Big budget epic King Kong has generated 100.3 million yuan (about US$12.5 million) on the Chinese mainland, becoming the box office king among imported films in the past five years.

 

Peter Jackson's remake of the great-ape adventure took in over one million yuan last weekend, which brought its total box office to 100.3 million yuan since its release in the Chinese mainland on January 12, a source with the film's distributor in China, the Huaxia Film Distribution Co., Ltd, told Xinhua News Agency on Tuesday.

 

"However, it's a little hard to catch up with Pearl Harbor, which was released in China in 2001 and earned 105 million yuan (about US$13 million) here," the source said.

 

King Kong, with a US$207 million budget and US$540 million in global box office revenues, has received four 2006 Oscar's nominees -- Art Direction, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing and Visual Effects.

 

Four imported films' box office has each exceeded 100 million yuan since China began importing films, The Fugitive, in 1994 --True Lies, Titanic, Pearl Harbor and King Kong.

 

Titanic still holds the record of China's box office with 320 million yuan (some US$40 million).

 

Liu Shusen, vice president of the Huaxia, said they imported King Kong for its high artistic quality and production level and it can benefit home-made films. The overseas box office result was also a factor, he said.

 

"King Kong holds the common interest of all people, so I believe it can strike the chord with Chinese audiences likewise," Liu said.

 

(Xinhua News Agency March 1, 2006)