(may contain spoilers)
Douban rating: 8.4
Director: Jiaozi (Yang Yu)
Douban Comments: “The quality of Jiaozi’s work is rock solid. This film is a full upgrade from the first one; the yin-yang aesthetics are pushed to the extreme, with water and fire, red and blue, good and evil clashing and blending again and again, creating a powerful and majestic impact. The transformations and weapon use are even more exciting, satisfying, and imaginative this time. Emotionally, it still mixes both laughter and tears.
At its core, it’s not just about rebelling against unfair fate. The struggle is no longer only Ne Zha’s; many ordinary people, trapped by rigid rules with no way out, also take part. When the individual becomes a group, the story shifts from one person’s fate to a reflection on the fate of an era. This thematic depth gives the film lasting resonance. Definitely worth watching again.”
“What does ‘rebelling against patriarchy’ mean? In the 1979 Ne Zha, it was shown directly as ‘defying the father’s teachings’, which was a straightforward rejection of patriarchal authority. In the 2019 Ne Zha, Ne Zha was reborn into a family with parents who truly loved him. Here, rebelling against patriarchy became rebelling against fate: rejecting labels, insisting that ‘my life is in my own hands’.
If the first film’s rebellion was about openly resisting paternal authority and destiny’s control, the second film in 2025 takes a very different path. Ne Zha no longer rebels just for the sake of rebellion, because that, too, can turn into another kind of prison. Instead, after seeing through all the rules, he steps outside them entirely, leaving no room for compromise or reconciliation.
We’ve all been handed a so-called ‘green light’ by some authority figure before. But once you strip away the illusions, you may realize that red lights and green lights aren’t what really matter. What matters is walking your own path, and if that makes you a demon, so what?”
“Traditional Chinese myths need to be passed on through innovation, and the Ne Zha series is a great example of this. Ne Zha has always been one of my favorite mythological figures. He’s very similar to Sun Wukong; both characters keep being retold and adapted into films and games across generations precisely because they embody a rebellious spirit: breaking stereotypes and defying rigid rules.
I really love the line in the movie, ‘So what if I’m a demon?’ It continues the core of the IP: refusing to accept fate. Ne Zha is determined to fight heaven, earth, and destiny to the very end. When what you have is stripped away, the only choice is to rise up and resist. His attitude of ‘I don’t care if I survive or not’ carries a tragic heroism, better to shatter like jade than survive as clay.”
“A movie with top-tier art and effects but no solid writing to support it. The dialogue feels unnatural, the jokes are either crude or out of place, and the plot doesn’t flow well, leaving everything disjointed. At its core, it’s even more outdated and shallow, stuck on ‘dutiful sons and loving fathers’ and grand collectivist themes. It can’t compare with the original Ne Zha’s rebellious, anti-patriarchal spirit. What’s called ‘rebellion against power and class’ here is just a blunt, oversimplified good-versus-evil setup, with some identity conflict thrown on top, only to fold it back into collectivism again.
The shallowest and almost laughable part is the constant talk about ‘defying fate’. But that ‘rebellion’ is nothing more than shouting loudly, leaning on innate superpowers, and being driven mainly by anger. The characters are flat, and in the end it all boils down to the same old hot-blooded youth cliché. Lines like ‘If heaven and earth reject me, I’ll overturn heaven and earth. If there’s no road, I’ll carve one myself’ were so corny they stuck in my head.
And then there are the cheap political metaphors. If people refuse to look beyond their borders, they’ll really believe this kind of movie is the peak of cinema.”
”Absolutely explosive. The wait all these years was worth it! More than a dark fairy tale full of twists and turns, this feels like a political allegory about resisting the system. The story continues the theme of ‘my fate is mine to decide, not heaven’s’ and takes it even further. God or demon, good or evil, they’re all intertwined in chaos, and siding with so-called power only makes you a stepping stone for others. Since the rules are already written, the only way forward is to sweep away the obstacles and create new rules where ‘I’ call the shots.
The battle scenes are pulse-pounding, the visuals and special effects are clearly on another level, the humor lands often, and the energy is nonstop. When Ao Guang appeared, the whole theater went ‘whoa’. And that final transformation followed by the two characters fighting side by side was breathtaking. The imagination and emotional weight hit the peak. Solid four and a half stars, rock steady.“
