" There is nothing a hot pot can't solve " poster
" Kowloon Walled City: The Siege " poster
" Howl's Moving Castle " poster
Our special correspondent Luc
Following the Spring Festival, this year Another important period in the film market in the first half of the year - the May Day period is about to kick off. This year, a total of 9 films will be released to the audience during this holiday. In terms of quantity, it is the "biggest" year yet. While there are many and rich types, this year’s May Day program also shows a new trend of cartoons being crowded together without an absolute “top”. Who will have the last laugh will have to wait until the holiday starts.
Cartoons are crowded together, and the audience is not enough.
Cartoons have become very popular in the Chinese film market in recent years, especially Japanese animation represented by Hayao Miyazaki, which has repeatedly created high box office and high reputation. The box office champion in April was also Miyazaki. Hayao Saki's new work " What kind of life do you want to live ". Driven by this hot demand, a total of three cartoons were squeezed into the May Day slot this year, accounting for 1/3 of the total: including Hayao Miyazaki's 20-year-old work "Howl's Moving Castle" , there are also the popular animated IP " Spy Play House Codename: Bai ", as well as familiar faces of domestic animation " Pigman Movie·Interstellar Action ".
In addition, the domestic animation " Xiaoqian", which was previously targeted for release on May 1st, released a trailer and release information early, and did some screenings, but the response was poor and the film schedule rate was low. Let the producer make the decision to "temporarily withdraw the file". However, even if "Xiao Qian" is withdrawn, three new animations are still a lot for a five-day holiday. In addition, "What Kind of Life Do You Want to Live" and "Kung Fu Panda 4" are still in theaters, and the number of viewers Limited, so fierce competition is inevitable.
According to the statistics of Maoyan Professional Edition, among the three new animated films, "Spy House Code: Bai" currently leads the pre-sale box office with 17.05 million yuan, "Howl's Moving Castle" also has a box office of 10.36 million yuan, and "Pig" has a box office of 17.05 million yuan. "Xia Da Movie·Interstellar Action" is only 940,000 yuan. Compared with the children's orientation of "Pig Man", the two Japanese animations are more attractive to teenagers and adult audiences. Especially "Spy's Playhouse" is a popular Japanese serial comic/animation and is also very popular in China. The theater launched this time version was released in China for the first time, and the media predicted that the box office is expected to exceed 100 million.
"Howl's Moving Castle", which was born in 2004, is even more emotionally blessed. This is a masterpiece in the mature stage of Hayao Miyazaki's style, with a Douban score of 9.1. Referring to the good box office success of previous classics such as "Castle in the Sky" and "Porco Rosso" after their domestic release, coupled with the accumulation of popularity of "How Do You Want to Live", this time "Howl's Moving Castle" will surely do the same. Attract many viewers. As for "Pig Man", although it is not as eye-catching as "Bear Bears", it is also an "old friend" of domestic animation IPs. "Pig Man Movie: Dinosaur Diary", which was released on May 1st in 2021, unexpectedly won The high box office of 79.32 million attracted a large number of children to watch the movie.
Can star-studded movies exert appeal?
Compared with cartoons, live-action movies are more suitable for mainstream audiences in terms of plots, scenes and character performances. They also have star artists, which are the most attractive factors at the box office. Many live-action movies on May Day this year have strong casts, whether it is the action movie " Peacekeeping Riot Squad " and "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City", or the comedy "Nothing That Can't Be Solved by a Hot Pot" and " The End" "Spending Money " gathers stars with different performance styles, age groups and film experience. Their fans are a potential box office market that cannot be underestimated.
"Peacekeeping Riot Squad" starring Huang Jingyu, Wang Yibo, Zhong Chuxi, Ou Hao, Zhu Yawen and others focuses on the little-known life and death moments of Chinese peacekeeping police overseas. Many fans of Huang Jingyu and Wang Yibo are looking forward to seeing it on the big screen. their figures.Coincidentally, the director of "Peacekeeping Riot Squad", Li Dachao, was once a famous martial arts instructor in Hong Kong. One of his career masterpieces was "October Siege" in 2009. In this May 1st episode, he will also face the challenge of his old friend. Challenge - "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City" directed by Cheng Po-sui and starring Louis Koo, Sammo Hung, Simon Yam, Raymond Lam and other Hong Kong stars.
In terms of star cast, "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City" is not inferior to "Peacekeeping Riot Squad"; in terms of action design, the former has made many kung fu movie fans excited. "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City" recreates the infamous Kowloon Walled City in the 1980s, where gangs were entrenched and crises were everywhere. Faced with the evil gangs who had coveted the walled city for a long time, everyone launched rounds of fierce battles to defend the walled city. Judging from the trailer released so far, "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City" has a tough style, with hard-hitting fighting, and unique space scheduling and scene construction. It has been shortlisted for the "Midnight Screening" section of this year's Cannes Film Festival. Click here The film received an overwhelming response and is expected to attract a large number of male viewers. Among the two comedies of
in the same period, "Nothing That Can't Be Solved by Hot Pot" starring Yang Mi, Yu Qian, Tian Yu and Yu Ailei has an extra suspenseful tone. The film tells the story of four strangers who were sharing stolen goods in a theater backstage warehouse and were unexpectedly involved in a murder case. The hot pot was churning with endless suspense, and greed and deception triggered a series of reversals. Currently, the film crew is focusing on suspense and twists in publicity, and the acting and styling of the heroine Yang Mi have also become the focus of attention.
"Thelma and Louise" starring Jia Bing, Tan Zhuo and Xiao Shenyang, from the title to the plot, is more like the style of Happy Twist. The film tells the story of a middle-aged man who learns that he has a terminal illness and how he spends his life. In the last few days, he desperately spent all his savings, and unexpected jokes happened along the way. It is suitable for viewers who want to have pure "fun" during the holidays.
The previous record was 1.67 billion yuan
As of 16:00 on April 27, the total box office of this year’s May Day pre-sales has exceeded 100 million yuan. "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City", "Peacekeeping Riot Squad" and "Spy House Code" ": White" temporarily ranked in the top three with 29.75 million yuan, 17.91 million yuan and 17.05 million yuan respectively, but the gap between the three is not significant. Judging from the performance of previous years' schedules, the May Day 2021 hit a record box office of 1.67 billion yuan, while the market in 2019 and 2023 has stabilized at around 1.5 billion yuan. Although there are a large number of new films in this year's May Day holiday, due to the lack of big-budget films, the final box office may remain in this range. In addition, in terms of genres, comedies and romance films were once the most popular genres during this period. Comedies such as "Unfamiliar Life" and "Your Wedding" both won the May Day box office championship that year, with a final revenue of 11.8 100 million yuan and a high box office of 820 million yuan.
This year's "Nothing That Can't Be Solved by Hot Pot" may have the potential to hit the box office championship. As the only romance film on schedule, " Journey Through the Moon " currently has a pre-sale box office of only 5.27 million yuan, which is obviously insufficient. "Journey Across the Moon" stars Zhang Zifeng and Hu Xianxu, and is adapted from Chi Zijian's novel. It tells the story of a newly married couple who lived in two separate places in the 1990s and traveled in both directions by train on a journey of pure love.
As a shortlisted film for the main competition unit of the Beijing Film Festival, "Journey Across the Moon" has been the first to meet movie fans. Some viewers were moved by the romantic quality of the film, while others found it boring and cliche. Perhaps the polarity of reputation is not conducive to early dissemination. The film studio We are also pushing the two young leading actors to participate more in publicity, hoping to catch up in the fiercely competitive May Day season.
In addition, there are no imported Hollywood blockbusters on the May Day schedule this year. "Stuntman" originally scheduled to star Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt has been postponed to May 17. Starting from May, the North American market will enter the summer season, and a large number of blockbuster films will be released one after another. If the domestic May Day film box office is hot, it can warm up the market to some extent and make a good start for the more lively summer season. ▲
