The greatest movie in the world today isn’t the last Bond movie no time to die or even Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the story of the ten rings, it is a Chinese film The Battel at lake changjin

This is a film for the Chinese media about the 1950 Korean War, based on the story of the Chinese military going against the US military despite a severe crisis.

Just two weeks after its release, The Battle in Lake Changjin raised over $ 633 million (£ 463 million) at the box office. This puts it ahead of Shang-Chi’s global revenue of $ 402 million, in just half the time.

The film is considered to be the most expensive film in China.

Its success is good news for the Chinese film industry as Covid has forced cinemas to close and reopen multiple times.

This is the best news for the state, say experts which appear to be the result of a series of social media campaigns.

But for Hollywood, looking at it from the outside, the enormous popularity of local films like this one as it struggles for a place in China – the world’s largest film market – may be more of a challenge.

‘Patriotism’

Awarded by the Chinese government, The Battle At Lake Changjin is one of many patriotic films that have become big business in China in recent years.

In 2017, Wolf Warrior 2, about a Chinese soldier rescuing hundreds of criminals in the African war zone, recorded 1.6 billion yuan ($ 238 million; £ 181 million) in one week.

Lake Changjin was the brutal war and cold that the Chinese say changed during the Korean War, better known in China as the “War on the aggressive US in Korea”.

Thousands of young Chinese soldiers died in the lake to achieve a major victory over the US military.

“The sacrifices of the soldiers moved me. The weather was terrible, but they got over it. I’m so proud of it, ”wrote one listener on the Douban research site.

It is no coincidence that this popular film falls amid mounting tensions between Washington and Beijing.

Dr. Stanley Rosen, a professor of political science at the University of Southern California, said, but it’s still unclear. “

Another reason for its success was the relationship between theater and rulers, which used the number and types of films that could be released at the same time.

At the time, Battle At Lake Changjin had little competition in theaters. Hollywood blockbusters have no time to die and Dune will be released in China at the end of October, although it has been shown elsewhere.

The film was well-received not only at the opening during the celebrations of China’s National Day, which began on October 1 but also as members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) celebrated their centenary this year.

“It’s almost a patriotic duty to watch this movie,” said Dr. Rosen.

Such promotional films are often an important rule of thumb for CCP members, said Dr. Florian Schneider, head of the Leiden Center of Dutch Asia.

“The services department organized the overall check, as well as more than 95 million cardholders, promising the necessary box updates”

So far, online reviews of the film have been very good, although some viewers have claimed that that’s not entirely true.

After all, criticism can put you in jail.

Last week, former reporter Luo Changping was arrested for making “derogatory comments” on social media about the Chinese military portrayed in the film.

Sanya police said he was being held on charges of “insulting and respecting those who died for the state” and that the matter was under investigation.

“Young people [in China] have a strong sense of patriotism and a negative voice online,” said Dr. Jonathan Hassid, a political scientist at Iowa State University.

“On the other hand, this vote is exaggerated because legitimate criticisms of the state are not accepted”.