Love stories prove eternal at the box office(2)

Actress Ni Ni plays the female protagonist in director Zhang Yibai's film Fleet of Time. Photo provided to China Daily

"Every person in the movie is chasing his dream and struggling for a better life. Though it's a comedy, I hope audiences will cry during some of the touching scenes," Gu says.

Women Who Flirt, a film adaptation of a Taiwan best-seller about flirting skills, has already grossed more than 200 million yuan ($32.3 million) since it was released on the mainland three weeks ago.

The comedy, directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Pang Ho-cheung, features a woman who wants to be more desirable to win back the man she has loved for a long time.

Miss Granny, a Chinese remake of the hit South Korean romance, is expected to be the next romantic blockbuster at cinemas when it's released in January.

The story revolves around a 70-year-old woman who is magically transformed into her 20-year-old self. The granny, with her new body, is given a second chance to chase her dream of becoming a music star and is pursued by three handsome men.

Somewhere Only We Know, directed by Xu Jinglei, will be released on Valentine's Day, and is also expected to perform well.

The movie, set in Prague, tells the story of a young woman who flees to Europe to escape the sadness of a breakup and the death of her grandmother. The heartbroken woman finds true love with a Chinese violoncellist in the capital of the Czech Republic.

"Love is eternal. The pure love theme, which surpasses the bonds of class, material and ethnicities, may be not believed in this rapidly changing era. However, audiences will buy love stories presented in humorous ways, such as Women Who Flirt," says Zhou Tiedong, a veteran movie researcher.