The martial arts fantasy has caught filmgoers' imaginations

After 101 days on release, the film - up for 10 Oscars - broke the previous US box office record of $57.6m (�40.2m) set by Italian movie Life is Beautiful.

Sony Pictures Classics, who distributed the movie, said it hoped its achievement would set a new precedent.

"Hopefully, this level of success will help open the door, however slight, to the future accessibility of foreign film," said a Sony spokesman.

Asian roots

Meanwhile, Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh - one of the film's stars - has said she won't be lured away from Asia despite her now high profile in Hollywood.

"I believe there are so many tales to be told from our side, around our region, up in China and locations that we know better and stories that we can tell better," she said.

Michelle Yeoh: Staying put

"I would not think that I would pack up my bags and go over there."

Yeoh's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon co-star Chow Yun-Fat and John Woo, director of Mission: Impossible 2, are just two stars of the Chinese film industry who have moved to Hollywood.

Yeoh has herself co-starred in the James Bond movie, Tomorrow Never Dies. But her future career commitments lie in her homeland.

She has signed to star in a prequel of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Yeoh is also producing a film of her own, a romantic action adventure to be shot in Shanghai, Xian and the Himalayas.

"If you talk about Morocco or Venice, they are too accessible as a tourist," she said, adding: "But to go into China, it's a commitment."