by Xinhua writer Zhang Yunlong

BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhua) -- As temperatures climb across China, its film market is also heating up, with the period leading to July 22 -- or the day that the "Great Heat" falls on this year according to the traditional 24 solar terms -- marking a potentially critical moment for summer movie releases.

The seven days from Sunday to the coming Saturday will see a flurry of new films hitting Chinese movie theaters. In total, 10 films are currently set to be released on July 18 and 19 -- marking one of the most concentrated periods of debuts this summer -- with several already holding preview screenings as of Sunday.

Among the new arrivals, "The Lychee Road," a comedy directed by Da Peng and adapted from Ma Boyong's popular novel, and "You Are the Best," directed by Jiang Wen, have both moved up their release dates to July 18, heightening the competition for box office attention.

"The Lychee Road" follows a Tang Dynasty (618-907) official tasked with the near-impossible mission of transporting a bushel of lychees, prized but famously quick to spoil, on a grueling 2,500-km journey from Lingnan in southern China to the capital, Chang'an. His desperate ingenuity in overcoming the logistical challenge becomes a sharp satire of bureaucratic absurdity.

Other anticipated releases include "The Legend of Hei 2", the sequel to the beloved animated fantasy, and "Girl on Edge," a suspense thriller starring Zhang Zifeng and Ma Yili.

"The Stage," a comedy film directed by and starring veteran comedian Chen Peisi, is now slated for release on July 25, but has already begun preview screenings on Monday.

The industry is hoping the upcoming releases will provide the boost it needs, especially given that the financial results from some of the summer's earlier releases have fallen short of expectations.

As of Sunday, the total yearly box office has reached 30.5 billion yuan (4.27 billion U.S. dollars), hitting this milestone 29 days earlier than in 2024. However, the summer movie season, which spans three months starting June 1, is currently lagging behind last year's box office growth pace.

In 2023, the summer box office hit a record high of 20.6 billion yuan, but 2024 saw a sharp drop to just 11.6 billion yuan. This year's summer box office has earned 3.2 billion yuan as of Sunday, with seven imported films and three domestic titles among the top 10 performers.

Universal's "Jurassic World Rebirth," released on July 2, is leading the pack with 450 million yuan in ticket sales, followed by Peter Chan's "She's Got No Name," which opened on June 21 and has earned 370 million yuan. Other top performers include Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" with 350 million yuan and Japanese animated movie "Detective Conan: One-eyed Flashback" with over 340 million yuan.

More big titles are set to debut after July 19. Of particular interest is the July 31 release of "731" (also known as "Operation Cherry Blossoms at Night"), a historical drama that revisits the horrific World War II-era human experiments conducted by Japan's Unit 731, documenting a painful chapter of history while portraying the Chinese people's heroic resistance.

Also grounded in history, "Dongji Island" is set for Aug. 8. It recounts the true story of Chinese fishermen rescuing over 300 British prisoners of war in October 1942, after the Japanese transport ship "Lisbon Maru" was torpedoed and left to sink, despite being secretly packed with more than 1,800 prisoners. The same events were previously explored in Fang Li's critically acclaimed 2024 documentary, "The Sinking of the Lisbon Maru."

Another notable release is the animated drama "Nobody," based on an episode from the acclaimed "Yao-Chinese Folktales" animation series, which is set for Aug. 2.

As the summer progresses, the industry is pinning its hopes on these high-profile releases to drive the box office before the season concludes. The coming weeks will be crucial in determining whether this surge in content can translate into a much-needed recovery for the 2025 summer box office. ■