China's golden week reaps 280 million in film box office
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China's week-long National Day holiday took in 280 million yuan (42 million U.S. dollars) in film box office receipts, up 12 percent over last year, said sources in the cinema industry.
Half of all ticket sales were for "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame," a film that debuted on Sept. 29, starring renowned Hong Kong actor Andy Lau and actress Carina Lau, along with mainland actress Li Bingbing.
Director John Woo's new film, "Reign of Assassins," had sales of 30 million yuan during the golden week, which critics say was "ordinary" in box office performance but a "good film." Woo is known internationally for his 2000 film "Mission: Impossible II."
The Leonardo DiCaprio film "Inception" continues its climb and took in 50 million between Oct. 1 and 7, making it the fourth foreign film ever to take in more than 400 million yuan in the Chinese mainland's box office. The other three were "Avatar," "2012" and "Transformers."
Liu Hui, deputy general manager of Beijing-based UME Huaxing Cinema, is very pleased that "theatres are always packed with audiences during the golden week."
