* January 27, 2010, 9:51 AM ET
Avatar Survives on Chinese Screens
Just a week after Chinese authorities moved to curtail 2D screenings of Avatar to make room for a domestic film about Confucius, the James Cameron blockbuster appears to be staging a comeback of sorts.
On Jan. 19, Chinese cinemas reported receiving a notice from China Film Group, the government distributor in charge of most releases, ordering theaters to stop showing the 2D version of Avatar (3D and Imax versions were not affected). The move drew a chorus of boos on the Internet, where some even called for a boycott of the Confucius film, and fueled speculation of censorship as a possible motive, given interpretations of the film that have compared the Na’vi to dispossessed homeowners and Tibetans. (A senior official denied reports of the order as a rumor and said the decision to pull Avatar was purely commercial).
But an informal survey of movie houses across China reveals that the 2D version of Avatar is still alive and well.
In Shandong province, the Yantai Yidongying cinema has never stopped showing the 2D version of Avatar, said a person who answered the phone at the cinema. She said the theater had planned to pull Avatar in accordance with the Jan. 19 notice, but later received another notice allowing theaters without 3D facilities to continue showing the 2D version.
In Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, an employee of the Xingang International Cinema said her theater has been showing Avatar continuously on 2D and 3D screens since Jan. 4, with no plans to end screenings in the near future.
Some theaters have cut back, but not cancelled, show times for the 2D version. At the Luzhou Big World theater in Luzhou, a small city in Sichuan province, 2D Avatar screenings were halted for just one day, Jan. 22, before resuming, though it’s playing on two screens now, compared to five previously. Similarly, in Beijing, the Sanlitun Meijia Huanle Cinema has reduced the number of 2D screenings, while also offering the 3D version.
Meanwhile, even with its heavy official support (boosted by promotions and ticket giveaways), the Confucius movie is battling at the box office. The film, which premiered on 2,500 screens (a record for a domestic film), grossed 38 million yuan in its first three days, or about a third of Avatar’s take on its opening weekend. Critically, reviews have been mixed. On the cultural Web site douban.com, users gave Confucius an average rating of 4.3, while Avatar scored an average of 9.2.
More help is on the horizon for China’s film industry. Acutely aware that, on their own, Chinese films rarely enjoy the outsize popularity of Hollywood’s offerings, this week Beijing unveiled a new series of measures to boost the development of the domestic industry.
–Sky Canaves, with contributions from Kersten Zhang and Sue Feng
Reply With Quote