On September 7th, four new films were released in cinemas across mainland China. Alongside the low-budget movies “The Legend of No. 9” and “Egg Baby Rescue,” there were two big productions, “Mind-Blowing” and “Shining Youth: Aerial Relay.” Despite each film having lackluster box office performances, the most severe losses were seen by the 50 million yuan invested in “Mind-Blowing,” with a mere 2.7 million yuan in first-day ticket sales.
According to box office platform “Maoyan,” the baseball film “The Legend of No. 9” only garnered 168,000 yuan in first-day box office revenue. Industry experts analyze that due to the lack of popularity of baseball in China, many audiences might not even understand the rules. Leveraging the advantage of animation, “Egg Baby Rescue” earned 2.57 million yuan in first-day ticket sales. However, being released outside of the summer blockbuster season, it is unlikely to surpass the 10 million yuan mark in total box office revenue.
Aside from “Shining Youth: Aerial Relay,” the other big release of the week was “Mind-Blowing.”
“Shining Youth: Aerial Relay” is based on the true story of the last-second victory of the basketball team from the Second High School of Shijiazhuang over the Mingde Middle School in Changsha. The film only brought in 758,000 yuan on its opening day, with 447,000 yuan coming from Shijiazhuang City alone. It is estimated that due to its strong regional focus, audiences in other areas have little interest in the film.
Since September, the film with the worst box office performance has been “Mind-Blowing.” The movie stars well-known actors such as He Huan, Wang Xun, Clara, Sun Yue, and Jiu Kong, and had a production budget exceeding 50 million yuan.
The film’s “fantastical story” reflects the daydreams of the vast majority of Chinese people in real life. The protagonist, Cai Yao, played by pillar of Da Wan Entertainment He Huan, gains superpowers after an unexpected brain surgery, leading to the peak of his life. This kind of “mind-blowing” scenario, although a dream for everyone, brings about more revelations through Cai Yao’s post-wealth experiences.
The film portrays strong emotional values. In the face of immense life pressures and negative emotions such as anxiety and despair, the film offers a strong sense of identification. Cai Yao’s character represents not only blue-collar workers like mechanics, delivery personnel, and couriers, but also other low-wage laborers, unemployed individuals, and job seekers. In comparison to the commercially successful “Claw Doll” led by Shen Teng and Ma Li, which depicts “the rich pretending to be poor,” “Mind-Blowing” resonates more widely in China with its portrayal of the desire for wealth and change in fate. Feelings of frustration, being surrounded by them every day, yet unable to break free, make people wonder, “We should still dream, what if it actually comes true?”
Although the film has a strong sense of identification with various working-class roles, some audiences have criticized its lack of sophisticated filmmaking techniques, rough costume and makeup design, and actors merely showing up for their paychecks.
As of 10 p.m. on September 7th, the film only grossed 2.7 million yuan on its opening day, with a projected final box office revenue not expected to exceed 10 million yuan. If calculated based on the standard 37% box office sharing, the film incurred losses exceeding 40 million yuan, making it the first major box office disaster in mainland China for September.