Posters for released movies during the 2022 Spring Festival Holidays Photo: VCG

Domestically made patriotic films, which have attracted wide attention in 2021, continued to gain momentum in China during the Spring Festival holidays that ended on Sunday.

Many Chinese moviegoers nationwide immersed themselves in a patriotic fervor on February 1, the first day of the Chinese New Year in 2022, with the war blockbuster The Battle at Lake Changjin II.

The critically acclaimed title is a sequel to the 2021 movie The Battle at Lake Changjin. The second installment of the film topped the Chinese mainland's box-office chart for the week-long holidays, which ran from January 31 to Sunday, by raking in more than 2.5 billion yuan ($397 million), said the China Film Administration.

Set during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-53), The Battle at Lake Changjin tells the story of Chinese People's Volunteers (CPVs) fighting bravely in freezing weather in a vital campaign at Lake Changjin, also known as Chosin Reservoir.

The sequel follows CPV soldiers from the same company as they take on a new task, and this time, their battlefield is a crucial bridge on the retreat route of US troops.

"From trench warfare to head-to-head battles, the movie scenes are mind-blowing," read one comment. 

"The franchise makes us more appreciative of the good life we are living now," read another.

The Spring Festival, or the Chinese New year, is a lucrative movie season in China as moviegoing has become an increasingly prominent pastime for Chinese people during the holidays in recent years.

The total box-office revenue of China's Spring Festival holidays in 2022 surpassed 6 billion yuan.

Apart from the top-grossing war epic, box-office entries such as Snipers, co-produced by acclaimed director Zhang Yimou, which is also set during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and Nice View, depicting an entrepreneurial saga set in the city of Shenzhen, also resonated with audiences.

With their sophisticated techniques and compelling plots, Nice View and Snipers shine focus on the fate of individuals against a massive historical backdrop and offer ample experience for the future production of such films, said Liu Haibo, a professor at the Shanghai Film Academy, Shanghai University.

Nice View and Snipers ranked third and sixth respectively in ticket sales during the holidays, according to the China Film Administration.

Spring Festival holidays in 2022 also saw genre movies flourish. Top-grossing comedies Only Fools Rush In and Too Cool To Kill, and animation film Boonie Bears: Back to Earth, enriched the Chinese audience's box-office options during the holidays.

"As the holiday box-office statistics illustrate, the audience has been more sensible in their film selections this year instead of just following the trend and sticking to one single film," said Rao Shuguang, president of the China Film Critics Association. 

Xinhua