CHINA BOX OFFICE: Monster Hunt topped the China box office again last week, reaching a cumulative gross of $330.32m (RMB2.51bn) to become China’s second highest-grossing film of all time.

Monster Hunt

The CGI/live-action hybrid pulled in a further $39.43m from 6.7 million admissions, according to EntGroup figures, with family audiences in second and third-tier cities keeping the film in pole position for the fourth week in a row.

Monster Hunt is now just $60m shy of the $390m record set by Fast & Furious 7 earlier this year.

Superhero spoof Pancake Man (Jian Bing Man) and animated feature Monkey King: Hero Is Back also held on to their second and third spots respectively in the chart.

Pancake Man grossed a further $12.92m for a cume of $177.29m, making it the second local film to cross the RMB1bn ($165m) threshold this year.

Monkey King took $11.55m for a cume of $137.56m. Monkey King is China’s highest-grossing animated film of all time beating Kung Fu Panda 2, which took $98m in 2011.

According to China’s State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT), July was the biggest month ever at the China box office with revenues reaching $884m (RMB5.49bn).

Most of July’s revenue came from these three hits, none of which were dethroned by early August’s new releases.

Emperor Motion Pictures’ action drama To The Fore gave the best performance, grossing $11.26m in four days for fourth position in the chart. Directed by Dante Lam, the film stars Eddie Peng, Shawn Dou and Korea’s Choi Siwon as competitive cyclists.

In its first full week, Ringo Lam’s Canto noir Wild City, starring Louis Koo and Shawn Yue, came in fifth with $7.57m for a cume of $21.8m after 11 days.

Local animation Kwai Boo came in sixth with $5.84m in its opening four days, and was followed by drama Lady Of The Dynasty, which took a $5.73m for a cume of $20.64m after 11 days.

Rounding out the chart, new releases Mr Black Green Star and Time To Love took $5.18m and $3.43m respectively in three days, while John Woo’s The Crossing: Part 2 grossed $2.64m for a cume of $7.66m after 11 days.

The unofficial blackout period on Hollywood films ends soon with Terminator Genisys scheduled for release on August 23 and Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation on September 8.

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