Monkey King No Longer A Marketable IP?
Journey to the West, one of the Four Great Classical Novels and its characters have long been a favorite among Chinese audiences and there is at least one film adaptation released every Chinese New Year. 2018 is no exception, Monkey King 3, produced by Filmko Entertainment, and released on February 16, is the latest Journey-to-the-West-themed film. Costing 550 million yuan ($86.7 million), the film opened to 170 million yuan ($26.8 million) in box office earnings, but was quickly overtaken by animation film Boonie Bears: The Big Shrink; its projected ticket sales is under 1 billion yuan ($157 million), much less than that of Monster Hunt 2, Detective Chinatown 2, and Operation Red Sea. In the past few years, The Monkey King, The Monkey King 2, and Stephen Chow’s Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons and Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back, films based on the classic novel have all been box office winners. Further, The Monkey King 3 is only rated 4.7 on review site Douban, making many question whether the moviegoers are tired of remakes of Journey to the West. Read more on D-entertainment
China’s Special Effects Industry Not Picking Up
Box office leaders Monster Hunt 2 and Detective Chinatown 2 have something in common: their special effects are done by the same company named Base FX. Established in 2006, the company has projects and teams all over the world and has won three Emmy Awards. Even so, Base FX is mostly not known to the general public. It has been reported that the special effects industry is an extremely competitive one with high turnover rates, regardless of what projects a company has worked on. Asylum Visual Effects had to close in 2011 after having done special effects for The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button and Terminator Salvation, so did Fuel VFX, a company that has worked on Prometheus. With popular Chinese New Year films making a huge profit in ticket sales, many question whether it would be easier for the special effects companies if their pricing model were different, perhaps taking a cut from ticket sales. Read more on Entertainment Capital
New Chinese New Year Trends: Travels, Movies, And Shopping
The ways people celebrate Chinese New Year are slowly changing as China goes through major social and economic changes; there are no more firecrackers, and less staying at home. In the meantime, taking Chinese New Year trips domestically and overseas have become a new trend, as well as going to the movies, shopping, and engaging in other cultural activities. There has also been a switch from visiting each other’s homes to sending greetings through messenger apps. Many feel that this is a result of a more civilized and culturally enriching society. Read more on 163.com
Box Office: “Detective Chinatown 2” Crowns Box Office For Two Consecutive Days
Suspension comedy Detective Chinatown 2 continues its strong performance on the fourth day of Chinese New Year, and has gained an accumulated 1.3 billion ($205 million) in box office earnings so far. Meanwhile, action film Operation Red Sea has received widespread positive reviews and enjoyed a very high attendance rate; its strong box office performance has surprised everyone. Monster Hunt 2 is still a winner, bringing in 1.4 billion yuan ($220 million) so far. Read more on Mtime
