Farewell My Concubine Budget

What is the budget of Farewell My Concubine?

"Farewell My Concubine," a drama released in 1993, was directed by Chen Kaige and stars Leslie Cheung, Zhang Fengyi. The production budget was $4,000,000, placing it in the micro-budget range for drama productions of the 1990s.

Key Budget Allocation Categories

While specific budget breakdowns are not publicly available, typical cost drivers for a drama production like this include:

• Above-the-Line Talent: Drama films live or die on the strength of their performances.
• Location Filming & Period Production Design: Authentic locations , whether contemporary or historical , require scouting, permits, travel, lodging, and often significant dressing to match the story's time period.
• Post-Production, Color Grading & Score: The editorial process for dramas is typically longer than genre films, with careful attention to pacing and tone.
• Production: Chen Kaige was best known for his previous work, Yellow Earth, which followed a 'personal, direct and primitive' approach, but with Farewell My Concubine, he was looking to make a more commercialized artistic film.

What were the major cost factors in Farewell My Concubine?

Several factors contributed to the overall production costs of "Farewell My Concubine."

• Above-the-Line Talent: Above-the-Line Talent is one of the primary cost drivers in drama productions of this scale.
• Location Filming: Location Filming & Period Production Design is one of the primary cost drivers in drama productions of this scale.
• Post-Production: Post-Production, Color Grading & Score is one of the primary cost drivers in drama productions of this scale.

How Does Farewell My Concubine's Budget Compare to Similar Films?

At $4,000,000, Farewell My Concubine sits in the micro-budget range. Here is how it compares to productions with a similar budget:

• Peter Pan (1953): Budget $4,000,000, Worldwide Gross $87,400,000
• Dersu Uzala (1975): Budget $4,000,000
• Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem (2003): Budget $4,000,000 , Gross $6,664,789
• Trainspotting (1996): Budget $4,000,000, Worldwide Gross $71,981,823
• Capernaum (2018): Budget $4,000,000, Worldwide Gross $64,978,931

The median budget for wide-release drama films in the era ranges from $30 to 80M for mid-budget to $150M+ for tentpoles.

Farewell My Concubine Box Office Performance

"Farewell My Concubine" earned $5,216,888 domestically and $6,400,000 worldwide at the box office. Against a production budget of $4,000,000, the film showed modest profitability in theatrical release.

A film typically needs to earn approximately twice its production budget to cover marketing and distribution costs. For "Farewell My Concubine," that break-even threshold was roughly $8,000,000. With worldwide earnings of $6,400,000, the film fell short of that threshold but recouped its production costs in theatrical release.

• Production Budget: $4,000,000
• Worldwide Gross: $6,400,000
• Net Return: $2,400,000
• ROI: approximately 60%

At 60%, "Farewell My Concubine" returned its production investment but margin was tight after marketing and distribution costs.

Farewell My Concubine Production History

!Song type!!Name!!Composer!!Lyrics!!Singer *Leslie Cheung covered the theme song "When Love Has Gone" in 1995. *"Don't get it" does not appear in this film, but is only included in Farewell My Concubine Movie Soundtrack.

Awards and Recognition

Nominated for 2 Oscars. 24 wins & 12 nominations total

• Palme d'Or: Chen Kaige

Critical Reception

Roger Ebert awarded the film four stars, praising the plot as "almost unbelievably ambitious" and executed with "freedom and energy". The New York Times critic Vincent Canby hailed it for "action, history, exotic color", positively reviewing the acting of Gong Li, Leslie Cheung and Zhang Fengyi. In New York, David Denby criticized the "spectacle" but felt it would excel internationally, portraying a triumph of love and culture through the darkness.