2025 Summer Movie Season - Ne Zha II: Review & Analysis

Coming In Hot!!!!! Overseas Phenomenon Brings Action-Packed Thrills and Epic Scale!!!!

Review By BJ Porter

A new hero has arrived

The Story

Destiny and fate are at times intertwined. Much like the motion of a flowing stream. Many answer the call of destiny, but others take a while to hear its voice. In a village in ancient mainland China, a rambunctious and spirited young boy aims to make his mark on the world. Though he may seem like a typical child born to mortal parents, over time, he is showing he is anything but, given that he can harness powerful magical abilities. Danger arises when ancient beings discover his existence and threaten to lay waste to the world due to his existence, now put in the position of being the world‘s last line of defense against forces well beyond his understanding, this young demigod boy must harness the powers he is yet to master become the hero he was always destined to be. 

Ne Zha competes in trials to prove himself 

The Review

One of the most talked-about animated films of the year makes its Western debut in the English-dubbed version of Ne Zha II. The global phenomenon that has taken the cinematic world by storm now opens to an all-new set of eyes looking to expand its captivating reach to others across the globe. After seeing this large-scale animated epic in its full capacity, Ne Zha II is a ton of flash with plenty of substance. Overseas films rarely get this much hype or buzz on the west side of the world. The ones that do clearly have something special about them that transcends their borders of origin. Ne Zha II is packed with so much large-scale flair that it can be looked at as overstimulating to some. But that is actually its greatest strength. The brand of storytelling is vastly different in China than it is here in the US. But the one thing that doesn't get compromised is the quality of animation or the quality of telling its story. While the film was presented in its native language early in the year, this screening featured an all-English voice cast. I myself never saw the film in its native language, so this review's performance portion is going to be based on the English vocal performances, and they were strong throughout the film. Our lead Ne Zha, voiced by Crystal Lee, truly brings such personality to the character vocally to complement the animation on screen. Ne Zha's snark and crass humor make him comedically entertaining, and Lee's performance during the emotionally vulnerable moments brings out the character's depth rather well. Aside from Ne Zha, one of the real standouts in the film is Ao Bing, played by Aleks Le. Ao Bing brings such warmth to the film and is a perfect complement to Ne Zha's opposite personality. Le adds such life to the character and made Ao Bing one of my favorites throughout the movie's runtime. The other members of the cast, including Michelle Yeoh, William Utay, Vincent Rodriguez III, Damian Hass, and Rick Zeiff do great in their respective roles with Yeoh bringing her incredible heart, soul, and passion to the role of Li Jing, and Utay being such an effective antagonistic presence masked by the kind old man persona. Vocally, the english cast did a great job with what they were given, but there were some issues that held it back.

Big impact in a small package

Animated projects brought from overseas and given an English dub are not new. The west is accustomed to this practice thanks to the exposure of Japanese anime. Syncing dubbed versions of foreign films can be difficult, yes, but for a film as epic and hyped up as this was, the result, I believe, should have been more streamlined and harder to notice. There were times when the voice of the actor and the lip synch didn't match and it took me out of the film at times. As I mentioned, the voice performances were great, but this made things pretty distracting in key moments far too often. This is in no way a deal breaker, but it did affect my viewing experience quite a bit. All that said, the thing I loved about Ne Zha 2 was the all-out large-scale effort put into the set pieces. The action sequences were fast-paced, frenetic and over the top in the way they should be for a production like this. The fluidness of the animation mixed with some stellar cinematic framing and fight choreography, made each sequence better than the last. I looked forward to every battle, for I knew this was where the movie was going to shine the brightest. But while the movie is full of some of the best animated action seen this year, there's a ton of heart also ingrained. The story is full of moments that are genuine and add substance to the narrative. The work of the voice cast brings it to fruition, so credit should be given the A24 for their efforts to maintain the quality of the heartfelt moments presented in this dubbed version. For a film of this scale, its so easy for the message and the meaning to get lost in the midst of all of the chaos unfolding. However, when you got the right storytellers behind the wheel, the anxiety of losing gradually fades. All in all, Ne Zha II is an impressive cinematic experience that offers tons of adrenaline-filled action and gorgeous imagery throughout. Its impact on its country of origin is apparent, and I, for one found it to be an entertaining ride despite going into it knowing very little.  For a movie that has made this much noise and not be from the states, I think it says a lot that high-quality storytelling truly needs no translation.

Final Score Rating

A large-scale epic that is full top top-notch animation and spectacular action, one of the biggest animated 
films of all time show that greatness within this genre can come from anywhere.

Hardheaded but effective