Low-budget Chinese film sparks unexpected box-office sensation

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A low-budget, crudely animated Chinese film about a baby cow has become an unlikely box-office hit, triggering a wave of memes, merchandise and public discussion over its appeal to younger audiences.

“The Bull Comes,” known as “Niu Lai” in Chinese, was made on a shoestring budget using hand-drawn posters and reportedly cost only thousands of dollars to produce. As of Thursday, it had earned more than $4 million.

The film ranked just behind “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” in China’s daily box-office rankings. The Marvel sequel reportedly had a production budget of around $225 million.

“Niu Lai” initially struggled at the box office, earning just over $1,000 in its first week, according to local media reports. Its fortunes changed after social and local media attention turned its awkward animation, unusual storyline and amateur creators into a viral phenomenon.

The film was made by an amateur animator with the support of his mother. Its story follows a weak newborn calf, his mother and a leopard cub as they face danger while a herd searches for greener pastures. The story focuses on friendship, courage and loss, while leaving viewers uncertain about whether parts of the events are real or a dream.

Its slow dialogue, clumsy action scenes and heavily pixelated animation have drawn widespread criticism, but those same qualities have helped turn it into an internet sensation.

At a recent packed screening in Beijing, audiences laughed and cheered even before the movie began. One movie blogger on Weibo described the film’s popularity as an inside joke among young people.

Chinese director Remo Zhu said the film had tapped into a rebellious mood among younger audiences, reflecting a desire to make their own choices about what to watch or consume.

He said the experience of watching the film in a crowded theatre had also created a highly interactive and communal atmosphere.

The film’s unexpected success has sparked a commercial frenzy, with Niu Lai toys, masked robots, memes and cosplay appearing online and in the market.

Companies with the word “bull” in their names also experienced a rise in share prices on Monday, prompting an unusual warning from China’s central bank against investing in meme stocks.

A journal run by the People’s Bank of China said that while going to the cinema for entertainment was harmless, investing based simply on the word “bull” was irrational.

The film’s success has also attracted aspiring animators hoping to recreate its achievement. However, Shanghai-based animation producer Liang Xia said such breakthroughs were difficult to predict or deliberately reproduce.

He said these rare successes were often driven more by a surge of public emotion than by the content itself, with the film simply acting as the spark that sets it off.