A poster for Chinese film The Eight Hundred Photo: VCG

Chinese war film The Eight Hundred, the highest-grossing film of 2020 around the world, is reportedly in the running to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. 

Some Chinese netizens were excited about the news published by some social media accounts such as Feilin Film on Facebook as well as Sina Weibo and have high hopes that the movie could win the award for the Chinese film industry.

The war epic means a lot to Chinese audiences and the film industry as its debut just after the reopening of cinemas around the country lifted spirits and confidence at a time when people's lives were hit hard by the COVID-19 epidemic. 

The box office for the film proves its significance to the industry. The movie grossed more than $455 million around the world as of Monday, topping all the films that have been released.

Directed by Guan Hu, The Eight Hundred depicts Chinese soldiers' four-day defense of a warehouse against the invading Japanese army during the Battle of Shanghai in 1937, regarded as one of the most tragic battles faced by Chinese people in World War II. 

A Twitter user commented about the film, saying that "it is a great movie worth watching. I am always intrigued by those events and lives during the war."

Shi Wenxue, a film critic and teacher at the Beijing Film Academy, recalled what impressed him most about the film.

"There was a scene in the movie with a river separating two parts during the battle. One is the warehouse where Chinese soldiers are fighting a bloody battle and on the other side of the river, foreign people and some rich Chinese people are watching the battle. This is a reflection of history," Shi told the Global Times on Wednesday.

No one can avoid disaster, and if you look at others' troubles with indifference, you will be stuck in the troubles sooner or later, he noted.

Shi confirmed that the film has its merits but he was not optimistic about its chances of success at the Oscars.

"I think the odds of the movie winning are not high. 1917, another war film released last year, is better in terms of technology and overseas audiences are more familiar with the subject, but it still did not win the award."