Green Book has near-record opening weekend in China after Oscar best picture win
- Film about the bond between a black pianist and his white chauffeur touring the US Deep South takes US$15 million in opening weekend in China
- Chinese co-production sparks a craze among film-goers for fried chicken, the eating of which is a key plot device in Green Book
Green Book, the first Chinese co-production to win a best picture Oscar, chalked up over 100 million yuan (US$15 million) in ticket sales between Friday and Sunday in Chinese cinemas.
It was the second best opening weekend in 20 years in China for the holder of a best picture statuette, exceeded only by the box office takings for the rerun of Titanic. E-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding – owner of the South China Morning Post – is among the film’s backers.
Based on true events, the film portrays the touching bond that develops between a black concert pianist and his white chauffeur during a tour of the American Deep South in the early 1960s, when segregation was the norm.
The film came under fire from descendants of the pianist, Don Shirley, one of whom called it “a symphony of lies”. And film critic A.O. Scott of The New York Times said it contains “scenes that seem too corny or misguided for any movie in its right mind to contemplate”.
However, Chinese film-goers embraced Green Book, with one film ratings website giving it a score of 8.9 out of 10.
