BEIJING – Chinese war epic The Battle At Lake Changjin looks set to dominate China’s upcoming Golden Rooster Awards, the country’s top film awards, after conquering the Chinese box office.
It is up for eight prizes, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor.
The patriotic film about the Battle of Chosin Reservoir during the Korean War (1950 to 1953) was co-directed by Chinese film-maker Chen Kaige as well as his Hong Kong counterparts Tsui Hark and Dante Lam.
It stars Chinese actor Wu Jing, who is nominated for Best Actor, and singer-actor Jackson Yee. They play two brothers whose lives are affected by the war.
The film made 5.77 billion yuan (S$1.12 billion) and is China’s all-time top-grossing film. It is also the world’s second-highest grossing film in 2021 after Spider-Man: No Way Home.
The sequel, The Battle At Lake Changjin II, is currently leading the 2022 box office in China.
Although Yee, 21, is not nominated for Lake Changjin, he is up for Best Actor for his role in the family drama Nice View, in which he plays a man trying to help his sick younger sister.
This is his third straight Best Actor nomination, having been nominated for Better Days in 2020 and A Little Red Flower in 2021.
Nice View is China’s submission to the 2023 Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category, according to Variety magazine.
Besides Best Actor, the movie is up for six awards at the Golden Rooster, including Best Picture, Best Director for Wen Muye and Best Supporting Actress for Qi Xi.
The Battle At Lake Changjin may also meet stiff competition from the film Sniper, which is also up for six awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.
Sniper, about a Chinese sniper defeating American soldiers in the Korean War, is jointly directed by Zhang Yimou and his daughter Zhang Mo. Zhang Yimou won Best Director for the spy thriller Cliff Walkers in 2021.
Hong Kong film Anita – the biopic on late Cantopop superstar Anita Mui – is nominated for three awards: Best Director for Longman Leung, Best Actress for Louise Wong and Best Sound.
This year’s ceremony will be held in Xiamen in Fujian province from Nov 10 to 12.
