Within three days of this movie’s release, the box office reached 1 billion Chinese Yuan, about $137 million USD. The numbers soared to a current gross of more than $2.1 billion globally. It soon became the highest-grossing animated film and the fifth-highest-grossing film of all time. The movie’s great commercial success was not the only thing that was impressive about this movie. After releasing globally, this movie generally received positive reviews from critics, with 96% of critics giving a positive review on Rotten Tomatoes. The name of this movie is Ne Zha 2 (哪吒2), a Chinese animated film, released in 2025.

Ne Zha 2 is the sequel to Ne Zha, released in 2019. Ne Zha was also well-received by its audiences. Ne Zha, one of the protagonists, is the reincarnation of the Demon Orb, causing him to have destructive powers while Ao Bing, the other protagonist, is the reincarnation of the Spirit Pearl. Both the Demon Orb and Spirit Pearl are parts of the Chaos Pearl. Originally, the Spirit Pearl was supposed to be given to Ne Zha, but it was stolen by Shen Gong Bao and given to the dragon king. Ne Zha was fated to only live three years, so his parents tried making the rest of his life happy, going as far as to lie to Ne Zha that he was the reincarnation of the Spirit Pearl. On Ne Zha’s third birthday, Ao Bing was discovered to be the Spirit Pearl. Ne Zha felt betrayed by his friend and parents, but ultimately spared Ao Bing’s life. When Ne Zha meets his fate, Ao Bing joins him and together unleashes the Chaos Orb. The first movie ends with Ne Zha and Ao Bing losing their mortal bodies, but their spirits surviving.

In Ne Zha 2, Ne Zha and Ao Bing are in the process of recovering their mortal bodies. Ao Guang, Ao Bing’s father and the dragon king, thought that Ao Bing was dead, causing him to destroy Chentang Pass, Ne Zha’s home. In the process, Ao Bing’s mortal body was destroyed. In order to recover Ao Bing’s body, Ne Zha’s master Taiyi Zhenren needed a potion that could restore the Sacred Lotus that created their body. This potion could only be obtained if a disciple gained immortality. Ne Zha and Ao Bing worked together to obtain this potion, sharing Ne Zha’s mortal body to mask his demonic nature.

Ne Zha had to face three trials to obtain immortality, which were set by Wuliang. These trials were supervised by his two disciples, both who are demons who achieved immortality.

Immediately after the movie began, I was drawn into the beautiful and detailed animation. The action-packed fight scenes were animated with great attention to detail. The director, Yu Yang, also known as Jiaozi, worked with nearly 140 animation companies in the span of 5 years to produce this movie. As a viewer who also watched the first Ne Zha movie, the animation style looks similar, but there were a lot of improvements. The designs of the characters included many Chinese elements. For example, Ao Bing and Ao Guang were based on the Eastern dragon.

But what drew me in the most was the story. The characters were three-dimensional. The pacing was perfect: slow at certain times of reflection and storytelling, but quick during the action-packed scenes, which kept the audience engaged. The plot twists were unexpected. There were lighthearted, humorous moments, but it also had emotional scenes, packed with themes and traditional Chinese values.

One of these traditional values is the relationship between “father and son.” Confucius’ five relationships state that “a father has to be loving towards his son, while his son must respect and honor his father.” This idea of filial piety can be seen through Ao Bing and Ao Guang’s relationship. In Ne Zha, Ao Guang is depicted in his dragon form, whereas his son Ao Bing is respectful and calls him by his title. The relationship between them felt distant, as it is built on honor and respect. Yet, when Ao Guang heard that Ao Bing had died, he risked his life and threatened to burn down Chentang Pass. On the other hand, Ne Zha and his father have a close relationship. His father’s care was more obvious compared to that of Ao Guang’s. Despite the interactions between the two fathers and sons being vastly different, both fathers deeply care for their children, even willing to sacrifice themselves.

Another one of the main themes in the movie is prejudice. This is a continuous theme that was also mentioned in the first movie. Shen Gongbao is a demon who practiced in order to obtain immortality. As a result, he gained human form. Despite also being a disciple of Yuanshi Tianzun, Shen Gongbao could only watch Taiyi Zhenren obtain the Spirit Pearl, originally meant for Ne Zha. As a result, Shen Gongbao believed his status as a demon limited him, causing him to steal the Spirit Pearl.

In the second movie, this theme of prejudice continues. During the three trials, Ne Zha first encounters a group of groundhog bandits who live peacefully together. In the second trial, Ne Zha meets Shen Gongbao’s father, who is teaching young demons how to ascend to xian. In the third trial, Ne Zha meets a stone monster who lives deep in the mountains. Yet, in all three of the trials, none of the demons pose any risks to the protagonists. This poses many questions for the audience. Why are the demons being attacked? What is the true motive of the demon hunters?

The plot twist in the second movie also challenges this idea of prejudice. The characters that the viewers believed to be allies turn out to be enemies. The dark truth behind a few of the characters is unveiled, showing the viewer how appearance does not always directly correlate with the character’s morals. There is a large sense of irony.

The same could be said about the protagonist, Ne Zha. As the reincarnation of the Demon Orb, Nezha was predicted to be evil and faced discrimination from the villagers due to his strange nature. However, through his kindness and determination, Nezha defied expectations and proved himself through his actions.

Another theme in Ne Zha 2 is going against fate. Ne Zha was originally fated to only live for three years because of his destructive nature. However, due to the care and love he received from his parents, the way he perceives the world changes. This shows that the environment plays a large role in changing a person’s character.

Throughout the movie, it can be seen that Ne Zha also actively fights against his fate. No matter how powerful his opponents may be, whether it is heaven or an evil leader, Ne Zha continues to fight, alongside his friend. As a result, Ne Zha actively defies his fate, going against the destiny and perceived notions of the Demon Orb.

The movie also paves a new path for future movies based on Chinese mythology. Even though the two movies both tell the story of the mythological character of Ne Zha, there are many discrepancies with the original story. In the original myth, Ne Zha did not have a good relationship with his parents or Ao Bing. Many concepts, such as the Demon Orb or Spirit Pearl were added in this new edition. The stories in the myth and the movie are vastly different, but they show a new possibility for movies that include Chinese culture.

There were lighthearted, humorous moments, but it also had emotional scenes, packed with themes and traditional Chinese values.