Nostalgia and romance highlight an emotional Chinese box office

While dark horse romance "More Than Blue" took the lead last week with a box office totaling 811 million yuan (120.81 million U.S. dollars), its social media title of "the tearjerker of the year", has been seized by a new player in the arena: "Song of Youth".

"More Than Blue", a remake of a 2009 S. Korean hit, grabbed 474 million yuan (70.61 million U.S. dollars) last week, but unlike its climbing box office earnings, the film's word of mouth has started to sink.

On Douban.com, which functions as China's Rotten Tomatoes, the score has dropped from 5.1 to 4.8 out of 10 points, and its rating on Maoyan has also fallen from the 9.4 to 8.0.

A poster for "More Than Blue". /Photo via Douban.com

Though viewers have been advised to bring tissues with them to the cinema, many complained that it was too cliche and formulaic to generate emotions other than frustration and apathy.

However, new domestic release "Song of Youth" rocketed to 82.2 million yuan (13.7 million U.S. dollars), and produced almost as many tears along the way.

It has also surprisingly stolen the thunder of big winners from both the Academy Awards and the Berlinale in British rock band Queen's biopic "Bohemian Rhapsody" and domestic director Wang Xiaoshuai's "So Long, My Son" respectively.

A poster for "Song of Youth". /Photo via Douban.com

"Song of Youth" is about the relationship between an old-fashioned and inflexible high school teacher in 1985 and his students.

Miao Wanqiu, as played by Chinese comedian Yu Qian, is just like tens of thousands of Chinese high school teachers in that period and his portrayal of a person who is so important to many people's lives has melted hearts throughout the nation.

"He is not without any problems, and he is biased, always favoring the straight-A students," a film viewer commented, "but those problems make him flesh and blood."

A poster for "Song of Youth". /Photo via Douban.com

"The film does not put much emphasis on the sensational aspects [of the story], but I just couldn't hold back my tears. The film reminded me of the lovely people in my deep memory, sometimes their images are clear but at other times they are ambiguous," said a Douban user, "Teacher Miao is just too familiar to me, he is just like my high school teacher."

The period details of "Song of Youth" have also earned acclaim from critics and audiences alike. Many say there are so many things in the film that trigger their nostalgia; from the uniforms and the campus itself to the ice creams and drinks that were loved by students then, but aren't available anymore.

The film is currently third place in the box office rankings, and has a 7.0 out of 10 points on Douban and a 9.4 on Maoyan.

A still from "Captain Marvel". /Photo via Douban.com

The second place is still occupied by "Captain Marvel", which took 96.5 million yuan (14.37 million U.S. dollars) in its third week. With a total of 987 million yuan (147 million U.S. dollars) in hand, it is expected to become the first single-hero film of the Marvel Comics Universe (MCU) to break through the one-billion-yuan threshold.

The fourth place is still held by "Green Book", beating "Bohemian Rhapsody", even though the latter only debuted on the Chinese mainland last Friday. It made just 41.6 million yuan (6.2 million U.S. dollars) during the first weekend.

A still from "Bohemian Rhapsody". /Photo via Douban.com

"So Long, My Son" directed by Wang Xiaoshuai, an intimate drama which tackles China's one-child policy and the impacts of reform and opening-up on Chinese society, has failed to enter the top five.

The film, 175 minutes long, is the kind of time investment that performs better at arthouses than at multiplexes, a sentiment reflected in the low box office but highacclaim.

"The film is a long-lost reunion," a Chinese netizen commented. "Chinese films finally return to the right track: Telling stories of ordinary families, while including the history of the nation between the lines."

A poster for "So Long, My Son". /Photo via Douban.com

This week, at least nine new players are expected to join in the race, with domestic film "The Human Comedy", Disney's "Dumbo" and Spanish director Oriol Paulo's new thriller "During the Storm" among the most anticipated releases.

(Cover image by Gao Hongmei)