It's a small film with a soft center and for the past six months it has held China in its grasp.
What's more, director Xiao Yang's 43-minute feature Old Boys is showing a generation of Chinese just what might be possible as their film industry continues to expand at an astonishing rate.
Since being released on the online video sharing website Youku on October 28 last year, Xiao's film has now been watched more than 26 million times.
The film -- a warm-hearted tale of two aging men who are able to chase their boyhood dreams thanks to a nationally televised TV talent show -- has apparently hit a nerve with China's "post-'80s" generation and has also tapped in to the nation's massive online movie-watching market.
"I didn't see that coming," the director told Wednesday's edition of the China Daily newspaper. But increasingly China's filmmakers are identifying the trend.
China has an internet community that now boasts more than 457 million people and watching movies is one of their favorite past times.
Seven Chinese websites -- letv.com, qq.com, joy.cn, xunlei.com, baofeng.com, pptv.com and pps.tv -- recently announced plans to produce one movie-watching "mega-channel" later this year.
And many believe online movies are the way to go for an industry which produced more than 500 films in 2010 but only saw 150 gain general release in theaters. And Hong Kong's Filmart industry fair last week heard that only 70 of those 150 films grossed more than five million yuan (540,000 euros).
For his part, Xiao is back in the studio working on his next online movie The Winner -- another tale of a man chasing happiness. But he is keeping his expectations on a level keel.
"Like in a painting, you can't expect each piece of work from a painter to be a masterpiece," he said.
Watch Old Boys: http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMjE4MDU1MDE2.html
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