Weekly Box Office: “American Dreams in China” Breaks 100 Million RMB in 3 Days

Director Peter Chan’s (陳可辛) rag-to-riches story, American Dreams in China <中国合伙人> grossed 105.64 million RMB in only three days, proving its fast track success.

In its first week in theaters, American Dreams in China’s ticket sales took up 35 percent of the total weekly box office sales in mainland China, doing remarkably better than Lost in Thailand <人再囧途之泰囧> as well as Vicki Zhao’s (趙薇) directorial debut, So Young <致青春> in their first week at the box office. American Dreams in China did not have any strong competitors at the box office, since Iron Man 3 and So Young have already been in the cinemas for more than three weeks.

However, with the release of the long-awaited 12^th installment of the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek Into the Darkness on May 28, it will indeed be an achievement if American Dreams in China continues to maintain its top position.

From last year’s CZ12 <十二生肖> and Lost in Thailand to this year’s The Chef, The Actor, The Scoundrel <厨子戏子痞子>, it appears that Chinese movie-goers are now more passionate about local-made movies, which cater to local tastes. For example, So Young, which is about a Chinese woman who reconnects with her college sweethearts, was on par in box office revenue with Iron Man 3 for several weeks.

While Iron Man 3 and The Croods managed to stay firmly on the box office charts, other Hollywood films did not. One such film is Quentin Tarantino’s violent slave revenge film, Djanjo Unchained. When it first opened in cinemas in China, it was pulled out immediately due to “technical reasons”. The movie’s re-release received lukewarm response, perhaps due to viewers may have viewed it through pirated means.

Films that will be released this week in China include Charlie Yeung’s (杨采妮) directorial debut Christmas Rose <圣诞玫瑰>,  centering around a sexual harassment case starring Aaron Kwok (郭富城) and Kwai Lun Mei (桂纶镁). Running All the Way <一路狂奔>, Don’t Talk about High-Rich and Handsome <别跟我谈高富帅>, The Charge <冲锋号>. Happy Little Submarine 3 – Rainbow Treasure as well as The Adventures of Sinbad 2013 are also new releases.

In Hong Kong, Hollywood films swept box office charts, with Iron Man 3 earning more than $101 million HKD in cumulative gross to-date.

Mainland China Box Office 

Week Ending May 19, 2013
(in millions RMB)

Hong Kong Box Office 
Week Ending May 19, 2013
$ in millions HKD

Box Office figures from Sohu.com and HKFilmart.com

This article is written by Karen for JayneStars.com.