New Gods: Nezha Reborn follows in the footsteps of recent successful Chinese animated films such as Ne Zha and White Snake. It repurposes old Chinese legends for a more modern, dieselpunk story that comes alive thanks to engaging, colorful animation. It’s definitely a step forward for donghua (Chinese animation) films being exposed to a more mainstream audience.
Li Yunxiang (played by Yang Tianxiang in the original dub and Stephen Fu in the English dub) is a daredevil smuggler who also participates in bike races on the side. He lives in a futuristic city called Donghai which also blends 1930s Shanghai and 1950s American aesthetics, where different godly clans rule over the human world, and for some mysterious reason, there is a steep water shortage. When a dragon prince, Ao Bing (played by Jonny Siew in the English dub) clashes with him over his precious bike and reveals his powers, Yunxiang surprises himself and everyone else by awakening the fiery powers of a legendary child god named Nezha.
Yunxiang learns to control his powers and builds armor for himself out of car and bike parts while training with the mysterious masked Six-Eared Macaque (who turns out to be someone else in disguise). He soon finds himself in the crosshairs of the Dragon King of the East, who plans to use a powerful gem to finish the reborn Nezha once and for all.
The best thing about this film is its rich animation. Although it isn’t as smooth as more mainstream Western animation, instead resembling stop motion in certain parts, it is stylish and well-realized.
The city of Donghai has a distinct aesthetic. The characters, however, border on the uncanny valley when compared to the more cartoonish designs seen in Disney and Dreamworks animated features. The action scenes are suitably epic, with characters transforming into or manifesting their legendary/godly counterparts in ways that remind you of the likes of Naruto. Some of the fantastical elements are breath-taking, such as the villain’s lair which can transform into an underwater environment complete with a mechanical shark and lamps which turn into jellyfish.
The film also has a surprisingly robust emotional core. Yunxiang’s relationships with his family and his friend, Kasha (who has a not-so-subtle crush on him) are important in helping him define who he is and finding his purpose, although the romance subplot with doctor Su is cliché.
Unfortunately, the story is noticeably weak. Characters and setups are introduced and then dispatched unceremoniously. The film also assumes you already know Nezha’s story and mostly addresses how it modifies the original story without telling us what that story is.
Still, New Gods: Nezha Reborn is a step in the right direction. Chinese epic films rarely mess up the fantastical elements and visuals, and this is no different. The english dub is competent, although it makes an interesting choice to keep the songs in Mandarin. There’s a teaser for a sequel at the end. Let’s hope we can get better character development in future installments, along with consistently excellent visuals and great action scenes.