Ne Zha (2019)

I had heard of this year's sequel only when looking up box office records, and then I saw that the original broke some too. I'm sure the vast majority of ticket sales for each were in their native land. Still, their ratings are strong, so I got curious how well they might appeal to an American animation fan. NZ1 is less popular, but I like to start at the beginning.

In old China, Taoist god Yuanshi Tianzun sees fit to split the Chaos Pearl, a powerful monster, into the Spirit Pearl and the Demon Orb, the latter of which he curses to celestial destruction in three years. He tells apprentice Taiyi Zhenren to infuse Ne Zha, the soon-to-be-born royal son of Li Jing and Lady Yin, with the Spirit Pearl. Jealous co-apprentice Shen Gongbao swipes that pearl for new dragon prince Ao Bing, leaving the Demon Orb for the other baby. Although Ne Zha is widely feared and apparently doomed to early death, his parents insist on raising him with Taiyi's training, albeit in isolation. They hope that shielding their son from the whole truth will make him better and happier, but lies rarely form an effective long-term solution, especially in the face of Shen's unorthodox approach to pursuing godhood....

At age two, Ne Zha looks and acts about nine and repeatedly escapes his palace out of boredom. He doesn't seem to intend any trouble for those who don't antagonize him; sometimes he even attempts heroism. But his rash use of superhuman strength makes him destructive enough to merit the label "enfant terrible," and he brings lethal force when called a demon. His parents demonstrate extreme love in their patience and sacrifice for him. The only other likely reason for his good side is the cool and relatively mature Ao Bing, who befriends him before Shen intervenes.

The CG visuals are pretty good for this kind of picture, not least during the more colorful magic spectacles. Ne Zha's design sure sells his impish nature, and we instantly identify Shen as an imminent main villain and Taiyi as a comic relief. That said, articulate mouth movements make the dubbed version distracting. I recommend subtitles anyway, because otherwise the occasional writing goes untranslated. It's not like I recognize any of the English voice actors' names.

As a fantasy action flick, it's slick, duly filling its 110 minutes. As a comedy, it's fairly juvenile, with many instances of slapstick and vulgarity (and brief male infant frontal nudity). I do like some unexpected magic gags. I just hope no Taoists get seriously offended by the somewhat irreverent take on their mythology. Then again, doesn't Taoism promote a peaceful mindset?

The ending feels oddly final for the start of a series, but I'm glad it wasn't final. I expect to see NZ2 someday, hopefully with the predecessor's kinks ironed out.