Chinese film "Tales of Mystery" shocks Beijing after earning a hefty 1,430,000 yuan, or nearly $230,000, during its opening on Jan. 23.
The film, which stars actor and Cantopop singer Aarif Lee, reached its success under the direction of renowned helmers Raymond Yip, Tian Meng and Xian Xuchu.
Also featured in the film are Janice Man, Zhu Zhu, Law Lan, Oscar Leung, Shi Yanfei, Feng Wenjuan, Yolanda Yang, Huang Ming, Michelle Hu, Lu Yulai and Lin Jiangguo.
The Chinese-language film was produced through collaboration among Chinese well-known entertainment companies Hangzhou Herun Entertainment, Bona Film Group, Beijing Era Influence Entertainment, and Anhui Jinniu Entertainment Investment.
The thriller entered China's box office just in time as other films were released, including Wang Wei's comedy "Money Game," and the documentary film "Taste of China" from directors Huang Yinghao, Zhang Wei, Wang Bing and Jin Ying.
Chinese cinemas would soon be graced by locally made comedy and romance films such as "Hot Blood Band" and "Running Man," which are set to open by the last week of January.
Meanwhile, the love month would be seeing more funny and romantic Chinese flicks as well as historical epics, including Jackie Chan, John Cusack and Adrien Brody's "Dragon Blade," which would be shown in cinemas at the onset of the Spring Festival on Feb. 19.
Other films lined up for February include "Somewhere Only We Know" set to be released on Valentine's Day, as well as "Emperor Holidays," "From Vegas to Macau II," "Wolf Totem," and "Zhong Kui: Snow Girl and the Dark Crystal" starring Chen Kun and Li Bingbing.