'Bouquet' becomes top-selling Japanese live-action romance in China

With strong word-of-mouth percolating online, We Made a Beautiful Bouquet saw its box office surpass director Shunji Iwai's Love Letter as the highest-grossing Japanese live-action romance on the Chinese mainland on Tuesday, according to the movie information tracker Beacon.

As the champion of all imported romance titles released on the Chinese mainland this year, We Made a Beautiful Bouquet has so far grossed 66.5 million yuan ($10.5 million) since it opened domestically on Feb 22.

Directed by Nobuhiro Doi, the movie stars Masaki Suda and Kasumi Arimura in a bittersweet love story between two young people who fall for each other after discovering they share a lot in common. However, as time goes on, the stress from life and work causes cracks in their relationship, casting a shadow on the two lovers' four-year romance.

Currently, the film has obtained 8.4 points out of 10 on the popular review site Douban, with a lot of netizens saying the movie is realistic, detailed and reminds most youngsters of their shift from college life to stressful workplaces.