Chinese Patriotic Film Earns Zero at Box Office in First Two Days; Scholar Reveals the 'Real Truth'

The Chinese patriotic education film "I Salute the National Flag" recently opened, but its box office performance has unexpectedly sparked discussion. Shen Rong-chin, an associate professor at York University in Canada, wrote on Facebook on Monday that the film earned zero at the box office during its first two days. Twenty-three days after its release, its cumulative box office still stood at just 64,500 Chinese yuan. Shen argued that beyond reflecting the film's limited appeal, the figure also shows that many Chinese citizens have grown tired of the repeatedly recurring theme of patriotic education.

In his Facebook post, Shen said "I Salute the National Flag" set a Chinese box office record, taking in 0 yuan in its first two days—meaning that not only "little pinks" (young Chinese nationalists), but apparently not even the producers, director or actors bought tickets to see it. He described the film's premise: an education committee in a coastal district organizes 200 children from eight local elementary schools to travel to a patriotic education base during the summer holiday for military training themed around "saluting the national flag." Through arduous training, the children strengthen their willpower and gradually come to understand the "true meaning" of the flag. According to the production side's publicly released materials, the film was created against the backdrop of China's Patriotic Education Law, which officially took effect on January 1, 2024, and is positioned as a "patriotic education film" that develops its message through a story of children's military training.

Shen further drew a comparison: Wu Jing's "Wolf Warrior 2" once set a box office record in Chinese film history, and patriotic subject matter briefly became a popular market genre. However, he said, the gap between the box office triumph of "Wolf Warrior 2" and the zero earnings of "I Salute the National Flag" in its first two days represents not only the collapse of Wu Jing's public persona, but also shows that Chinese patriotic education has reached a point where some citizens find it repugnant. He also criticized the Patriotic Education Law, which centers on "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era," saying it affects not only students' thoughts and speech but also extends to internet users and scholars. He noted that China has even attempted to extend related regulations to Taiwan, which was flatly rejected by the Mainland Affairs Council. Shen concluded bluntly that, amid China's across-the-board economic downturn, people no longer have the means to play along with the authorities' "patriotic games that cost money." He said the historic 0-yuan box office of "I Salute the National Flag" is not only tied to its quality but also reflects that many Chinese have grown weary of patriotic education and no longer have spare cash to spend on patriotism.

Source: FTV News (Formosa Television) — https://tw.news.yahoo.com/%E4%B8%AD%E5%9C%8B%E6%84%9B%E5%9C%8B%E9%9B%BB%E5%BD%B1%E4%B8%8A%E6%98%A02%E5%A4%A9%E7%A5%A8%E6%88%BF%E6%8E%9B%E9%9B%B6-%E5%AD%B8%E8%80%85%E6%8F%AD%E7%A5%A8%E6%88%BF%E5%A4%B1%E9%9D%88-1%E7%9C%9F%E7%9B%B8-003504367.html