Wolf Warrior II is victor at box office

Wolf Warrior II, an action movie, has earned a record 3.63 billion yuan ($541 million) at the box office in just 13 days since its release on the mainland.

The box-office receipts are a major vote of confidence for domestic productions and also a reflection of the patriotic mood sweeping the country.

One reason for the film's success is its well-crafted action scenes and use of state-of-the-art weapons. But the military-themed film was able to top the 3.39 billion yuan box office of the 2016 romantic comedy-drama The Mermaid to become China's highest-grossing movie also because its release coincided with the 90th anniversary of the People's Liberation Army.

Wolf Warrior II, a sequel to Wolf Warrior (2015), was released on July 27 and the plot revolves around a former PLA soldier who helps evacuate Chinese nationals and other refugees from an African country facing a civil war.

In the film, Wu Jing, the Chinese actor and martial artist who directed and starred in the movie, plays Leng Feng, a former Chinese special forces operative. It also has opened in the United States, the United Kingdom and Singapore.

Reflecting the patriotic fervor that the movie is sparking, moviegoer Li Haohan, 27, an IT company worker, said on Tuesday: "My heart was pounding as I watched Wu save innocent people stuck in the battle zone.

"I felt proud when Wu escorted them out of the war zone, holding up the Chinese national flag."

The film also seems to remind viewers of evacuations of nationals in overseas hot spots in recent years and the growing presence of Chinese peacekeepers in the world.

"Director Wu Jing, we want to watch Wolf Warrior II!" a group of Chinese peacekeepers with the United Nations mission in Liberia yelled in a video clip posted online.

"I cannot wait to watch a film that reflects our life and work," one peacekeeper said.

Zhou Liming, a veteran movie critic, said, "It's a success for Chinese commercial action films. The movie is a first-class production, even by Hollywood standards."

"And it fulfilled the wishes of many Chinese to see their country become stronger."

xingyi@chinadaily.com.cn