The Battle at Lake Changjin (2021)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A fictionalized retelling of the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir depicts the North Korea-allied Chinese People's Volunteer Army forcing U.S. forces to withdraw.
The story
Wu Qianli, a commander of the People's Liberation Army's 7th Company, returns home after the Chinese Civil War only to have his leave canceled as China enters the Korean War. His younger brother, Wanli, joins the 7th Company against his wishes. During their journey to Korea, the company faces various hardships, including being bombed and forced to march on foot. They eventually arrive at the front lines with essential equipment. Meanwhile, Mao Zedong's son, Anying, joins the soldiers in secret, enduring extreme conditions in the mountains while the U.S. military begins to locate their headquarters.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Wu Qianli, commander of the People's Liberation Army's 7th Company, returns home after the Chinese Civil War to find his brother killed in action. His leave is canceled as China enters the Korean War, and his younger brother Wanli joins his unit. During their journey to Korea, the 7th Company faces bombings and tank attacks before reaching the front lines. Mao Zedong's son, Anying, joins the army in secret but is killed during a bombing raid on their headquarters. On November 27, the Chinese launch an attack on the U.S. Army 31st Infantry at Sinhung-ni. Qianli shoots the U.S. commander, Colonel Allan MacLean, but Wanli intervenes to stop the execution. The U.S. forces begin a retreat, marked by smoke and heavy casualties. At Hagaru-ri, Chinese forces launch a suicidal attack on American tanks. The film concludes with a U.S. mass grave at Hungnam during a city evacuation, where 105,000 U.S. troops were eventually evacuated by December 24. The Battle of Lake Changjin is presented as a successful destruction of a U.S. reinforced regiment and a repulsion of U.S. advances despite heavy Chinese casualties.
- First release year
- 2021
- Runtime (minutes)
- 178
- Production countries
- China
- Original languages
- Mandarin; English
- Directors
- Chen Kaige; Tsui Hark; Dante Lam
- Writers
- Lan Xiaolong · writer; Huang Jianxin · writer
- Cast and characters
- Wu Jing · Wu Qianli; Jackson Yee · Wu Wanli; Kevin Lee · Colonel Allan MacLean; John Fred Cruz · Major General Oliver P. Smith; C.T./Gao Mingyu Evans · Major General Edward Almond; Duan Yihong · Tan Ziwei; Zhu Yawen · Mei Sheng; Li Chen · Yu Congrong
- Genres
- war; drama; historical
- Themes
- sacrifice; nationalism; warfare; propaganda
- Premise and plot tags
- historical fiction; war drama; propaganda
- Franchise connections
- The Battle at Lake Changjin
- Content notes
- historical inaccuracies
- Reception
- The film was a massive commercial success, becoming the highest-grossing Chinese film of all time (until 2025). It received mixed critical reviews, with some praising its scale and others criticizing its historical accuracy and propaganda nature.
- Reported review scores
- Maoyan · score: 9.5; Douban · score: 7.6
- Production trivia
- It was the most expensive film ever produced in China with a budget of $200 million.; 70,000 People's Liberation Army soldiers acted as extras.; The film was commissioned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party as part of the Party's 100th anniversary celebrations.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…