“born to fly“, an action film about the prowess of the Chinese air force and the bravery of its airmen, dominated the China box office chart over a weekend that led to the nearly week-long May Day holiday.

Data from consultancy Artisan Gateway shows that the film earned $44 million (RMB 279 million) between Friday and Sunday.

The weekend as a whole brought in $121 million in turnstile revenue, the fourth-highest weekend of the year and lower than the three “revenge spending” weekends that led the period Chinese New Year in January and early February.

“Born to Fly” was followed by “good speed», a comedic road trip title about a father-daughter relationship and the need for intergenerational understanding.

While critics and supporters had described “Born to Fly” as China’s answer to “Top Gun”, Chinese state media openly compared “Godspeed” to another American title, “Meet the Parents”. Directed by Yi Xiaoxing who previously drew plagiarism complaints with his 2020 “Bath Buddy,” “Godspeed” grossed $31.6 million.

“Born to Fly” had had to go out before as part of the October National Day holiday. But it was pulled at the last minute without any explanation. It skipped the Chinese New Year holiday season in January and instead landed in the crowded May Day weekend slot (April 29 to May 3).

Imax reported that the film earned $4.0 million from Imax sites in China, accounting for nearly 10% of the film’s domestic revenue.

Local ticket agencies show that at least 11 new Chinese-produced films debuted on Friday or Saturday. Other sources report that 17 films will be released during the holiday period.

Another of the Friday releases, “All These Years” opened at number three. The film is a romantic drama directed and co-written by Layla Ji. Its opening was previously scheduled for May 20.

The top-ranked anime film was Japanese anime “The First Slam Dunk” which earned $12.3 million in its second weekend. The figure was a 68% drop week-over-week, but leaves the film with a cumulative $75.8 million after 11 days in Chinese theaters.

“The Procurator,” a drama film about mainland Chinese prosecutors, opened on Saturday and raised $4.3 million in two days. That was enough to earn him fifth place for the weekend.

According to other data sources, the highest-ranking US title in China was “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” which grossed $21.5 million after 26 days in Chinese theaters. It’s a disappointing performance.

But May is set to be a more serious examination of the power to draw Hollywood audiences to China. “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” will immediately enter the post-holiday period and will be released on May 5. “Fast & Furious 10” will pick up speed on May 17.