On Sunday I watched The Battle at Lake Changjin (released in September 2021). This 3-hour Chinese action piece caught my attention because it was the highest grossing film of 2021. (Note that Spider-Man: No Way Home has since taken over that spot.) It was also the most expensive film ever produced in China.
The Battle at Lake Changjin depicts the Korean War. It is centered around two Chinese brothers, Qianli and Wanli, who bond over their wartime experiences.
I agree that the film could be classified as pro-Communist propaganda. However, it was kinda interesting seeing Americans depicted as the bad guys for once. The film doesn’t all out show them as evil, but it does show them in a campy / unrealistic manner. For example, most of the American soldiers on screen had a redneck Southern drawl.
At the moment the film has a 25% critic score and a 100% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. While it does have good battle sequences, I side more with the critics on this one. There’s simply not much of a plot; the movie is pretty much just guns, gore and violence. Plus, at times the unrealistic depiction of Americans was slightly comedic (in a bad way).
