Ne Zha 2 – Review

Release Date – 21st March 2025, Cert – 12, Run-time – 2 hours 24 minutes, Director – Yu Yang

In order to get their respective bodies back for good, Ne Zha (Yanting Lü) and Ao Bing (Mo Han) must inhabit the same body in order to complete deadly tasks to obtain a life-bringing elixir, however past battles may be incomplete and catching up.

Ne Zha 2 currently sits as the fifth biggest film of all time, the biggest animated film of all time and boasting multiple opening weekend records, including topping China’s chart. Yet, outside of its home country the release of the film, up until its various records and box office receipts, may be a quieter affair – although in recent weeks it’s also done well in the US. However, success has perhaps meant a bigger push for the film, including time on IMAX screens – where it’s surely to be best experienced.

In the climactic stages of the extensive third act there are some truly spectacular visuals. Waves of gold and black armies fly through the sky, colliding in a swirling paint-like mixture as they collide in battle. It may be part of a drawn out set of events which increase the run-time of the film, while staying afloat and keeping up engagement there’s still the feeling that this sequel is about 20 minutes too long. It’s a much more serious exchange, on a grander scale, to the fights and battles we see in the build-up – which tend to have a lighter tone with more humour mixed in – but never feels like it’s from a different film altogether.

The fights beforehand are largely centred around tests that feisty protagonist Ne Zha (Yanting Lü) is put through in order to obtain an elixir which will restore both his spirit to his body, and the same for friend Ao Bing (Mo Han) who inhabits the same body after an attack on Ne Zha’s home city means that the restoration doesn’t go as planned. While this is the general gist of the film’s opening stages so much happens in the first half hour that it could be easy to become lost in all the set-up. Multiple strands and villains are introduced after a short prologue recapping the first film, and much of it seems to happen all at once against the backdrop of a battle causing fiery havoc throughout the city.

Yet, from here things somewhat calm down narratively as the various tests begin to unfold. Ne Zha is a wonderfully entertaining character brimming with energy who carries much of the emotional journey of the film, and indeed its tonal shifts. These are handled effectively as they both add to and stem from his character. From successful fart and toilet gags – there’s only really one of each but they both raised a good laugh from me – to enraged jumps to seek revenge the way the film is told through him is somewhat quiet but knowingly done; and indeed increases the overall effect.

As things develop humour is still present and helps to bring a lighter sense to certain events, while still being balanced with the seriousness of certain instances and the drama at hand within the central character’s life, and that of his friend’s. Forced from their past, largely the previous film, are still active and threatening to catch up at any turn while they could themselves be walking into something much more sinister on the way to the elixir. It’s not a force that quite hangs over the events of the film but is more built-up to through the side-plots and actions of the villains throughout the film, all eventually coming together rather effectively for the climactic clash.

During this battle there’s a brief moment where a shot switches to a different animation style, just for a handful of frames, before going back to the one used throughout most of the film. It’s an amazing visual moment, pushing me back in my seat uttering a quiet “wow.” The tonal shifts in Ne Zha 2 are handled just as fluidly and with a good deal of impact, too. This is a visually and narratively richer film than the first entry, which while likable falters under familiarity, and an overall more entertaining experience with a good deal of spectacle held in the animation. Yes, it might feel overlong, but it still manages to fill that time with a good deal to keep you engaged and at times thrilled. Much stemming from the titular character who is a fiery bubble of enraged and playful energy.

While it might be overlong there’s plenty of strength to the visuals and tonal shifts within Ne Zha 2, with a good balance of action, drama and humour there’s a lot to like about a film that, much like its title character, hits hard and often knocks it out of the park.