So bad it's good: Animated Chinese film becomes hit as audiences pay to see how bad it is

"Niu Lai", a low-budget Chinese animated film that was widely mocked for its crude visuals became a viral hit, with people packing cinemas to see just how bad it is.

A low-budget Chinese animated film that was widely mocked for its crude visuals became a viral hit, with people packing cinemas to see just how bad it is.

"Niu Lai", which translates to "Here Comes the Cow", earned around 7,000 yuan (R16,000) in its opening week from August 5, before surging to 33.06 million yuan (R80 million) at the Chinese box office, according to ticketing platform Maoyan.

The film, made by a mother and son, follows the journey of a calf named Niu Lai and was crafted frame by frame over five years, local media reported, with the duo also composing original scores for the end credits.

Caelan Moriarty, an American musician working in China, told AFP the film is "so bad that it's so good".