‘Rampage’ dominates China’s box office for second week

Warner Bros’ action-adventure film “Rampage” trampled the competition for the second straight week in China.

The movie, starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, grossed $51.3 million in ticket sales last week, according to film consulting firm Artisan Gateway.

The film accumulated $106.8 million in 10 days, making it Johnson’s best showing to date in mainland China, excluding the star-studded “Fast and Furious” series.

The strong ticket sales, however, did not translate into appreciative reviews. “Rampage” sits at a mediocre 6.8 out of 10 on the Chinese movie rating website douban.com.

“With this type of movie, you need to stop thinking about logic in the storyline after you buy the ticket,” said one online reviewer. “If you get a bunch of smash and bash, a happy ending, and some good effects, you’ve got your ticket’s worth.”

Another reviewer praised Johnson’s role as “tailor-made” for the actor, but lamented that “the story was rather simple.”

Warner Bros’ other hit, “Ready Player One,” continued its strong showing. The sci-fi blockbuster managed to rake in $14.6 million last week, and scored 8.9 on the rating website. Despite some cultural barriers, Steven Spielberg’s love letter to ‘80s and ‘90s American pop culture had $207.1 million in ticket sales after three weeks in the Middle Kingdom and is now among the top 10 highest-grossing imported films ever in China.

The domestic romantic comedy “21 Karat,” led by popular actress Dilraba Dilmurat, debuted with $10 million during its first three-day weekend, just shy of previous works “Namiya” and “Mr. Pride vs Miss Prejudice” in 2017.

Wes Anderson’s stop-motion animation “Isle of Dogs” premiered over the weekend with a mere $4.1 million in ticket sales.

Another domestic romantic comedy, “Dude’s Manual,” pulled in $3.7 million in its first weekend.

Kemeng Fan is a special correspondent