Ne Zha 2 No matter how to be the most lucrative animated film in the history of cinema and praise the world box office this year, you probably never heard of it, unless you live in China. But that could soon change.
Because this Chinese megasuccus comes out in English version on Friday in American theaters, with dubbing including the voice of the Michelle Yeoh star.
All this at the initiative of the A24 studio, dick of independent cinema which has produced in particular Everything Everywhere All At Oncethe film which earned an Oscar to the Malaysian actress.
The company thus hopes to sharpen the interest of the American public for this fantastic tale, which draws from Chinese mythology to make Dragons, Demons and Immortals compete in spectacular fights worthy of a Marvel film.
This image published by A24 shows the character ne zha in a scene from the film “Ne Zha 2”.
Photo : Associated Press
Ne Zha 2 East very important as a cultural exchange
said Michelle Yeoh during the recent film screening in Los Angeles.
This opens the way to more Chinese stories that deserve to be told
she said to the magazine Peopleby remembering having wanted the cartoon to be doubled in English to reach American children, when she saw it in Chinese.
2.2 billion in revenue
The film follows Ne Zha, a young Chinese boy with formidable magic powers, in his quest to save his best friend after his hometown was attacked by dragons.
History has absolutely carded in China, which has greatly contributed to propeling the feature film at the top of the world box office, with $ 2.2 billion in revenue.
A figurine representing a character from the successful Chinese animated film “Ne Zha 2” in Beijing.
Photo : Associated Press / Andy Wong
Ne Zha 2 thus became a real patriotic pride in China, because it is silent the Hollywood superproduction Avatar : the waterway From James Cameron, the only other film to have exceeded 2 billion in receipts from the pandemic.
This is probably the most commented unusual film of the year. With 2.2 billion dollars, he entered the Pantheon.
China still tastes this success that the impressive special effects of the film, made by 4000 animators, show that the country is now able to compete with Hollywood.
However, the subtitled version of Ne Zha 2 failed to ignite the foreign box office. The cartoon performed honorable performances in the United States, with $ 20 million in revenue, the United Kingdom or Australia, but not spectacular.
Asian culture
The film is based on the Chinese novel of the 16th century The inauguration of the godswhich is largely inspired by the folklore and the mythology of the Empire in the middle.
It stages a sometimes confusing gallery of heroes and bad guys capable of changing shape, unknown to spectators not familiar with traditional Chinese tales or those who have not seen the first Ne Zhareleased in 2019.
This image published by A24 shows the characters Lady Yin, on the left, and Zha in a scene from the film “Ne Zha 2”.
Photo : Associated Press
A24 hopes that English dubbing, which transmit the irreverent humor of the film in a style recalling the films of Hollywood superheroes, will be able to help fill the cultural gap.
The initiative is part of a time when Asian culture is on the rise.
Last weekend, the American box office had in its top 12 two Indian films, Coolie et War 2and a Japanese film, Shin Godzilla 4K.
On continuous broadcasting platforms, the summer success of Korean inspiration KPop Demon Hunters is about to become the most watched original film in Netflix, and the first season of Squid Game There remains the most watched television series of all time.
There has clearly been a globalization of content, in the sense that people around the world appreciate the films of different countries
concludes Mr. Dergarabedian.
