Ne Zha (2019 film)

Ne Zha(Chinese:哪吒之魔童降世;pinyin:Nézhā zhī Mótóng Jiàngshì;lit.'Nezha the Demon Child Comes into the World'), also spelledNezha,is a 2019 Chinese animatedfantasyadventure filmdirected and written byJiaozi.Its animation production is done by the director's own Chengdu Coco Cartoon.Featuring the popular Chinese mythological characterNezha, the plot is loosely based on the 16th-century novelInvestiture of the GodsbyXu Zhonglin.
Ne Zhawas released in China exclusively inIMAXandChina Film Giant Screentheatreson 13 July 2019, followed by other theatres on 26 July,distributed byBeijing Enlight Pictures.It is the first Chinese-produced animated feature released in IMAX format,and, despite being the debut feature of its director and animation studio, and having no widely known actors in its voice cast, the film gained critical acclaim, and has been one of the biggest commercial successes inChinese cinema, setting numerous records forbox-officegrosses, including becoming the highest-grossing animated filmin China,the worldwide highest-grossing non-U.S.animatedfilm,and the second worldwide highest-grossingnon-English-languagefilm of all time at the time of its release. With a gross of over $742 million,it was that year's fourth-highest-grossing animated film and China's all time fifth-highest-grossing film.
It began a North American release on 29 August 2019 in selectIMAX 3Dtheatres, before a nationwide rollout on 6 September.It was selected as the Chinese entry forBest International Feature Filmat the92nd Academy Awards,becoming the first animated film from China to ever do so,but it was ultimately not nominated.
A second film set in the same universe, titledJiang Ziya, was released on 1 October 2020, which isNational Dayin China.A direct sequel,Ne Zha 2, was released on 29 January 2025, which broke multiple box-office records and stands as thehighest-grossing animated filmof all time.
A Chaos Pearl, birthed from primordial essences, begins siphoning energies gluttonously.Yuanshi Tianzundispatches his disciplesTaiyi ZhenrenandShen Gongbaoto subdue the sentient pearl. Due to its ability to absorb energy, Taiyi and Shen are unable to defeat it. Eventually Tianzun separates the pearl into two opposite components: the Spirit Pearl and the Demon Orb. Tianzun places a heavenly curse upon the Demon Orb: in three years time it will be destroyed by heavenly lightning. Tianzun then instructs Taiyi to take the Spirit Pearl to be reincarnated as the third son ofLi Jingin the town of Chentang Pass, to be namedNe Zha.
Shen steals the Spirit Pearl and causes the Demon Orb to be placed on the ritual altar instead, causing Li Jing's pregnant wifeLady Yinto give birth to a demonic child, Ne Zha. Taiyi tells them that Ne Zha's fate is sealed: in three years' time the heavenly curse placed upon the Demonic Orb will kill him. Li travels to Heaven with Taiyi in an attempt to plead for Ne Zha's life, but is told the curse is irremovable.
Meanwhile, Shen has brought the stolen Spirit Pearl to theDragon King. The dragons resent that they are confined to the ocean floor as jailers of the Heavenly Court. The Dragon King infuses the Spirit Pearl into an egg, giving birth to a son,Ao Bing, whom the Dragon King allows Shen to take as a student. The dragons hope that since Ao Bing is born from the Spirit Pearl, dragon kind will be deemed worthy by Heaven and allowed to ascend and becomexian.
To tame his demonic nature and make him happy, Ne Zha's parents lie to him, telling him he was born of the Spirit Pearl and is destined to be a great demon hunter. Ne Zha studies under Taiyi and acquires great skills. Eventually becoming impatient, he escapes his confines to hunt demons. While chasing a water demon, he burns down a fishing village. Ao Bing joins Ne Zha's fight but is petrified by the demon. Ne Zha cleverly overcomes the demon and rescues both Ao Bing and a little girl, and he and Ao Bing become friends. Nevertheless, he is misunderstood by the townsfolk of the destroyed village, and angrily lashes out at the villagers, hurting many of them.
The Li household organizes a lavish birthday party for their son, inviting the townfolk to attend. Shen visits Ne Zha before the party, revealing the truth of his nature to him. Angry and upset, Ne Zha unleashes his true demonic form and nearly kills his father until Ao Bing intervenes. Feeling betrayed, Ne Zha leaves to await his fate.
Li discovers Ao Bing has the Spirit Pearl. Knowing that if this is revealed, all of dragon kind will be condemned forever, Ao Bing acts on Shen's recommendation of removing all witnesses by burying the town alive under a massive sheet of ice. Meanwhile, Ne Zha learns that while visiting Heaven to plead for his life, his father accepted an enchantment that would allow him to trade his life for Ne Zha's. Moved by his father's sacrifice, Ne Zha returns to the village to stop Ao Bing. Unleashing his full demonic form, Ne Zha defeats Ao Bing, but spares his life for being his only friend.
When the heavenly lightning approaches, Ne Zha surrenders to his fate but is unexpectedly joined by Ao Bing. Linking hands, they unleash the Chaos Pearl's ability to absorb energy. Their mortal bodies can't contain the full energy of the strike and are destroyed, but with Taiyi's help, they survive by becoming spirits, and the townsfolk kneel before them.
In the mid and post credits scenes, the Dragon King vows vengeance on the citizens of Chentang Pass for what happened to Ao Bing, while in an unknown location,Jiang Ziyais introduced.
The film tells the mythological origins ofNezha, who is a protection deity inChinese folk religion, and its story is loosely based on the literary version of the myth that forms two chapters ofInvestiture of the Gods, aMing-dynastyshenmonovel, traditionally attributed toXu Zhonglin, which incorporates various existing myths into a wider narrative.
The story has been adapted for the screen many times before, at least as early as 1927or 1928,whether on its own (as in the 1979traditionally-animatedfilmNezha Conquers the Dragon King) or as part of adaptations of the whole ofInvestiture of the Gods(such as the 2016 live-action filmLeague of Gods).
Director Jiaozi spent two years in total to write the screenplay, and the film was in production for three years.
The film has more than 1,318 special effects shots, and it took over 20 Chinese special effects studios, employing more than 1,600 people, to realize the film's fairy tale setting, the mysterious Dragon King's Palace, and a complex fight between fire and water. One scene alone took two months to complete.
Executive production company and distributorBeijing Enlight PicturespremieredNe Zhaon 11 July 2019 inBeijing, followed by an encore on 12 July.The film was given alimited releaseinIMAXandChina Film Giant Screenpremium large formattheatreson 13 July, and was releasednationwideon 26 July.
The film grossed 600 millionyuan(est.$84 million) in its first three days alone. It broke local records with a $91.5 million opening, the highest ever for an animated film in China.
On 2 August 2019, It became the highest-grossing animated film of all time in China, a record held byZootopia($235.6 million) since 2016.On 7 August 2019,Ne Zhabecame the fastest animated film to reach $400 million (in 12 days). It is currently the highest-grossing animated film of all time in a single market ($703.71 million in China)overtakingIncredibles 2(2018) ($608.5 million in North America), the highest-grossing non-DisneyorPixaranimated film in a single market, overtakingShrek 2(2004) ($441.2 million in North America), and the highest-grossing non-English spoken animated film, overtakingSpirited Away(2001) ($361.1 million worldwide).Upon reaching $700 million (in 46 days), it became the first ever animated feature film in film history to reach that milestone in a single market.
The film was released in cinemas in English-speaking regions in Mandarin with English subtitles around the end of August and beginning of September 2019.
It was released in Australia on 23 August and in New Zealand on 29 August, distributed by CMC Pictures.
It was released in the United States and Canada in selectIMAX3Dvenues on 29 August, followed by other cinemas on 6 September, distributed byWell Go USA Entertainment.
It was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland, including in select IMAX 3D venues, on 30 August, distributed by CMC Pictures in collaboration with Cine Asia.
Douban, a Chinese media rating site, gave the film 8.7 out of 10.
Thereview aggregatorRotten Tomatoesreported that 88% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 17 reviews, with an average rating of 7.2/10.OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 54 out of 100 based on 5 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
The creative team behind the film has announced thatNe Zhawill be the first installment in a fictional universe based on the stories told in theFengshen Yanyi.The next film in the franchise was announced to beLegend of Deification, featuringJiang Ziya. It was slated for release on 25 January 2020 in China,but following theCOVID-19 pandemic, all Chinese New Year releases were cancelled. It was released on 1 October 2020, which aligned with China's national day, in both China and the U.S.
A direct sequel to the film,Ne Zha 2, was released on 29 January 2025.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/ne_zha