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Tianjin Yamazaki Film
Move over The Odyssey and Obsession, there's another film in China that is taking the country's box office by storm.
The Chinese animated film Niu Lai (which translates to The Cow is Coming) received negative reviews initially, with it being described as "so bad, it's good," and "disaster-level," by viewers.
According to the film tracking platform Maoyan earned just 10,000 yuan ($1,480) at the box office in the first 10 days after its release on August 5, and one some days earning little as 200 yuan ($30) as fewer than 300 purchased a ticket.
As for the plot synopsis, Niu Lai is about a calf who had a dream about himself growing up with the help of his family.
But this all only seemed to spark people's curiosity as more - nearly 300,000 of them - went to go see the film in cinemas causing sales to surge to 8.2 million yuan ($1.2 million) Monday, as per Maoyan.
Tianjin Yamazaki Film
Now, Niu Lai is estimated to have made 17.1 million yuan ($2.5 million) at the box office in total, and earning a spot in the top ten highest-grossing animated films in China this year.
The film was made over five years by just two peopl, director Xin Yumeng and his mother, Sun Lifan, as reported by Red Star News in Chengdu. However, unable to reach Xin, The Associated Press was not able to independently verify this.
At cinemas, handwritten posters can be see of a calf, hand-drawn in pen without color, with the text, "Come on over if you’re into the bizarre" and "No refunds."
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