Editor's note: There are a huge number of movies, TV series and variety shows broadcast every week. How do you choose? You might as well take a look at the recommendations of The Paper.
【Movie】
Cinema box office
As of 16:00 on May 16, the box office of mainland cinemas this week totaled 94.9 million yuan, with "Dumpling Queen", "Gold Hunting Game" and "A Red Star" ranking the top three in the box office chart. On May 17, "One and Only", which was withdrawn from the May Day schedule, and "Love Letter", a classic pure love movie by Shunji Iwai, were released.
"I'm Still Here", which was released on May 16, is the Best International Film at the 97th Academy Awards. It reveals a hidden truth in Brazilian history through the trauma of a family's time.
→ Premiere｜The Oscar-winning International Film "I'm Still Here" is about to be released
In The Accountant 2, which was released on May 16, Ben Affleck returns to play the "mathematical genius killer". This time, he and his brother Braxton are involved in a transnational conspiracy. The film continues the style of "violent aesthetics + high IQ crime" of the previous film, with a high score of 86% on Rotten Tomatoes. The gunfight scenes are full of punches and fists, and the viewing experience is better in the IMAX theater. It is suitable for action movie fans and audiences who love brotherhood themes.
"Unique", which was released on May 17, is adapted from the highly rated French film "The Belliers". Zhang Jingyi plays a girl from a hearing-impaired family who breaks through the shackles of family affection with music. The director pioneered the "metaphorical soundtrack", which uses silence and vibration to simulate the sensory world of the hearing-impaired, suitable for audiences who pay attention to social issues and like delicate emotional expression.
Other recommendations:
【TV drama】
"Zhe Yao" is adapted from the novel of the same name by Penglai Ke. It is directed by Deng Ke, written by Nan Zhen, and starred by Song Zuer, Liu Yuning, Xuan Lu, and Liu Duanduan. The play is set in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and tells the story of the youngest daughter of the Qiao family, Xiao Qiao, and the lord of the Wei family, Wei Shao, who were forced to marry because of family feuds, and the interweaving of power and emotions from hostility to love. The play started filming in Hengdian on January 31, 2023, and was completed on May 16 of the same year. Two years later, it was exclusively broadcast on Tencent Video on May 13, 2025.
On May 14, the popularity of "Zhe Yao" on Tencent Video exceeded 28,000. As of press time, the drama has also topped the charts of Dengta and Yunhe.
The popularity value of "Zhe Yao" on the site exceeded 28,000, entering the must-see club of Tencent Video.
"If Life Is Like First Sight" is directed by Wang Wei and starred by Li Xian, Chun Xia, Wei Daxun, Zhou You, and Zhu Yawen. The drama is set against the backdrop of the overseas students' national salvation movement in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China. With the dual narrative of Liang Xiang, a young aristocrat of the Qing Dynasty played by Li Xian, and Yang Kaizhi, a revolutionary played by Wei Daxun, it tells the story of several Chinese youths who experienced growth and sacrifice in the revolutionary wave during the turbulent period of the late Qing Dynasty, witnessed the end of the feudal monarchy and the dawn of the new democratic revolution, and showed the struggle and revival of the Chinese nation in the context of the great era. The drama premiered on iQiyi on May 13.
As of press time, the drama ranked only tenth on the Yunhe data list, and its popularity on iQiyi was not high, and there was no splash in the discussion on social platforms. However, the drama is a slow-burning type and needs to be savored carefully.
Stills from "Life is Like First Sight"
→ Episode 1｜Good food is never too late, bowing as if we first met
"Legend of the Canghai" is adapted from "The Canghai Xilin" by Nanpai Sanshu. It is directed by Zheng Xiaolong and directed by Cao Yiwen, with Xiao Zhan, Zhang Jingyi, Zhou Qi and Huang Jue as the leading actors. It tells the story of the son of the director of the Imperial Observatory of the Great Yong Kingdom, who experienced the disaster of the destruction of his entire family. Ten years later, he returned to the capital under the pseudonym "Canghai". With the construction skills and tactics he learned over the years, he outsmarted the treacherous, uncovered the conspiracy, and joined hands with his beloved friends to defend the country. The drama was completed on June 2, 2024, and will premiere on CCTV-8 at 19:30 on May 18, 2025, and will be simultaneously launched on Youku Video.
As a TV drama that Xiao Zhan has not starred in for a long time, "Legend of the Canghai" is highly anticipated by all parties, and the strength of its creative team cannot be underestimated. I wonder what this "big male lead" drama will be like?
Poster of "Legend of the Hidden Sea"
Directed by Hui Kaidong, written by Zhang Chanjuan, Zhou Yu, Yang Hong, and Sun Xiaohan, and starring Bai Yufan, Xin Baiqing, Wang Herun, Fu Dalong, and You Yongzhi, the cultural relic protection drama "Protecting Treasures and Tracking" will premiere on CCTV-1 on May 20, and will be exclusively broadcast on iQiyi. The core theme of "Protecting Treasures and Tracking" is cultural relic protection. It is based on major domestic archaeological discoveries and revolves around the work and life of archaeologists, with a strong main theme.
Poster of "The Treasure Hunter"
Other recommendations:
Interview | Director Liu Jiang: Infusing the spy war theme with the soul of realism
"Huaishui Bamboo Pavilion": Why did such a good hand turn out like this?
Episode 1: "Dear Enemy" and "Jiang Song" both have intriguing "they"
【Variety Show】
On May 16 at 19:45, the first episode of "Singer 2025" will be broadcast live on Hunan Satellite TV and Mango TV. The first round of song list is as follows↓↓
Someone will be eliminated in the first episode, so will he/she have a chance to be resurrected later? Another suspense is who will fill the spot in the second episode? I hope the singers will not have any problems during the live broadcast and can sing the songs smoothly.
→ "Singer 2025" announces the starting lineup, one person will be eliminated in the first episode
The latest episode of "The Voice of God" will be broadcast on Zhejiang Satellite TV at 10 pm this Friday. Jane Zhang and Zhang Xincheng's "Our Tomorrow", Lala Xu and Zhang Bichen's "Straight Flush", Liu Yuning and Zhang Hanyun's "Beside You", Wang Yuan and Zhou Chuanxiong's "Open the Door to the World"... Every collaboration is exciting.
The pilot episode of the third season of "Friends Invite Me to Dinner" was launched on May 15, and the main episode will be broadcast on Tencent Video every Thursday starting from May 22. Yang Di and Yin Zheng partnered up as the hosts. For the first time, the program fixed the main scene in Hengdian, built an "actor kitchen", focused on the actors' dinners, gossip and behind-the-scenes stories outside the set, and created a "social observation of the film and television industry" perspective. Adopting the "catch and invite now" mode, Yang Di and Yin Zheng randomly invited artists to participate in the dinner by raiding the crew, calling people, squatting in the hotel, etc. For example, in the pilot episode, Li Yunrui, Chen Zheyuan and others were successfully invited, and there was even a funny scene where Chen Zheyuan took the initiative to provide a notice.
The first episode of "Hahaha No Worries" was launched on Mango TV on May 14. Guests Da Zhangwei, Wang Mian, Qi Sijun, and Shen Mengchen are the core members, and the American Internet celebrity "Giant Thyroid Brother" (iShowSpeed) is the core of cross-cultural interaction. Da Zhangwei and Giant Thyroid Brother made a humorous reconciliation over the mispronunciation of the song "Sunshine Rainbow Little White Horse", and designed impromptu interactive sessions such as "Instant Translation Blind Box".
