NE ZHA 2 - Mark Reviews Movies

Ne Zha 2, CMC / A24

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Review by Mark Dujsik | August 22, 2025

Ne Zha 2 continues the story of the 2019 computer-animated original and expands that film's scope, as well as its visual spectacle, in impressive ways. The first film was an oddball coming-of-age story, based on Chinese myth but feeling quite modern with the presence of its eponymous hero.

He may be a demon and have fire-based superpowers, but the pint-sized protagonist looked a lot—and still does in the sequel—like a child version of a rebellious teen going through a goth or emo phase. Since pockets weren't an option for his ancient-era wardrobe, the kid has a habit of shoving his hands down the sides of pants to make a point of how bored he is with everything and everyone.

Little details like that make Nezha (voice of Crystal Lee) far more recognizable and endearing than the character has any right to be. He is, after all, the personification of the legendary Demon Orb, born to human parents, General Li (voice of Vincent Rodriguez III) and Lady Yin (voice of Michelle Yeoh), after his mother spent three years pregnant. The sequel, which immediately became a massive box-office hit in its native China before an international release (The version in its original language had a very limited release earlier this year, while also being kept from a majority of critics, so a new dubbed version will have to do), briefly recounts the events of the first film. It misses a lot of what made it unique.

This one is different, however, because Nezha has undergone some significant changes—most notably losing his corporeal body and now existing as a spirit following a climactic battle to save his home. He also has embraced the idea that he is a demon but that his nature doesn't have to define the entirety of his character. Thankfully, the kid hasn't softened, though. Just because one wants to be good doesn't necessarily mean putting an end to a little mischief now and again, after all.

The plot of the sequel once again features a supernatural conflict that could affect Nezha's home. This time, the threat is much bigger, since it involves dragons and more varieties of demons, and the world of the film sets out to match that conflict. There are wondrous sights to behold here, from a great kingdom in the clouds, past a grand gate at the zenith of a mountain range where pilgrims line up for a chance at immortality, to the ruins of great city, now submerged under the sea and revealed when a deity parts the waters.

Everything about writer/director Jiao Zi's sequel is bigger. While that means the film loses a bit of the offbeat charm and a lot of the humor of its predecessor, the follow-up compensates for that with its ambition and, of course, by letting its protagonist stay true to himself.

In addition to almost certainly being incomprehensible to those who haven't seen the first film, the plot is also more complicated this time around. Nezha and his cosmic counterpart/friend Ao Bing (voice of Aleks Le), the embodiment of the Spirit Pearl, are disembodied souls at the start. Nezha's mentor, the immortal Taiyi (voice of Rick Zieff), can form new bodies for the pair using a magical lotus flower, but before Ao Bing's new physical vessel can fully form, his father Shen Gongbao (voice of Daniel Riordan) orders an attack on the city to avenge what he believes to be his son's death. Defending everyone, Ao Bing's body fails, forcing Taiyi to put his spirit into Nezha's body, too.

This sets up the main quest, for Nezha to obtain a mystical elixir that can resurrect the dead lotus flower, and a good running gag, since Ao Bing is a skilled fighter while Nezha is only powerful when he employs his demonic energy. He can't under these circumstances, because the elixir can only be obtained by winning the favor of the deity Wuliang (voice of William Utay), whose demon hunters will notice if Nezha uses his powers.

The plot itself amounts to a series of trials that Nezha, as well as the hidden Ao Bing, most accomplish, and those are mostly excuses for a string of imaginative action sequences. One sets the pair against a clan of groundhogs, whose giant leader has the misfortune of taking on Nezha's body when the skilled Ao Bing is in control of it. Another has the singular pair balancing on, leaping across, and flinging themselves from bamboo poles arranged in the pool of a waterfall. Eventually, it becomes a battle of dueling magic.

As dynamic as these sequences are, they are barely appetizers for what the filmmakers have in store for the second half of the film. While the tone shifts drastically following a massacre with an aftermath that is genuinely haunting to witness, the more noteworthy aspect of this section of the film is the sheer immensity of its scale. There are swarms of demons, an army of warriors who dash in streaks of gold, dragons, and a titanic cauldron that can envelop the entirety of a city. When the opposing sides clash here, they do so in massive, swirling formations that move like waves, colliding in midair and in eruptions of blood.

If the original was a coming-of-age tale, Ne Zha 2 becomes a maturation of both the main character and whatever overarching story Zi has in mind (There will, of course, be another sequel, as the ending and a lengthy mid-credits scene make clear). In the meantime, this is a worthwhile and occasionally astonishing follow-up.

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