"Cape No. 7," the second Taiwan blockbuster to be allowed into the
mainland since "Mother Love Me Once Again" in 1990, is likely to miss the prime
pre-Lunar New Year film season, an official of the state-owned China Film Group
Corp. (CFGC) said yesterday.
"We have about 30 movies to consider in the coming season, and we are
understaffed to manage another," said Weng Li, general manager of the
distribution and exhibition arm of the CFGC.
"But we are still negotiating with the film maker," Weng said.
The period from December to early February is usually the busiest time of the
year at China's box office, as many domestic films debut. The second installment
of "Red Cliff," reportedly Asia's most expensive film, will premier in cinemas
on Jan. 15, which is 10 days ahead of China's annual Spring Festival holiday.
Subtitle issues have also delayed "Cape," Weng said. "The subtitles are in
traditional characters, but our standards require simplified ones."
"Cape No. 7" is about a romance between a Japanese teacher and a local Taiwan
woman when the island was a Japanese colony in the 1940s.
Costing 50 million New Taiwan dollars (about US$1.5 million), the movie made
more than 400 million NT dollars after debuting on August 22 in Taiwan, second
only to "Titanic" in Taiwan's cinematic history.
