Storyline of success

As Hollywood and the Chinese film industry search for the secret formula for global hits, combining Chinese money and US talent seems a tantalizing option

I was sitting in a Wanda Imax theater on June 8 waiting for the start of Warcraft.

First came the dragon logo, China's government seal for any movie - domestic or imported - for public theatrical screening. Then came one for the Chinese distributor, followed by one for Universal Pictures, the American distributor. Then there was a bevy for Chinese companies that are household names in China.

I could almost see pop-up balloons floating virtually above the audience: "Is this a Hollywood movie or a Chinese one?"

The biggest applause came when the opening logos ended with Blizzard Entertainment. I instantly knew then who made up the bulk of this audience. Yes, they were diehard fans of the popular video game, by far the most popular in China, according to some figures.

Warcraft the movie grossed $152 million on the first five days of release in China. By contrast, it raked in just $24 million upon its release in North America.

Granted, it's not fair to compare the two figures because it opened on a Wednesday in China to take advantage of the Dragon Boat Festival, a public holiday. Yet there's no doubt that the Middle Kingdom was destined to be the biggest market for this movie, no matter how you dice and slice the numbers.

The answer to the fleeting question that popped up during the first two minutes of the movie - "Is that a made-in-China sign we're seeing?" - is elusive. Chinese investors like Tencent and Huayi Brothers are not forthcoming about how much they put into the movie, and the question is complicated by the fact the production company, Legendary Pictures, is now owned by Wanda Group, a major Chinese conglomerate.

Sure, the $160 million project was green-lit long before the acquisition; but from a purely financial point of view, the Chinese stake was substantial from the get-go.

Conventional wisdom has it that China's film market will overtake North America's next year. The theatrical part, that is.

Warcraft is not the first American film that has performed better in China than on its home turf. Pacific Rim (2013) grossed about $105 million in China compared with a slightly lower $101 million across the Pacific.

The difference is, this time the result was widely anticipated and the gap in box-office receipts much wider than anything we've seen.

Extrapolating these incidents, you'll see a trend of Hollywood making movies for the Chinese market. The overseas box-office performance for many big Hollywood projects already accounts for as much as three-fourths of the total takings.

It's possible that China, growing by leaps and bounds, will become the No 1 destination for some of its future offerings. But as I see it, they won't be "enhanced Chinese movies".

Hollywood has experimented with Chinese adaptations of their hits, but they did not work half as well as Chinese fare that's faintly and freely inspired by Hollywood hits. Chinese moviegoers do not go to a Hollywood movie for its Chineseness. Even cameo appearances by Chinese stars may be nothing more than a marketing gimmick.

Daniel Wu is in Warcraft, but he is unrecognizable, even his voice. What matters is the legion of characters familiar to Chinese game players, who number 5.8 million on mainland-based servers. According to unofficial estimates, the Chinese user base could be double that figure because many use overseas sites.

The news that Warcraft received predominantly negative reviews in the US reached China shortly before its debut. But its Chinese partners did not seem worried. (Full disclosure: I moderated the first event of the movie's promotional tour in China, which was a forum at Beijing Film Academy with director Duncan Jones, actress Paula Patton and Wu.)

In China, this is called a fan film, as it caters to people who are emotionally invested in the story and oblivious to film reviews. To understand the innate power of a fan film, all you'll need is to flip Warcraft with the newest installment of Star Wars, which was popular stateside. In both movies, the applause comes at moments that would confound those unfamiliar with the game. Another thing in common is a precipitous drop in attendance after the first week.

Browsing through some of the movie review sites in China, I've noticed it's a split verdict on Warcraft, which is far more favorable than the 27 percent "fresh" rating on American site Rotten Tomatoes. While some praised it as the best video adaptation ever, a few compared it with The Lord of the Rings. The scathing reviews in the US even worked in the film's favor.

What I found fascinating is Jones' refusal to portray the orcs as across-the-board evil. His decision could be founded on mostly commercial grounds as game-players can chose to be species, humans or orcs (57 percent of Chinese players chose orcs), but it lends a special relevance that echoes the eerily similar refugee crisis in Europe.

It is legitimate to ask, "Is it morally justified to invade another's home if your own home is destroyed?" This accidental undertone does not register with most Chinese viewers, but there are lots of details that flew by me but became points of discourse for the fan base.

We probably need to separate the discussions "Is Warcraft a successful movie?" and "Is it a good one?" For the second question, there need not be a single answer. For the first, it may take a financial specialist after the dust is settled and the box-office totals come in.

Contact the writer at raymondzhou@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 06/24/2016 page22)