The other big Chinese animated film of the year, 浪浪山小妖怪, or Nobody, just came out on streaming and you can watch it on Youtube now. (For those wondering why they couldn't have just gone with Little Monsters of Lang Lang Mountain instead of Nobody, it becomes crystal clear once you actually watch the movie)
I highly recommend it to everyone. While Nezha is the bigger blockbuster obviously, I think Nobody has a much tighter script, is less melodramatic, and has well developed characters that don't rely as much on background knowledge of Chinese mythology.
Lots of modern day Chinese youths are relating big to the movie as well. Without spoiling anything, just the general feeling of malaise, not being able to accomplish big things and forever being "nobodies" chained to a job they don't like while failure hits like a ton a bricks. Meanwhile those with money and especially 关系 have a safety net where they can always get back on their feet easily no matter how they fail. But still having that bit of hope where they can do something that'll have a positive impact, no matter how small. Tbh, I think its a feeling everybody in our world of late stage capitalism can relate to.
If it wasn't for the difficulty of marketing Chinese myths to a global audience, I think this movie would blow up internationally because as I said, it doesn't require as much knowledge of Chinese myth as Nezha to enjoy.
