Director Chen Kaige’s war epic “Volunteers: A Battle for Life and Death” was overwhelmingly popular at the mainland Chinese box office over the weekend. However, the relatively weak trend remained due to the end of the National Day holiday week.
“Volunteer: The Battle of Life and Death” grossed RMB 324 million ($45.6 million). The film accounted for 26% of screening sessions from Friday through Sunday, according to data from consultancy Artisan Gateway. This weekend took up the second half. The holiday week officially began on Tuesday (October 1st) to commemorate the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949.
The film is directed by Chen Kaige and stars Zhu Yilong, Xin Baiqing, and Zhang Zifeng. This work represents the second work in his patriotic “Volunteer” trilogy. Part 1 was released around the same time last year.
Ticketing agency Maoyan reported that the cumulative box office revenue for “Volunteers 2” was RMB 802 million in seven days, and the film now has a gross of RMB 1.4 billion ($199 million). It is estimated that the movie will be released in theaters in 2020. That would put it in the top 10 movies of the year.
Comparisons to the same season last year are clunky because the release dates and weekends don’t exactly match up. (Many new releases hit screens on Tuesdays.) But the most recent weekend, with a total of $108 million, is lower than the biggest weekend component of last year’s National Day holiday period. It grossed $168 million, but dropped to $56 million in its second weekend. Also, this year, it exceeded the 1 billion yuan mark on the third day of the seven-day holiday. Last year, it reached the second day, according to state media.
The crime drama “Tiger, Wolf, and Rabbit” came in second for the weekend with $19 million from 18% of the weekend’s screening slot. According to Maoyan’s report, the film grossed a total of RMB 339 million in six days.
“Panda Plan,” starring Jackie Chan, came in third place over the weekend, earning $14 million from 15% of screening sessions, according to Artisan Gateway. Maoyan reported that the film has grossed RMB 197 million in six days.
“High Force,” starring Andy Lau, came in fourth with $10.5 million. Lu Chuan’s sci-fi offering “Bureau 749” came in fifth place with $8.1 million over the weekend. Maoyan reported that RMB 350 million was raised in six days.
This year’s box office revenue in China is currently over the $5 billion mark, but 2023 is well behind. Artisan Gateway reported a year-to-date total of $5.17 billion (RMB 36.7 billion), a decline of more than 22% compared to $6.69 billion (RMB 4.7 billion). 500 million) during the same period last year.