'The Sacrifice' gathers $60m in 3 days of release

The highly-anticipated war epic "The Sacrifice" amassed 400 million yuan (about $60 million) in just three days of its release.

Its release on October 23 coincided with the 70th anniversary of the Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) entering the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to fight in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-1953). In this context, the viewers enjoyed learning about the history in a vivid and intuitive way.

Resonance with the times

Some of the CPV army veterans attend the premier of "The Sacrifice." /CFP

Such high box office earnings are not possible without the support of young moviegoers. Topics revolving around war and history have been trending on China's Twitter-like Weibo, which shows youngsters are able to empathize with the war's memory.

The movie also comes less than a month after the Republic of Korea returned the remains of 117 CPV soldiers who served in the war. Meanwhile, CPV veterans who fought in the war have been granted memorial medals.

Obviously, the film's content is in line with the current social atmosphere and market demand that pays great attention to the history. This series of events have drawn a lot of attention from the society, and also brought to a climax the people's sentiment of paying tribute to the history and remembering the heroes and martyrs.

Four at a time

A poster for "The Sacrifice" at a bus station. /CFP

In addition to "The Sacrifice," three other films featuring the war have been released: "Up Close: The War in the 1950s," "Salute to the Heroes" and "The Company of Heroes", all reflecting the carnage of the war and the bravery of the CPV from different perspectives.

"Company of Heroes" represents the battlefield from the angle of the front-line soldiers.

"Up Close: The War in the 1950s" includes interviews and narrations by veterans. With detailed historical images of the battlefield, the documentary complements "The Sacrifice," providing a more concrete and three-dimensional view of the war.

Meanwhile, animation film "The Loveliest Man" recounts the familiar heroic deeds of people including Yang Gensi and Qiu Shaoyun. The five heroes who shed their blood on the battlefield gathered on the big screen for the first time and formed the "True Heroes' League."

(Top image designer: Pan Yufei)