China movie on Nanjing Massacre tops summer box office
The film "Dead to Rights," released on July 25, has grossed more than 2.3 billion yuan ($321 million) and attracted over 60 million viewers, according to Chinese media.
With its graphic scenes of Japanese soldiers shooting large numbers of Chinese civilians and throwing infants to the ground, the film has raised concerns that it could fuel anti-Japan sentiment among viewers.
Set in Nanjing, the capital of the Republic of China under the Nationalist government, which fell in the 1937 battle and came under Japanese control, the film tells the story of Chinese civilians who took refuge in a local photography studio.
In a bid to survive, they are forced to help a Japanese military photographer develop film, only to discover negatives showing atrocities committed by Japanese troops. They secretly keep the negatives and risk their lives to smuggle them out.
Among the viewers at a Shanghai theater was a woman in her 30s who came with her elementary school-aged daughter. She said it was "no problem" for her child to see the cruel scenes.
A large number of people have praised the film in social media posts, while videos of children saying Japan "should never be forgiven" and tearing up cards of Japanese animation characters after seeing the movie have gone viral.
The 25,000-square-meter site in Shanghai where the film was shot was opened to the public in late July. It features recreated historical buildings of Nanjing, including partially destroyed structures and scattered debris.
Many families took commemorative photos in front of a photo studio shown in the movie. "I came here to tell my child that the tragic history of China must not be forgotten," said a 38-year-old woman who visited the site with her 9-year-old daughter.
Some people were critical of the movie. A Shanghai man in his 60s said children "should not be educated to hold a grudge against a foreign country."
A man in his 30s from Nanjing said he believes the film's release was intended to "fuel patriotism and divert public attention from misrule" amid the Asian powerhouse's economic downturn.
Earlier this month, "Dead to Rights" premiered in North America.
On Aug. 6, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng told the premiere, "The 1.4 billion Chinese people will never tolerate any attempt to tamper with the history of WWII, and all the peace-loving people in the world will never accept any move to turn back the wheel of history," according to the Chinese Embassy in Washington.
To mark the 80th anniversary of what China calls its victory in the 1937-1945 War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, it plans to hold a military parade in Tiananmen Square in the capital on Sept. 3.
Similar war-themed movies have been or are set to be released in China this year.
A film about the Imperial Japanese Army's notorious Unit 731 will be screened from Sept. 18, the 94th anniversary of the bombing of a railroad track near Shenyang -- an event that triggered the Manchurian Incident and led to Japan's invasion of northeastern China.
Millions of people online have expressed interest in the film about the unit, which historians say conducted biological and chemical warfare research in China during World War II.
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China movie on Nanjing Massacre tops summer box office
SHANGHAI - A Chinese film depicting the 1937 Nanjing Massacre by Japanese troops has topped the summer box office, with tourists flocking to the Shanghai set where it was filmed, as this year marks 80 years since the end of World War II. The film "Dead to Rights," released on July 25, has grossed more than 2.3 billion yuan ($321 million) and attracted over 60 million viewers, according to Chinese media. With its graphic scenes of Japanese soldiers shooting large numbers of Chinese civilians and throwing infants to the ground, the film has raised concerns that it could fuel anti-Japan sentiment among viewers. Set in Nanjing, the capital of the Republic of China under the Nationalist government, which fell in the 1937 battle and came under Japanese control, the film tells the story of Chinese civilians who took refuge in a local photography studio. In a bid to survive, they are forced to help a Japanese military photographer develop film, only to discover negatives showing atrocities committed by Japanese troops. They secretly keep the negatives and risk their lives to smuggle them out. Among the viewers at a Shanghai theater was a woman in her 30s who came with her elementary school-aged daughter. She said it was "no problem" for her child to see the cruel scenes. A large number of people have praised the film in social media posts, while videos of children saying Japan "should never be forgiven" and tearing up cards of Japanese animation characters after seeing the movie have gone viral. The 25,000-square-meter site in Shanghai where the film was shot was opened to the public in late July. It features recreated historical buildings of Nanjing, including partially destroyed structures and scattered debris. Many families took commemorative photos in front of a photo studio shown in the movie. "I came here to tell my child that the tragic history of China must not be forgotten," said a 38-year-old woman who visited the site with her 9-year-old daughter. Some people were critical of the movie. A Shanghai man in his 60s said children "should not be educated to hold a grudge against a foreign country." A man in his 30s from Nanjing said he believes the film's release was intended to "fuel patriotism and divert public attention from misrule" amid the Asian powerhouse's economic downturn. Earlier this month, "Dead to Rights" premiered in North America. On Aug. 6, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng told the premiere, "The 1.4 billion Chinese people will never tolerate any attempt to tamper with the history of WWII, and all the peace-loving people in the world will never accept any move to turn back the wheel of history," according to the Chinese Embassy in Washington. To mark the 80th anniversary of what China calls its victory in the 1937-1945 War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, it plans to hold a military parade in Tiananmen Square in the capital on Sept. 3. Similar war-themed movies have been or are set to be released in China this year. A film about the Imperial Japanese Army's notorious Unit 731 will be screened from Sept. 18, the 94th anniversary of the bombing of a railroad track near Shenyang -- an event that triggered the Manchurian Incident and led to Japan's invasion of northeastern China. Millions of people online have expressed interest in the film about the unit, which historians say conducted biological and chemical warfare research in China during World War II.
