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The first 3D porno film overtakes ‘Avatar’ Hong Kong opening day record
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James Cameron’s “Avatar” is no longer the Hong Kong’s box office opening day king. That title has to be given to ”Sex and Zen: Extreme Ecstacy”, a softcore porno which claims to be the “first 3-D erotic film !
While “Avatar”‘s single first day box office recorded an impressive $2.63 million in Hong Kong dollars, “Sex and Zen” racked up HK $2.78 million (or about $340,000) on just 73 screens, and is on its way to an opening weekend of more than HK$17 million. In Taiwan, the film also earned TWD$17m (£360,000) in its opening weekend – the best for a Chinese-language movie in Taiwan this year, producer Stephen Shiu said.
In HK, “Sex and Zen” received a restricted rating, meaning only people 18 and over could get in. Reports suggest that more than half the viewers on its opening weekend in Hong Kong were people who live in mainland China. Some tour operators organized bus and plane trips from mainland to bring extra porn enthusiasts who want to catch the film which will never be shown there. It is not the first time mainland viewers have travelled to Hong Kong to evade censorship by Chinese authorities. In 2007, many crossed over to watch the uncut version of Oscar-winning Taiwanese director Ang Lee’s sexually explicit spy thriller Lust, Caution.
“Sex and Zen: Extreme Ecstasy” is a remake of a 1991 film of the same name and same director about a sexually frustrated teacher in ancient China who gets wrapped up in the harem of a new friend. Even if ”Sex and Zen” is claimed as “the world’s first 3-D erotic film,” its producer Stephen Shiu, admits that a 2010 South Korean erotic feature was already in 3D.
The film is produced by a HK based company and will be distributed in Australia, South Korea, France, Italy and India in the coming months, with extra 15 minutes.
Trailer on YouTube
SOURCES: Slash Films, BBC (20/04/2011)
