since “Bad Boys for Life” in February 2020 to reach the $200 million mark.

Rebecca Davis editorFollowing a dismal summer, China’s box office over this year’s three-day Mid-Autumn Festival holiday hit its lowest point since 2014.Chinese citizens had to work on Saturday, Sept. 18, but enjoyed a three-day vacation for the holiday from Sept.

Rebecca Davis editorA battalion of producers and stars worked the opening night red carpet of the Beijiing Intl. Film Festival Tuesday for the world premiere of their mammoth Chinese war film “The Battle of Changjin Lake,” which is expected to rank amongst China’s highest grossing films of the year.The nearly three-hour-long historical epic is a grind through the blood, sweat and tears of the real-life People’s Volunteer Army as they fight against all odds to defeat the U.S.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentBeijing-based distributor Hugoeast Media has acquired Chinese distribution rights to Cannes Directors’ Fortnight player ‘The Tale of King Crab,’ the first feature venture into narrative fiction of Italian filmmakers Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis.Hugoeast Media plans a limited theatrical release in Chinese theaters in the course of 2022.The deal with Hugoeast Media was closed by the international sales arm of France’s Shellac.

Rebecca Davis editorFollowing a string of celebrity scandals, Chinese officials have told young filmmakers entering China’s top film school that their foremost task is to develop the “moral cultivation” necessary to further China’s rise in the world.The Beijing Film Academy, cradle of the country’s top filmmaking talent, last week opened a major new campus in the capital’s northern Huairou district, an hour’s drive outside the urban center.

Emiliano De Pablos Mexico’s Sin Sitio Cine is joining forces with Brazilian company Desvia Produções and Canada’s Notable Content to co-produce Johnny Ma’s project “Chin-Gone.”A major up and coming Chinese-Canadian helmer, Ma’s directorial debut, “Old Stone,” world-premiered at the 2016 Berlin Film Festival and won the Canadian First Feature Award at the Toronto Film Festival.

Rap artist Nicki Minaj slammed America’s cancel culture after she spoke out about her vaccine hesitancy and compared it to China's restrictions on residents and visitors from criticizing the country's leaders.

Rebecca Davis editorThe latest James Bond film, “No Time To Die,” will have its chance to blow up the Chinese box office this year, as it has now passed local censorship and has a ticket into the world’s largest film market, official local media confirmed on Friday.Although no specific release date has been set, the development is certainly welcome news for Hollywood, as the blockbuster will need significant global sales to turn a profit during a pandemic given its huge budget of around $200

The prospects for Disney/Marvel’s Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings getting a China release date are dwindling. This in the wake of comments originally made by star Simu Liu in 2017 which resurfaced this week and have made waves on Chinese social media. In a 2017 interview with the CBC, the Canadian-born actor referenced his parents telling him of conditions under Comminist rule and referring to China as a “third world” country where people were “dying of starvation.”

Kyogo Furuhashi will be missing for around a month after picking up an injury on international duty, according to a report. The Japan forward suffered a knee problem during the World Cup 2022 qualifier against China, which his side would go on to win 1-0.

That 3-day total is second only to the $80 million opening for “Black Widow” on the list of highest post-shutdown domestic opening weekend totals and just tops the $70 million opening for “F9” earlier this summer. The 4-day total is also nearly triple the previous record for the highest Labor Day opening weekend record of $30.5 million set by “Halloween” in 2007.