Shanghai Daily news

An animated film based on China's famous tragic romance, "Butterfly Lovers," has a happy ending on screen, but it looks like it's going to have a tragic finale at the box office.

The Shanghai United Cinema Lines said it has only sold 300,000 yuan (US$36,145) worth of tickets since the movie debuted on January 14. By comparison, the Disney cartoon "Finding Nemo" took in 8 million yuan last year, while another domestic cartoon film, "Lotus Lantern," took in 5 million yuan at United box offices in 1999.

"The movie hasn't caught its main audience - children," said Bao Yifan, an official with Shanghai United.

"Chinese parents don't want to take children to watch a love story because they are afraid that it might cause 'puppy love.' On the contrary 'Finding Nemo' highlights the relationship between a father and son, which is more acceptable for Chinese," said Bao.

Liu Jing, the mother of a 5-year-old boy, agrees.

"I did not take my son to watch it since it's a complicated love story for him," she said. "I'm not interested in this children's version of an adult story."

The marketing manager of Paradise Warner Cinema City said filmmakers didn't do enough to promote the movie.

"The promotion was far less than 'Finding Nemo' or 'Lotus Lantern,"' said Xu Xiaomeng. "After some promotion did by ourselves, our cinema brought in more than 60,000 yuan at the box office. That is not bad."

The famous Chinese folktale "Liangzhu," or "Butterfly Lovers," has been adapted into various movies, TV series and dramas over the years.

Filmmakers from Shanghai and Taiwan spent three years and 10 million yuan producing the 95-minute cartoon.

The story tells of a young couple whose love is thwarted by the woman's parents. After they both die, the lovers are reunited as a pair of beautiful butterflies.