Young deity morphs into box-office champion

Following its release in Oceania and North American markets on Thursday and Friday, this visually stunning film, representing the pinnacle of Chinese animation, aims to captivate more foreign audiences in around 40 countries and regions. With future markets stretching across Asia, Europe and Africa, the list includes Japan, Greece, South Africa, Egypt and Thailand.

The movie's titular character, loosely inspired by the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) novel Fengshen Yanyi (Investiture of the Gods), undergoes a significant subversion in its retelling in the 1979 film Nezha Conquers the Dragon King produced by the Shanghai Animation Film Studio, the Chinese equivalent to Disney during the early years of domestic animation.

Beginning with a boldly imaginative scene, Nezha, the youngest son of General Li Jing, and his friend Ao Bing, the beloved son of the East Sea's Dragon King, whose souls share one body after nearly dying in the first film, embark on a new adventure. To win a treasure that would allow Ao to separate from their shared body and regain his own, they must pass a three-round exam set by the highest deities. However, the situation grows increasingly complex, leading them to uncover a thrilling scheme that challenges the notions of good and evil.

Director Yang revealed in earlier interviews that the 1979 film had a profound impact on him, making him want to re-imagine its iconic plotlines, with two particularly challenging scenes being an epic battle in a tumultuous sea and a poignant moment portraying Nezha's near-death experience.

The oceanic scene showcases a massive tripod cauldron, with a diameter of 3 kilometers, submerging into the sea as a magical weapon controlled by the film's top antagonist Wuliang Xianweng, a deceitful deity. It demanded a substantial amount of work to vividly depict the swirling vortex that enveloped it, explains Liu Pan, the film's executive producer.

The tragic moment depicts Nezha struggling to break free from a spell that threatens to dismember him, binding him with countless threadlike needles. The scene features over 600 pieces of his muscles breaking apart mid-air, before reassembling thanks to his supernatural abilities. Liu reveals that the inspiration for this visual effect was drawn from the imagery of shattered glass from huge windows.