Historical Chinese film about Nanjing Massacre breaks summer box office record

"Dead to Rights," a Chinese film that depicts the Nanjing Massacre perpetrated by Japanese troops in China during World War II, has seen ticket sales surpass 2.2 billion yuan (about $308 million) during its summer box office run, according to online movie platform data.

This has smashed the record for previous historical films screened during the country's bustling summer movie-going season, which runs from the beginning of June to the end of August each year.

As of Monday, China's total summer box office revenue — including ticket pre-sales — had exceeded 8.7 billion yuan, pushing this year's annual box office past the 36-billion-yuan milestone.

Marking the 80th anniversary of victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, "Dead To Rights" tells the story of a group of Chinese civilians, who sought refuge in a photography studio during the brutal occupation of Nanjing by Japanese invaders, and how they risked their lives to send photographic evidence of the Nanjing Massacre to the outside world.