On March 5, I wrote about “Learn from Lei Feng Day,” in which we the People were instructed to take note of Mr. Lei’s selfless altruism, patriotism, and loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party (even in death). No qualms, as the dude was basically a nationalistic – if not fabricated – bad-ass. (With a ballin’ hat to boot.)
But apparently Chinese audiences weren’t in the mood for a hearty helping of party propaganda on this glorious holiday. According to the Hollywood Reporter:
“Screenings of ‘Young Lei Feng,’ a biopic about a revolutionary long immortalized in Chinese official discourse for his reportedly selfless contributions to the Communist Party, were called off at cinemas in the cities of Nanjing and Xi’an because no tickets were sold. Ironically, the cancellation came on the very day the government designated as ‘Lei Feng Day.’ “
Still from “Young Lei Feng,” which coincidentally flopped on “Learn from Lei Feng Day.” (Image courtesy of weibo.com/cajing)
To add insult to injury, writes the Reporter, propaganda-esque films “have always been a hard-sell, and [film venue managers] expected the film to be taken off screens soon as a raft of more entertaining and profitable releases…are released towards the end of the week.” What would you rather spend a week’s worth of income ( usually ¥60 RMB, or $9.50) on: “Young Lei Feng,” or the current Hollywood blockbuster?
“With the advent of the Internet and the emergence of a very sophisticated and commercialized entertainment industry…Chinese audiences have long distanced themselves from propaganda fare which previous generations might have embraced out of either genuine affection or a lack of choice.”
Welcome to visual-stimulation-hungry and free-market-competitive China: Where (increasingly) disposable income meets modern capitalistic consumer desires. (In all honesty, though, I probably would have paid to see Lei’s film. For the lulz.)
In the meantime, perhaps the CCP’s art directors can “Learn from ‘Lost in Thailand,’ ” China’s largest-grossing domestic film ever, before March 5, 2014 rolls around. For a movie not actually about China, it was a smash hit (never mind that it was basically “The Hangover 2” in Mandarin Chinese).
K. Jacobsen's Newly Revised Eclectic Primer, Vol. II 