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The Battle at Lake Changjin

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The Battle at Lake Changjin (Chinese: 长津湖) is a 2021 Chinese war film directed by Chen Kaige, Tsui Hark and Dante Lam. It was written by Lan Xiaolong and Huang Jianxin, produced by Yu Dong, and stars Wu Jing and Jackson Yee.[2][3][4]

The Battle at Lake Changjin
Poster
Directed byChen Kaige
Tsui Hark
Dante Lam
Written byLan Xiaolong
Huang Jianxin
Produced byYu Dong
StarringWu Jing
Jackson Yee
CinematographyPan Luo
Peter Pau
Music byElliot Leung
Zhiyi Wang
Production
companies
Distributed byDistribution Workshop
CMC Pictures
Release dates
  • September 21, 2021 (2021-09-21) (BIFF)
  • September 30, 2021 (2021-09-30) (China)
  • November 19, 2021 (2021-11-19) (United States)
Running time
178 minutes
CountryChina
LanguageMandarin
BudgetUS$200 million
Box officeUS$885.7 million[1]

This is the most expensive film China has ever made, with a budget of 200 million dollars.[5] The film's story was commissioned by the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party[disputed – discuss][failed verification] and announced as part of the 100th Anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party.[6][7][8][9]

The film has currently grossed $885.7 million at the box office, making it the second highest-grossing film in Chinese history[10] and the highest-grossing film of 2021.[11]

Plot

According to the BBC, the movie depicts the "story of Chinese soldiers defeating American troops despite great odds" at the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir during the Korean war.[12]

Cast

Main

  • Wu Jing as Wu Qianli, commander of the 7th Company.
  • Jackson Yee as Wu Wanli, Artillery Platoon soldier of the 7th Company, younger brother of Wu Qianli.

Supporting

  • Duan Yihong as Tan Ziwei, commander of the 3rd Battalion.
  • Zhu Yawen as Mei Sheng, political instructor of the 7th Company.
  • Li Chen as Yu Congrong, leader of Fire Platoon of the 7th Company.
  • Hu Jun as Lei Suisheng, leader of Artillery Platoon of the 7th Company.
  • Elvis Han as Ping He, a sniper in the 7th Company.
  • Zhang Hanyu as Song Shilun, deputy commander of the People's Volunteer Army, commander and political commissar of the PLA 9th Army Group.
  • Huang Xuan as Mao Anying, son of Mao Zedong, secretary for the People's Volunteer Army Headquarters.
  • Oho Ou as Yang Gensi, commander of 3rd Company of 172nd Regiment of 58th Division of the 20th Army.
  • James Filbird as Douglas MacArthur, Commander in chief of the United Nations.
  • Tang Guoqiang as Mao Zedong, chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, chairman of the Central People's Government Commission and chairman of the People's Revolutionary Military Commission of the Central People's Government.
  • Zhou Xiaobin as Peng Dehuai, commander and political commissar of the People's Volunteer Army, vice chairman of the People's Revolutionary Military.
  • Lin Yongjian as Deng Hua, first deputy commander and first deputy political commissar of the People's Volunteer Army.
  • Wang Wufu as Zhu De, secretary of Secretariat of the Chinese Communist Party, vice chairman of the Central People's Government Commission and vice chairman of the People's Revolutionary Military Commission of the Central People's Government.
  • Liu Sha as Liu Shaoqi, secretary of Secretariat of the Chinese Communist Party, vice chairman of the Central People's Government Commission and vice chairman of the People's Revolutionary Military Commission of the Central People's Government.
  • Liu Jing as Zhou Enlai, secretary of Secretariat of the Chinese Communist Party, premier of the People's Republic of China, foreign minister and vice chairman of the People's Revolutionary Military Commission of the Central People's Government.
  • Lu Qi as Deng Xiaoping, vice chairman of the Southwest Military Administrative Committee and political commissar of Southwest Military Region.

Production

The story of The Battle at Lake Changjin was commissioned by the National Radio and Television Administration, the Central Military Commission and the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing, Hebei and Liaoning.[13][14] The film was produced by Polybona Films. The screenplay was written by Lan Xiaolong, who was responsible for the critically acclaimed drama Soldiers Sortie, and Huang Jianxin. In February 2020, it was reported that Andrew Lau had been offered the job of directing the film, but he was hired to direct Chinese Doctors instead; Chen Kaige, Tsui Hark and Dante Lam were later hired to direct the film. The Battle at Lake Changjin is one of the most expensive films ever made, with a production budget of over US$200 million.[15]

Shooting began in Beijing on 25 October 2020 and ended on 25 May 2021.[16][17] 70,000 People's Liberation Army soldiers acted as extras.[14]

Most of the film was shot on location in Zhejiang.[18] The scene of the People's Volunteer Army boarding trucks to North Korea was filmed at Meishan railway station in Huzhou.[18] Parts of the scenes were filmed in Lishimen Reservoir.[19]

Soundtrack

No.TitleLyricsMusicSingerLength
1."The Most Lovely People (最可爱的人)" (Opening theme)Qing YanLiu Zhaolun (Qing Sang)Jane Zhang4:49
2."Heroic Odes (英雄赞歌)" (Ending theme)Gong MuLiu ChiZhuang Yinan, Cai Yutong, Liang Ruiyang, Peng Youxin, Galaxy Youth TV Art Troupe 
3."Canzonet of Yimeng Mountain (沂蒙山小调)" (Interlude)    

Release

On 26 July 2021, the producers announced that the film was scheduled for release on 12 August 2021.[20] On August 5, the producers announced that the film was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in China.[21]

The film was selected to be the opening film of the 11th Beijing International Film Festival and premiered on 21 September 2021.[22]

The Battle at Lake Changjin was released on 30 September 2021 in China. It was theatrically released in Hong Kong and Macau on November 11.[23] It is scheduled to be released in North America on November 19 and Australia on December 2.[24]

Sequel

A sequel likely to be entitled Water Gate Bridge (Chinese: 水门桥; Pinyin: Shui Men Qiao) is currently under production. [10][25] The movie will be about a maneuver undertaken by the People’s Volunteer Army in the same campaign to destroy a bridge that was used by the US forces as part of their withdrawal. [10]

Reception

Box office

As of November 14, The Battle at Lake Changjin has earned a total of $884.5 million.[26] It is also the second highest-grossing film in Chinese history, and highest in the world in the year 2021.[27] The film earned a total of $82 million in its first two days of release,[15] and reached 1.012 billion yuan ($155.12 million) on October 2.[28] By October 3, it grossed 1.5 billion yuan ($233 million) at the Chinese box office.[29][30] The film earned a total of 2 billion yuan ($310.3 million) in its first five days.[31] At 21:19 p.m. on October 6, the film grossed over 3 billion yuan ($465.46 million), becoming the 13th film with a box office of more than 3 billion yuan in China's film history.[32][33] By the end of its sophomore weekend, it had earned $555.3 million.[34] The film remained atop the Chinese box office for a month, being displaced by No Time to Die during the weekend of October 29–31.[35]

Critical and audience response

The movie has received positive scores among Chinese filmgoers with 9.5 on Maoyan and 7.6 on Douban.[29] The Global Times, a daily tabloid owned by the Chinese Communist Party, said: "The national feeling displayed in the film echoes the rising public sentiment in safeguarding national interests in front of provocations, which has great implications for today's China-U. S. competition."[2]

Sun Hongyun, an associate professor at Beijing Film Academy said that the film was "an extraordinary and perfect collusion of capital and political propaganda."[2]

Film critic Todd McCarthy of Deadline Hollywood in reviewing the film, said that "Anyone into big-time action cinema on the largest possible screen will more than get their money’s worth, even if the film is simplistic and entirely predictable in its goals, both as action and politics. But it doesn’t matter how big your screen is at home — if you want to see this at all, see it on a really big screen."[36][37]

Controversies and criticism

An article in the New York Times described the film as a government-sponsored movie that appeared to resonate with the Chinese public at a time of tension in the US-China relationship despite “mixed reviews, a torturous running time and technical errors of military history, tapping into nationalistic sentiment that China’s leader, Xi Jinping, has nurtured” and underscored the extent to which the Chinese Communist Party was determined to shape popular culture.[2]

Sources have described the movie as propaganda.[12][38][39][40] Reviewing the movie for Forbes, Scott Mendelson said "It’s arguably no more jingoistic, at least until the final montage, than (offhand) Pearl Harbor or We Were Soldiers." He further described the movie as spectacular with its "copious mass battle sequences and intricate action set pieces" against what was a "pretty dry war picture" and a "generic war actioner" when compared with The Eight Hundred.[41] An article in the The Independent said that while it was fair to describe the movie as propaganda, the same criticism should be directed at Hollywood movies of a similar nature.[42]

After the release of the movie, former Chinese journalist Luo Changping was arrested by police after multiple police reports were filed over his online post in Sina Weibo, where he claimed the troops that had died in the war were “stupid”, drawing criticism from thousands of social media users.[43][44]

Historical inaccuracies

Deutsche Welle reported that the film has raised anger in South Korea, with the public calling it "propaganda filled with historical inaccuracies." South Korean former diplomat Ra Jong-yil called the film "nonsense" and "whitewashing" and accused it of attempting to reshape the narrative of events during the Korean War. The reaction has raised possibility that the film will not be distributed in South Korea.[45]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Daily Box Office". Entgroup. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d Myers, Steven Lee; Chien, Amy Chang (5 October 2021). "For China's Holidays, a Big-Budget Blockbuster Relives an American Defeat". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  3. ^ Patrick, Brzeski (23 June 2021). "Cannes: Tsui Hark, Chen Kaige and Dante Lam Co-Direct China's Most Expensive Film Ever". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  4. ^ Christian, Shepherd (14 October 2021). "Americans vanquished, China triumphant: 2021's hit war epic doesn't fit Hollywood script". The Washington Post. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  5. ^ Myers, Steven Lee; Chien, Amy Chang (October 5, 2021). "For China's Holidays, a Big-Budget Blockbuster Relives an American Defeat" – via NYTimes.com.
  6. ^ Carice, Witte (14 October 2021). ""The Battle at Lake Changjin" and China's New View of War". The Diplomat. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  7. ^ 博纳“中国胜利三部曲”《中国医生》《长津湖》《无名》隆重献礼 [Bona Film Group's "trilogy of China's victory", "Chinese Doctor", "The Battle at Lake Changjin" and "Nameless" are grandly presented]. 163.com (in Chinese). 13 June 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  8. ^ 《长津湖》电影热映 中美对朝鲜战争的不同叙事 ["Changjin Lake" becomes a box office hit, and China and the United States have different narratives about the Korean War]. BBC (in Chinese). 6 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  9. ^ 中国《长津湖》票房破15亿 高调鼓动抗美援朝爱国主义 [China's "The Battle at Lake Changjin" grosses more than 1.5 billion yuan at the box office, encouraging patriotism to resist US aggression and aid Korea]. Radio Free Asia (in Chinese). 4 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  10. ^ a b c Davis, Rebecca (2021-10-29). "China's 'Battle at Lake Changjin' Becomes 2021's Highest-Grossing Film Worldwide, Preps Sequel". Variety (magazine). Retrieved 2021-10-31.
  11. ^ "Boxoffice,China Boxoffice,China film Boxoffice,Weekly Boxoffice,Yearly Boxoffice-EntGroup". english.entgroup.cn.
  12. ^ a b "The Chinese film beating Bond and Marvel at the box office". BBC News. 2021-10-16. Retrieved 2021-10-26.
  13. ^ Xu Xiaolei (许晓蕾) (13 June 2021). 陈凯歌感慨：《长津湖》的完成是中国电影的大事 [Chen Kaige exclaims that the completion of "The Battle at Lake Changjin" is a major event in Chinese films]. qq.com (in Chinese). Retrieved 7 October 2021. 电影《长津湖》在中宣部和国家电影局的直接指导下策划创作拍摄，也得到了中央军委政治工作部宣传局、北京市委宣传部及辽宁、河北省委宣传部等方面的大力支持。
  14. ^ a b Laura He (4 October 2021). "China's Korean War propaganda movie smashes box office record". CNN. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  15. ^ a b Brzeski, Patrick (1 October 2021). "China Box Office: 'Battle at Lake Changjin' Roars Past $80M as Holiday Weekend Gets Underway". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  16. ^ Xiao Wan (小万) (25 October 2020). 抗美援朝电影《长津湖》开机 吴京易烊千玺主演 ["The Battle at Lake Changjin", a film about resisting US aggression and aiding Korea, is started, starring Wu Jing and Jackson Yee]. sina (in Chinese). Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  17. ^ Wu Menglin (吴梦琳) (25 May 2021). 致敬英雄，电影《长津湖》正式杀青将于年内上映 [To pay tribute to the hero, "The Battle at Lake Changjin" is officially finished and will be released this year]. sichuan.scol.com.cn (in Chinese). Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  18. ^ a b Tang Chenchen (汤晨琛) (2 October 2021). 电影《长津湖》开头这段镜头 是在湖州长兴煤山货运站拍的. hangzhou.com.cn (in Chinese). Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  19. ^ Wu Dan (吴丹), ed. (2 October 2021). 2天6亿票房！《长津湖》这些大场面是在长兴煤山货运站. zjol.com.cn (in Chinese). Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  20. ^ Teng Zhao (滕朝) (26 July 2021). 《长津湖》定档，8月12日全国上映 ["The Battle at Lake Changjin" is scheduled to be released nationwide on 12 August 2021]. Beijing News (in Chinese). Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  21. ^ 长津湖推迟上映，吴京易烊千玺化身志愿军战士，网友：等你回来 [The release of "The Battle at Lake Changjin" lake is postponed]. sina (in Chinese). 5 August 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  22. ^ "Opening and Closing Film Announced: The Battle at Lake Changjin and Saturday Fiction Will Meet Audience at BJIFF". BJIFF. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  23. ^ William, Yiu (16 November 2021). "Subsidised Hong Kong schools eligible for up to HK$300,000 in new government funding to boost national education". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  24. ^ Rebecca, Davis (10 November 2021). "China's 'Battle at Lake Changjin' Marching to North American, Australian Release". variety. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  25. ^ Zuo, Mandy (2021-10-30). "Mega hit Chinese film The Battle at Lake Changjin set for a sequel". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2021-10-31.
  26. ^ "box office China". Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  27. ^ Patrick, Frater (18 October 2021). ""The Battle at Lake Changjin" Hits $770 Million After Third Weekend Leading the China Box Office". Variety. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  28. ^ Mendelson, Scott (2 October 2021). "Box Office: 'No Time To Die' Tops $50M, China's 'Battle Of Lake Changjin' Passes $160M". forbes.com.
  29. ^ a b Brzeski, Patrick (4 October 2021). "China Box Office: 'Battle at Lake Changjin' Gets Underway With $235M Opening". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  30. ^ Teng Zhao (滕朝) (3 October 2021). 《长津湖》票房破15亿元，观影人次破3000万 [The box office of "The Battle at Lake Changjin" exceeds 1.5 billion yuan and the number of film viewers exceeds 30 million]. Beijing News (in Chinese). Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  31. ^ Teng Zhao (滕朝) (4 October 2021). 《长津湖》票房破20亿元，用时5天 [The box office of "The Battle at Lake Changjin" exceeds 2 billion yuan within five days]. Beijing News (in Chinese). Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  32. ^ 《长津湖》票房破30亿元 [The box office of "The Battle at Lake Changjin" exceeds 3 billion yuan]. sina (in Chinese). 6 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  33. ^ Patrick, Brzeski (5 October 2021). "For China's Holidays, a Big-Budget Blockbuster Relives an American Defeat". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  34. ^ Mendelson, Scott (8 October 2021). "China Box Office: "Battle At Lake Changjin" Plunges 60% On Friday". Forbes.
  35. ^ Brzeski, Patrick (16 November 2021). "China Box Office: 'No Time to Die' Opens to $28M Amid COVID-19 Cinema Shutdowns". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  36. ^ The Battle at Lake Changjin, retrieved 2021-10-27
  37. ^ ‘The Battle At Lake Changjin’ Film Review – International Critics Line, retrieved 2021-10-27
  38. ^ Davis, Rebecca; Davis, Rebecca (2021-10-22). "'Dune' Mines Just $6.45 Million Out of China on Opening Day". Variety. Retrieved 2021-10-26.
  39. ^ Min-hee, Park. "Why we should be wary of China's renewed interest in the Korean War". Hankoryeh. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  40. ^ Ryall, Julian. "Another Example of Propaganda: Chinese War Blockbuster Fuels Anger in South Korea". The Wire. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  41. ^ Mendelson, Scott. "Box Office: China's 'Battle At Lake Changjin' Tops $400M". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-10-28.
  42. ^ "If this mega Chinese blockbuster is propaganda, what are Bond and Captain Marvel?". The Independent. 2021-10-23. Retrieved 2021-10-27.
  43. ^ "Ex-journalist detained over comments about Chinese soldiers in war movie". South China Morning Post. October 9, 2021.
  44. ^ Myers, Steven Lee; Chien, Amy Chang (2021-10-08). "Chinese Journalist Detained After Criticizing Government-Sponsored Blockbuster". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
  45. ^ Ryall, Julian (14 October 2021). "Chinese war blockbuster fuels anger in South Korea". Deutsche Welle. Archived from the original on 16 October 2021. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
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