Movies

Ne Zha 2

BBG News

It seems you might not have caught wind of the movie that currently holds the title for the highest-grossing animated film globally – Ne Zha 2. Given its Chinese origin and release in January 2025, it’s understandable if it hasn’t crossed your path yet. However, it’s set to make a splash in the U.S. soon as part of the upcoming 2025 movie lineup, with a theatrical release scheduled for August 22, courtesy of A24.

In the interim, should you possess a Peacock subscription or access to the Tubi app, you may bridge the gap on the ongoing narrative by streaming the initial 2019 release of “Ne Zha” (pronounced “nuh-jah”). Having recently viewed it myself, I can attest that while I’m usually indifferent to complex fantasy tales, this film is worth watching, regardless of its upcoming sequel’s popularity in the United States. Let me elucidate…

Ne Zha’s Premise Is Avatar: The Last Airbender Meets The Omen Meets Hellboy

In the movie “Ne Zha” directed by Yu Yang, based on Chinese folklore, the main character, voiced by Yanting Lu and Kei Gambit in the English version, is actually a reincarnation of a powerful artifact called the Demon Pill. This artifact can create demonic creatures from hell. Despite this, he is born into a loving human family who strive to make his shortened three-year lifespan as meaningful as possible. To earn the townspeople’s respect, they train him to control his anger and use his demonic abilities to protect them against even more fearsome creatures, hiding his true nature from them.

Essentially, envision a scenario where the Antichrist, at a young age like Damien from “The Omen,” was offered an opportunity to deviate from his destiny as a harbinger of destruction. Instead, he could employ his powerful, elemental abilities to combat evil, much like Hellboy or the characters in “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” If you enjoy any of these stories, you might find “Ne Zha” quite entertaining.

The Fantasy Elements, While Complex, Are Easy To Follow

It’s been challenging for me to fully immerse myself in well-known fantasy films due to my ADD, as I find it hard to follow the complex mythical details usually found in such stories. Fortunately, that’s not an issue with the film “Ne Zha“.

The movie quickly establishes a lot of background information within the first few minutes, which made me apprehensive about remembering all the details. Yet, I was impressed by how the story maintains its crucial plotlines in an easily understandable manner, avoiding excessive explanation. Even young audiences will find it effortless to follow the storyline of Ne Zha, making it a suitable choice for family viewing.

The Battle Sequences Are Quite Epic

Regardless of the movie genre, an effective method to keep me engaged is through a strong action sequence. I can confirm that the film Ne Zha undoubtedly delivers on this front, offering numerous entertaining and high-octane, yet suitable for all ages, combat scenes throughout its entirety.

The event includes some fantastical aspects which I never found disturbing, but rather, I found them remarkably original. To illustrate, there’s a scene where Ne Zha battles a colossal monster whose breath transforms anyone it touches into stone.

Grab a copy of the thrilling and victorious animated film, Ne Zha, on Blu-ray at a bargain price that’s more than half off on Amazon! Check out the deal here!

The Humor Offers A Little Bit Of Everything

In my critique as a movie enthusiast, what truly stands out about the animated spectacle, “Ne Zha,” is its abundance of humor, ranging from the silly to the self-aware. For instance, there’s an element of physical comedy reminiscent of the Three Stooges, which is largely due to Ne Zha’s clumsy immortal guide, Taiyi Zhenren, voiced by both Zhang Jiaming and Mike Pollock in the English version. Additionally, there are instances where the film adopts a playful, parodic tone, harkening back to the witty humor found in the Shrek series, which is gearing up for its fifth installment.

It’s important to note that this action-fantasy movie isn’t just sporadically peppered with humor for lightheartedness. Instead, there are numerous jokes spread across the 110-minute runtime, even outnumbering the sincere moments. Though some jokes may not hit their mark as well as others, they generally fit seamlessly within the narrative, avoiding any disruption to the overall tone and maintaining a consistent feel while ensuring that the more solemn scenes remain impactful.

At Its Core, Ne Zha Is A Story About Outcasts

As a dedicated cinephile, I’d say that Ne Zha stands out among animated fantasy epics as a unique masterpiece that transcends genre boundaries and resonates with viewers from diverse age groups and backgrounds. If I were to pinpoint the single factor contributing to this universal appeal, it would be its poignant exploration of social exclusion.

Due to his turbulent background, Ne Zha finds it challenging to forge friendships or engage in simple acts of kindness with people beyond his family and Taiyi. However, this situation alters when he encounters Ao Bing (Han Mo, and Aleks Le in the English dub), who, like Ne Zha, grapples with loneliness due to peculiar circumstances that border on jeopardizing their friendship. The film beautifully portrays their intricate relationship, making Ne Zha a heartwarming story of harmony that older viewers can appreciate and younger ones can emulate.

Admittedly, I wasn’t sure I’d like this movie much, but I strongly recommend giving Ne Zha a watch on Peacock, Tubi, or even renting it from Amazon. I believe you’ll find yourself eagerly anticipating the next film in the series, Ne Zha 2, just as I am.

Read More

2025-07-10 23:12

Previous post This very casually dressed Wimbledon attendee is the actor brother of a HUGE Hollywood A-lister – but can you guess who it is?
Next post Honor of Kings: Here’s how to get the new Flowborn skin for free