'Dead to Rights' wins top film award

Detailed summary

With two major trophies at the 39th China Film Golden Rooster Awards, Dead to Rights, a war-themed blockbuster, emerged as one of the biggest winners at the 2026 China Golden…

With two major trophies at the 39th China Film Golden Rooster Awards, Dead to Rights, a war-themed blockbuster, emerged as one of the biggest winners at the 2026 China Golden Rooster & Hundred Flowers Film Festival, which concluded in Xiamen, Fujian province, on Tuesday.

The film, which follows a group of ordinary people who risk their lives to reveal evidence of atrocities committed by Japanese invaders during the Nanjing Massacre, grossed 3.01 billion yuan ($415 million) during last year's summer movie season. It resonated with younger audiences, prompting renewed interest in one of the darkest chapters of modern Chinese history. It took home the Best Feature Film and Best Actress awards.

Director Shen Ao said the film paid tribute to the compatriots who suffered and died during a period of national weakness and turmoil. He said that today's peaceful and prosperous era makes it possible for Chinese filmmakers to create more and better works.

Gao Ye won the Best Actress award for her portrayal of a courageous woman in the film. A native of Changzhou — a city in Jiangsu province not far from Nanjing, the province's capital — Gao said she had grown up surrounded by the history of the massacre.

To prepare for the role, she immersed herself in historical materials and recalled how Shen helped the cast develop a shared understanding of the period. "Before filming began, the director gave each member of the main creative team a USB drive containing the materials we might need. We watched them over and over, deliberately immersing ourselves in that period of history," Gao recalled.

The Best Actor award went to Hong Kong veteran Tony Leung Ka-fai for his portrayal of a complex criminal mastermind in the action thriller The Shadow's Edge, which grossed 1.2 billion yuan at the box office last summer.

With an acting career spanning more than four decades, Leung recalled that when he first entered the industry, a director had promised to make him a star.

"I said, 'I don't want to be…

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