The Flowers of War

The Flowers of War
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Zhang Yimou
Produced by	William Kong David Linde Zhang Weiping Zhang Yimou Brandt Andersen
Screenplay by	Liu Heng
Based on	13 Flowers of Nanjing by Geling Yan
Starring	Christian Bale Ni Ni Zhang Xinyi Tong Dawei Atsuro Watabe Shigeo Kobayashi Cao Kefan
Music by	Qigang Chen Red Dragon Fly Trailer Bryan Todd
Cinematography	Zhao Xiaoding
Edited by	Peicong Meng
Production company	EDKO Film Beijing New Picture Film New Picture Company
Distributed by	EDKO Film Wrekin Hill Entertainment Row 1 Productions
Release date	December 16, 2011 (2011-12-16) (China) January 20, 2012 (2012-01-20) (U.S.)
Running time	146 minutes
Country	China, USA
Language	Mandarin English Japanese
Budget	$94 million
Box office	In China: $95,311,434

The Flowers of War (simplified Chinese: 金陵十三钗; traditional Chinese: 金陵十三釵; pinyin: Jīnlíng Shísān Chāi) is a 2011 Chinese/American historical drama war film directed by Zhang Yimou, starring Christian Bale, Ni Ni, Zhang Xinyi, Tong Dawei, Atsuro Watabe, Shigeo Kobayashi and Cao Kefan. The film is based on a novella by Geling Yan, 13 Flowers of Nanjing, inspired by the diary of Minnie Vautrin. The story is set in Nanking, China, during the 1937 Rape of Nanking in the Second Sino-Japanese War. A group of escapees, finding sanctuary in a church compound, try to survive the plight and persecution brought on by the violent invasion of the city.

It was selected as the Chinese entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 84th Academy Awards, but did not make the final shortlist. It also received a nomination for the 69th Golden Globe Awards. The 6th Asian Film Awards presented The Flowers of War with several individual nominations, including Best Film.

The film's North American distribution rights were acquired by Wrekin Hill Entertainment, in association with Row 1 Productions, leading to an Oscar-qualifying limited release in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco in late December 2011, with general release in January 2012.