DEATH OF A ‘ CHINA SALESMAN’
China Film Group’s key fi lm project fl ops at the Chinese mainland box offi ce
One of the State- run China Film Group’s key fi lm projects announced in 2015, action movie China Salesman has bombed at the box offi ce.
Facing fi erce competition from Hollywood blockbusters such as Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Wonder Woman and Transformers: The Last Knight, Chinese fi lms have been experiencing a tough time over the past month or so. While a few well- reviewed fi lms have made some headway, a majority of Chinese fi lms left theaters without making much of an impact. China Salesman, reviews of which have been polarizing, looks like it will join these latter fi lms.
Premiering in the Chinese mainland on June 16, the fi lm gathered a cast of international stars which includes US boxer Mike Tyson and Norwegian actress Janicke Askevold. While the fi lm’s budget has not been made public, its current box- offi ce take of 9.5 million yuan ($ 1.3 million) over 10 days makes it highly unlikely it will break even.
Based on the true story of employees working for Chinese telecommunications company Huawei Technologies, China Salesman focuses on a Chinese technician trying to develop a communication network in an African country caught up in a civil war, all the while defending against Western competitors.
Anticipation for the fi lm was high.
Promoted as the fi rst Chinese fi lm shot in Africa, the fi lm inspired patriotic feelings in moviegoers with its story of a common Chinese IT worker who outmaneuvers Western giants.
For this reason, China Salesman opened with a 7.2 percent screen share – far lower than that given to Hollywood blockbusters, but still the highest screen share among all domestic fi lms that weekend.
Reviews for the fi lm, however, have been mixed. While some have criticized the story as being nothing more than nonsense, others have praised the quality of the fi lm’s action scenes.
Currently, China Salesman has a 4.2/ 10 from 1,101 reviews on Chinese media review site Douban and a 5.7/ 10 from 90 reviewers on Chinese fi lm site Mtime.
Pointing out that the fi lm is full of “jumpy plotlines, exaggerated performances and confused logic,” fi lmgoer Yang Yi told the Global Times that it seems China Salesman wanted to “make itself into some kind of Hollywood action blockbuster. Even the lead actor is portrayed with the same individualistic heroism that can be seen in many US fi lms.”
Yang said that this exaggerated take on the story detracts from the fact it is supposed to be “based on a true story.”
“It is a long and bad fi lm version of a Huawei commercial. The story could have been made into an interesting cult fi lm, yet the decision to fi lm it like a silly antiJapanese war fi lm turned the fi lm into something hollow and stupid,” netizen Grinch wrote on Douban.
However, there are those who stand by the fi lm.
“Maybe only people working in the IT industry can empathize with the fi lm. It portrays the environment that many workers carrying out IT construction in African countries have to face. Although some people outside the industry may think that they are ridiculous, many of the plots about the business side of things are actually very realistic,” netizen Nirsir wrote on Mtime, giving the fi lm an 8.0/ 10.
A fan of action fi lms, moviegoer Zou Xiang praised the realistic nature of the fi lm’s action scenes. He pointed out that while many fi lms depict a character speaking a few parting words before they die, China Salesman is very direct when it comes to portraying the realities of violence. “When a bullet hits a person in the fi lm, that person dies. That’s what an action scene should be.”
At a press conference for China Salesman held earlier this month, the fi lm’s director Tan Bing said that he had long dreamed of making a fi lm that represents China “because what Chinese fi lms lack today are Chinese images that can receive recognition from both home and abroad. Therefore, the salesman in the fi lm represents not only himself, but also the nation that stands behind him.”
After the mixed reviews began hitting the Internet, Tan posted on Sina Weibo that he is confi dent that the quality of the fi lm would speak for itself.