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Chinese adventure film tells stories of Mt. Qomolangma climbers

2019-10-09 10:41:00Xinhua

"The Climbers," which dramatizes the real-life expedition of Chinese mountaineers to ascend Mount Qomolangma in 1960 and 1975, hit the big screen on the Chinese mainland on Oct. 1.

The movie's pre-sale box office raked in more than 100 million yuan (about 14.14 million U.S. dollars) on the Chinese mainland.

Born in Xigaze of Tibet Autonomous Region, Samdrup was one of the nine people who scaled Qomolangma from its north side in 1975. His life experience inspired the production of the movie.

"I had a dream about a movie on our mountaineering experiences, and now it has come true," said Samdrup, after watching the premiere of the movie.

Directed by Daniel Lee, the movie stars "The Wandering Earth" actor Wu Jing and Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi, who gained international fame for her role in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon."

Jackie Chan, famous action movie actor, made a guest appearance.

"This movie is a gift for the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China," said producer Ren Zhonglun, chairman of Shanghai Film (Group) Corporation.

Xia Boyu, the first Chinese double amputee to scale Qomolangma, had long expected this film. Born in Chongqing in 1949, he lost his lower legs in 1975 due to severe frostbite he suffered when trying to reach the summit of Qomolangma.

Though the mountain nearly took his life, Xia decided to draw courage from it and set himself a target: One day, he would scale it.

"After several attempts, I finally reached the highest peak on my protheses last year. I'm proud of myself," he said.

"Technology is developing and mountaineering equipment has greatly improved, becoming lighter, more portable and more durable. Weather forecasts have also become quite accurate. These all make it possible for the climbers to prepare for various situations and to make it to the top," said Xia.

"The Climbers" is expected to bring more public attention to Chinese mountaineers such as Xia Boyu and Samdrup.

"We may never scale Qomolangma like them, but we can draw courage from them to pursue our own dreams," said Lhawang Norbu, a Tibetan actor who starred in the motion picture.

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