China Box Office: ‘Be My Friend’ Opens Ahead of ‘Furiosa’ and ‘Civil War’ on Dragon Boat Holiday Weekend
“Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” enjoyed one day at the top of the mainland China box office before being deposed by a crop of local new releases that opened in time for the Dragon Boat holiday. “Civil War” performed even more slowly.
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China’s Friday to Sunday weekend box office saw “Be My Friend” score $8.1 million (RMB57.7 million), albeit earned over just two days. That put it ahead of “Walk the Line” in second place with $7.8 million (RMB55.6 million) and “Crisis Negotiators,” with $5.8 million (RMB40.9 million), according to data from consultancy firm Artisan Gateway.
“The Garfield Movie,” which had a two-day run the previous weekend, slipped from second place to fourth. It scored $5.4 million (RMB38.0 million) for a nine-day cumulative of $15.2 million in China. Fifth place over the latest weekend chart was taken by the two-day performance of “Gold or Shit,” with $4.8 million.
“Furiosa” and “Civil War” fell outside of the top-five data provided by Artisan Gateway. Data from local Chinese sources shows that “Furiosa” earned $3.58 million in three days in China. And that “Civil War” earned $2.34 million between Friday and Sunday.
As China’s box office becomes increasingly seasonal, even minor holidays are gaining importance for cinema release schedules. This is increasing the distortions of the releasing calendar, such as Saturday openings and clustering.
The previous weekend’s winner “Doraemon the Movie: Nobita’s Earth Symphony,” benefited from the ‘Children’s Day’ celebrations – normally considered only a minor public holiday. But, on its second weekend, “Doraemon” found itself ejected from cinemas in favor of the ten new releases. Some of these (like “Furiosa” and “Civil War”) debuted in the normal Friday slot. Others opened on Saturday and hoping to hold momentum through Monday’s official Dragon Boat holiday. “Doraemon” earned an estimated $2.28 million in its second weekend, for a cumulative of $15.5 million.
It is also unclear why two imported films in the action genre were given release dates in this slot.
“Be My Friend” is a youth comedy film directed by He Nian and derived from a Chinese TV show of the same title.
“Walk the Line” is a comedy crime tale directed by Wubai and focusing on the suppression of criminal gangs.
Starring Sean Lau Ching-wan and Francis Ng, “Crisis Negotiators” is a Hong Kong-produced adaptation of U.S. title, “The Negotiator.”
“Gold or Shit,” is a family comedy that premiered in April at the Beijing International Film Festival. It scooped prizes for best picture and best screenplay.
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