Basedonamythologicalfigure,ChinesefilmNeZhatopplesall-timeanimationrecords
ByXUFAN
[email protected]S
mashing box-office
records in animation,Ne
Zhais tipped to lift the
Chinese film industry,
which has experienced
a slowdown in the past five months.
The film has proved to be a dark
horse, having topped the mainland’s
ticket-revenue charts and grossing
more than 800 million yuan ($116
million) in the four days since hit-
ting domestic theaters on July 26,
according to live
box-office tracker
Maoyan.
Ne Zha’s tak-
ings totaled over
100 million yuan
on the first day
itself, surpassing
the threshold figure faster than any
other Chinese animated film.
Thefilmhas also broken twoother
box-office records.
By bringing in 138.5 million yuan
on opening day,Ne Zhahas over-
taken previous record-holderDespi-
cable Me 3to top the country’s open-
ing-day charts for animated films.
It also earned 225 million yuan on
the second day, an increase of 23.3
percent from the record set by Dis-
ney’sZootopiain terms of single-day
box-office rankings for all animated
films in China.
With word-of-mouth praise
online,Ne Zhahas also seen a rise in
the number of screenings, a barom-
eter of popularity. By July 29, the
movie was set to be shown across
49 percent of China’s nearly 65,000
screens — up from 33.5 percent on
its debut day.
As the first ever Chinese animat-
ed film to be released in the Imax
format, the film has also generat-
ed approximately 54 million yuan
(including paid sneak-preview
screenings) in its opening weekend,setting a new Imax record for the
best opening weekend of all animat-
ed films released in China.
Loosely based on the Ming Dynas-
ty (1368-1644) novelFengshen Yanyi
(The Investiture of the Gods),Ne Zha
is about a mythological figure who
fights against unfair destiny.The 110-minute film, helmed by
1980s-born director Yang Yu, better
known as Jiaozi (“dumpling”), offers
a retelling of the household tale that
is striking a chord with a modern
Chinese audience.
In the novel, Ne Zha is a rebellious
teenager who kills whoever gets inhis way. His relationship with his
father, Li Jing, is tense. His father,
a cowardly and selfish commander
who governs the fictional port of
Chen Tang Guan, forces Ne Zha to
commit suicide over an error. Ne
Zha is reborn as a three-headed, six-
armed deity who rides on two magi-
cal “wind-and-fire” wheels to fight
his enemies.
“I wanted to change the stereo-
typical telling of the original story.
This film is about an individual who
fights against prejudice and social
exclusion,” said Yang.
Inthemovie,NeZhaisbornwitha
“cursed destiny”. He is unfairly treat-
ed by local villagers who believe that
the naughty, yet good-hearted, child
will grow up to be a public threat.
Another deviation from the original
sees the father depicted as a noble
man who would sacrificehis own life
torescue his son.
With rave reviews online, exempli-
fied by 8.7 of 10 points on Douban,
some industry analysts estimatethe film will overtakeZootopia,the
highest-grossing animated film of
all-time in China.
Li Baochuan, an expert in anima-
tionatHangzhou NormalUniversity,
saidNe Zhashows the progression
of animation techniques in China
and reduces the talent gap with the
world’s best.
Cao Xiaohui, vice-president of the
animation institute at the Beijing
Film Academy, said the success of
Ne Zhashows that animated films
inspired by Chinese mythology are
a new trend.
“In the past few years, most influ-
ential Chinese animated films were
inspired by our own culture, such as
Monkey King: Hero is Back,Big Fish
& BegoniaandWhite Snake. Chinese
theatergoers are more receptive to
seeing such familiar stories being
brought to life on the big screen,”
said Cao.
According to the distributors of
Ne Zha, the film will have English
subtitles for overseas markets.Blastfromthe
pastshakesup
boxoffice
On July 26,Ne Zhabrought in 138.5 million yuan at the box office
on its opening day, surpassing the threshold figure faster than any
other Chinese animated film.PHOTOSPROVIDEDTOCHINADAILYComment
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industry,
page20CHINA DAILY GLOBAL WEEKLY August 2-8, 2019 LIFE 31