I felt compelled to write this review to pick up on a couple of the negative reviews I've been reading (which are probably bots and I should therefore know better). Nothing wrong with not enjoying a film of course, but some of the criticism is seeping into xenophobia, and warped nationalism which is frankly embarrassing to read. Your opinion on China has about as much relevance to this film as American imperialism has to Toy Story. It's a fantasy, fictional, children's film. Get a grip.
Anyway, on a more positive note, a big thank you to Netflix for buying up the rights to this (and hopefully buying many more to come because I can't get enough of 'em). You really can't beat a good animation, and China is building a reputation for crafting some of the very best of them right now.
As you're probably already aware this is not related to the equally stunning 2019 Ne Zha film. I was initially disappointed at this, only because I've been looking forward to getting a sequel to that masterpiece for some time, but now I have two sequels to look forward to so no complaints from me.
This one is set thousands of years after the events of that film (and things play out a little differently to how they do in the 2019 one - another way they distance themselves from each other I guess) in a kind of East Asian Cyberpunk setting, where money and water are crucial commodities. The story is way more straightforward in this one, with events centred around a reincarnation of Ne Zha and his centuries old feud with the Dragon Clan. There are some nice surprises thrown in, some decent fight scenes and set pieces, and some sad bits which personally I don't see the big deal with (does no one remember in the old Disney films what happens in Bambi, Lion King, Snow White etc.? When did death become so unapproachable in "children's" films eh?), but the star of the show has to be the animation.
The plethora of inventive characters and environments, and little touches (which I won't spoil because you should just watch the film and stop reading this really) is just staggering. My only nit-pick is that the film moves at such a break-neck speed at times, particularly at the beginning with lots of fast cuts and moving cameras that the sheer level of detail and artistry is lost because you're just trying to keep up with what's happening. 2019's Ne Zha was just as visually lavish, but its camera worked in harmony with its visuals, giving you more time to see what was going on, whilst complimenting and enhancing the fight sequences by following the action with more fluidity.
There's way more action in this variant too, but the choreography and the way its shot could've been better. Don't let that put you off though, as the fight and chase sequences are still perfectly entertaining and the monsters are all animated beautifully!
Anyway, to rap up, just the sheer weight of characters, and designs and spectacle on show is dazzling and easily outweighs my slight bugbear with the occasionally frantic camera work. Yes 2019's Ne Zha is probably the better film, but if you enjoyed that one, you should still get plenty of pleasure from this incarnation.
It's a visual feast of the eyes worth gorging on.
Other recommendations for Chinese animation, try 2015's, "Monkey King: Hero is Back", 2016's "Big Fish and Begonia", and Stephen Chow's 2013, "Journey to the West", is good fun too. The studio that did Ne Zha Reborn also did a film called "White Snake" which I checked out after watching this one and while I definitely enjoyed it, I felt Ne Zha Reborn had more wow moments in it. Those out there looking for top quality animation, obviously go with anything made by Ghibli or Laika. Barring "Early Man", Aardman is all good. The studio behind "Song of the Sea" and "The Breadwinner" are pretty good too. If you want a particularly dark children's film try "Ana Y Bruno".
Everyone should watch "A Town Called Panic".
