King Kong can't match Promise at box office
19/1/2006 7:27
Xu Wei/Shanghai Daily news
While "King Kong" has
proved to be a giant at the box office, ticket sales for the Hollywood
blockbuster lag far behind the latest domestic hit, Chen Kaige's "The
Promise."
According to Shanghai United Cinema Lines, the city's leading
cinema chain, the giant ape movie has taken in about 4.5 million yuan
(US$555,556) at the chain's box offices since it opened in the city last
Thursday.
"The movie boasts a lot of eye-catching commercial elements, and
its future ticket sales in town are expected to surpass 10 million yuan," said
Wu Hehu, the cinema chain's deputy general manager.
The cinema chain has sold
23 million yuan in tickets for "The Promise" since it opened in
mid-December.
Warner Cinema City said it has sold about 900,000 yuan worth of
tickets to "King Kong" so far, and theaters were 90 percent full over the
weekend, according to manager Li Lan.
"We have received numerous calls
inquiring about the movie's screening time," Li added.
Though pirated DVDs of
the Peter Jackson film are already available on the street, many movie fans say
they want to see the movie on the big screen.
"Crappy pirated versions are
not able to display the movie's stunning stunts and strong audio-visual impact,"
said university student Zhu Yin.
"Additionally, 'King Kong' has a length of
three hours, a rewarding experience for cinemagoers."
|
