Hey U.S! Win Tickets To Stephen Chow's THE MERMAID (MEI REN YU)

The runaway box-office success of Stephen Chow's The Mermaid (Mei Ren Yu) caught its U.S. distributor off-guard, to say the least.

Receiving little to no publicity, the film nonetheless sold out screenings over the weekend in (very) select engagements. Our own J. Hurtado reported on Sunday via social media: "My evening screening yesterday was completely sold out and not a Caucasian face in the room." Clearly, Asian audiences know Stephen Chow, and I'd wager a fair number were impelled to go thanks to extremely positive word of mouth. (Mr. Hurtado was extremely favorable in his review).

The Mermaid earned more than $1 million at the U.S. box office, despite only playing in 35 theaters, giving it the highest per-screen average. That's just a touch of gravy, considering it's grossed more than $400 million already in the rest of the world, but it's still extremely impressive for a foreign-language release in the U.S.

Happily, the distributor is making up for lost time. The film will be expanding to additional cities starting on Friday, February 26. (See list below.)

UPDATED 2/26: The giveaway is now concluded. Thanks to everyone who entered!

Giveaway: We also have two pairs of tickets to see the film in theaters in any of the markets the film is currently playing in. To enter the giveaway, which is for U.S. residents only, please send us an email with your name and address, confirm that you are a U.S. resident, tell us where you'd like to see the movie, and then give us the title of your favorite Stephen Chow movie. We'll select two people at random from entries received by 11:59 p.m. E.S.T. on Thursday, February 25, 2016. Tickets will only be good until next Thursday, March 3.

P.S. Note that the film is more likely to be listed under its original title (Mei Ren Yu) rather than its English counterpart (The Mermaid). More information is available at the official sites listed below.

Los Angeles - Now Playing
Cinemark Baldwin Hills 18
AMC Atlantic Times Square 14
Cantonese Version Also Playing at Atlantic Times Square from 2/26 !
AMC Puente Hills 20
AMC Orange 30
AMC Tustin 14

Los Angeles - Opening 2/26
AMC Santa Anita 16
AMC Loews Broadway 4
AMC Universal CityWalk Stadium 19
Cinemark 18
AMC Century City 15
Edwards University Town Center 6
AMC Santa Anita 16

Berkeley - Opening 26/2
Shattuck Cinema

New York
National College Point Multiplex

AMC Empire 25
Cantonese Version Also Playing at Empire from 2/26 !

New York - Opening 2/26
Landmark Sunshine Manhatten
AMC Loews Jersey Gardens 20

Boston
AMC Boston Commons 19

Washington
AMC Loews Rio 18

Washington - Opening 2/26
AMC Hoffman Center 22

Baltimore/Washington
Regal Rockville Center Stadium 13

Baltimore - Opening 2/26
Cinemark Egyptian 24

Philadelphia
AMC Loews Cherry Hill 24

Philadelphia - Opening 2/26
AMC Neshaminy 24

Pittsburgh
AMC Loews Waterfront 22

San Francisco
Cinemark Daly City 20
Cinemark Great Mall 20
AMC Metreon 16
AMC Cupertino Square 16

San Francisco - Opening 2/26
Cinemark Century Stadium 25

San Diego
AMC La Jolla 12

San Diego - Opening 2/26
AMC Mission Valley 20

Las Vegas - Opening 2/26
AMC Town Square 18

Phoenix
AMC Center Point 11

Nashville - Opening 2/26
AMC Regency 24

Atlanta-Chamblee
Regal Hollywood 24 @North I-85

Atlanta - Opening 2/26
AMC Phipps Plaza 14
AMC Southlake Pavillion 24

Charlotte NC - Opening 2/26
AMC Concorde Mills 24

Detroit - Opening 2/26
AMC Livonia 20

Jacksonville - Opening 2/26
AMC Regency 24

New Orleans - Opening 2/26
AMC Elmwood Palace 20

Tampa - St Petersburg - Opening 2/26
AMC Veterans 24

Bloomington IL
AMC Showplace 11

Miami
AMC Sunset Place 24

Miami- Opening 2/26
AMC Adventura Mall 24

Orlando- Opening 2/26
Regal Waterfront Lakes Stadium 20

Durham SC
AMC Southpoint 17

Kansas City - Opening 2/26
AMC Town Center 20

Cleveland-Akron - Opening 2/26
Cinemark At Valley View

Champaign IL - Opening 2/26
Carmike

Minneapolis-St Paul - Opening 2/26
AMC Showplace Inver Grove 16

Lansing MI - Opening 2/26
NCG Eastwood

Chicago
AMC River East 21

Columbus OH
AMC Lennox Town Center 24

San Antonio TX - Opening 2/26
Santikos Silverado 16

Tempe AR - Opening 2/26
Hawkins Arizona Mills 25

Dallas
AMC Grapevine Mills 30

Houston
AMC Studio 30

Houston- Opening 2/26
AMC Gulf Pointe 30

Seattle
AMC Pacific Place 11

Sacramento - Opening 2/26
UA Laguna Village 12

Portland OR - Opening 2/26
Regal Fox Stadium Tower 10

Honolulu - Opening 2/26
Cons Kahala 8
Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18