Hong Kong actor and director Jackie Chan smiles past a crowd of cheering fans. (Photo : Reuters)
China made history as the biggest box-office market in the world for the month of February after edging out the United States in terms of box-office sales.
Data from research company Entgroup showed that China earned approximately $650 million during the upsurge of moviegoers on the first day of the Lunar New Year.
The Hollywood Reporter said that the top-grossing movie in China for February was "The Man from Macau," a film starring Chow Yun-fat which raked in about $104 million. It was followed by "Dragon Blade," which took $95 million and stars action star Jackie Chan and Hollywood actors John Cusack and Adrien Brody.
The epic film "Wolf Totem" came in third with $72 million. The Sino-French film was directed byJean-Jacques Annaud, who reportedly spent $40 million as production capital for the said movie.
Other box-office movies include "Zhong Kui: Snow Girl and the Dark Crystal," a 3D fantasy action-adventure directed by Peter Pau and Zhao Tianyu. The $30-million film was produced by Ann An of Desen International Media and took $56 million.
Xu Jinglei's romance "Somewhere Only We Know' earned $44 million, while "Running Man," an adaptation of a Korean reality TV show, gained $42 million.
The report said that although foreign movies are traditionally not shown to give way to local films, still Hollywood movies made their run during the holiday.
"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" brought in $36 million, while "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1" earned $35.5 million during the first day of the Lunar New Year.
The Lunar New Year has become the peak season for film showing in China when thousands flock to cinemas to watch movies as a form of entertainment during the holidays.
This year, the holiday ran from Feb. 18-24. Last year, the biggest box-office month was in July, during which China's film industry earned $580 million.
