China Box Office: ‘Project Gutenberg’ Nears $100 Million, Wins Holiday Weekend

Hong Kong crime thriller, “Project Gutenberg” scored $37.2 million at the Chinese box office to comfortably win the under-powered second weekend of a prolonged holiday period. Zhang Yimou’s “Shadow” placed second.


For the film industry, the National Day sessions started on Sunday a week earlier, with the delayed releases of several titles. After a midweek reshuffle, those top scoring titles largely held their positions through the second weekend. A handful of new releases on Friday made little impact. The cumulative scores of all films on release over the second weekend was $96.8 million, some 20% down on the sessions last year.


“Gutenberg,” which stars Aaron Kwok and Chow Yun-fat, has headed the charts on every day since Tuesday. It now stands on a cumulative of $98.8 million after eight days.


“Shadow” has tracked solidly in second or third place throughout. It earned $17.7 million between Friday and Sunday, lifting its 8-day total to $65.5 million.


“Hello Mrs Money,” which opened brightly a week earlier, dropped to third place. It earned $15.1 million, for an 8-day cumulative of $74.6 million.


“Fat Buddies” earned $7.95 million in fourth place. After eight days, its total is extended to $28.7 million.


Drama, “Lost, Found” was the highest ranked new release. It scored $7.17 million in three days for fifth place.


Romance-drama, “Cry Me a River” earned $5.02 million in sixth position. After 17 days, its running total is $45.2 million.