The Chinese New Year is just around the corner, starting Feb. 1, 2022, and ushering in the Year of the Tiger. This celebration, also known as the Lunar New Year in other Asian countries, is enjoyed over a space of two weeks for a chance to be home with family until the Lantern Festival concludes events and signals it's time to return to work and reap what the year brings. These six movies from Chinese studios send some cheer and culture straight from the source, from light-hearted fairytales to animations of China's oldest and greatest heroes.
Nezha
Variations of the exploits of the warrior Nezha are common in Chinese households and he appears in both text-based and oral traditions dating back hundreds of years. The usual elements of Nezha's story are his 'Wind-Fire Wheels' for transportation, his flaming spear, a weaponized sash, and a distinctive hairstyle. In 2019, Beijing Enlight Pictures released the animation Nezha, which tells the story from yet another perspective. In this version of the tale, a Chaos Pearl comes into being and a heavenly official divides it into a spirit pearl and demon orb. The spirit pearl is meant to be given to the wife of warrior Li Jing, to be reincarnated through her child, but through trickery, she ends up with the demon orb instead, which births the demonic child Nezha. The spirit orb ends up in the hands of the undersea dragons, who bless one of their eggs to hatch into Nezha's classic enemy Ao Bing. The two grow up unaware of each other as Nezha's parents and teacher all desperately try to keep him out of trouble in defiance of his demonic nature and free of the cruel fate he is bound to.
Nezha can be streamed on Netflix.
Jiang Ziya: Legend of Deification
Jiang Ziya is the next installment in Beijing Enlight Pictures' classic Chinese tales. The story of Jiang Ziya is more serious than that of Nezha, the protagonist more world-weary, with reason to be. The film begins with what made Jiang Ziya a hero, and then quickly usurped that position. In a terrible war, the Fox Clan attempted to take control of the human realm, but Jiang Ziya managed to defeat and capture the Nine-Tailed Fox and brought her to the Heavens for execution, which should have made him a god as a reward. However, just as she was about to die, Jiang Ziya saw a glimpse of a girl that Nine-Tails is possessing and prevents the killing blow. He is banished for allowing Nine-Tails to escape. The movie's true plot picks up ten years later when Jiang Ziya, living at the furthest edge of society, has a chance encounter with a young fox girl who is determined to find her father despite holding barely any memories. His initial distrust of a fox and insistence on accompanying her turns into much more than playing babysitter as forces that have been dormant for a decade begin to wake.
Jiang Ziya can be streamed for free on Tube, Vudu, or streamed on Amazon Prime.
White Snake
The legend of the White Snake is considered by many to be one of China's Four Great Folktales. Though once a much more black and white story of evil demons and heroic humans, the story transformed into a romance over the centuries, with a White Snake Demon falling deeply in love with a human man. There are many different variations to the story, but in the film White Snake, the tale begins with demon snake sisters Blanca and the Green Snake Verta, on the verge of separating so Blanca can go on an assassination mission. Plans go awry and she loses her memory and is fished from the water by Xuan, who lives in a village whose purpose is to catch snakes for the very general she was meant to assassinate. Xuan and Blanca set about attempting to restore her memories, but the general is on the move and Verta is determined to rescue her sister, all while the boundaries meant to keep demons and humans from ever bonding are crumbling apart between Xuan and Blanca.
White Snake can be rented on YouTube, Vudu, and other streaming services.
Green Snake
Green Snake, also known as White Snake 2: The Tribulation of the Green Snake, is the companion movie to Blanca's tale, this time focusing on her sister Verta when the sisters are once again separated. Blanca has given birth, and the sisters attack the abode of the monk Bahai in order to retrieve the father. However, Blanca is captured and imprisoned in the pavilion, and Verta is sent to the city of purgatory--Asuraville. Here, Verta is stripped of her demon powers and struggles to survive in this land that is more Mad Max than the lush landscapes of White Snake. She is forced to interact with a number of uneasy allies, such as fox demons and men who won't reveal their faces. However, Verta is determined to escape Asuraville and go rescue her sister, so she'll have to accept any help she can get if she wants to stand a chance.
Green Snake can be streamed on Netflix.
Little Door Gods
Little Door Gods localized to The Guardian Brothers focused on the integration of old gods and the modern way of life, with gods who used to work together with humanity now suffering, being forgotten, and going on strike because of the way mankind is forgetting the old ways. When Raindrop's grandmother dies and leaves behind her recipe with a request to save her soup shop, Raindrop and her mother send a prayer to the Heavens, where it gets spotted by the godly brothers Shen Tu and Yu Lei. Yu Lei is ecstatic at the idea of going to help a human once more, but his brother cautions him, and it's soon announced that all gateways to the human realm will be sealed. This sets off an adventure with the brothers, Raindrop, and various other gods that will threaten the spirit world's existence if a balance is not found.
Little Door Gods can be streamed on Netflix.
The Legend of Hei
In a movie that manages to maintain Ghibli-Esque charm despite upping the action by quite a significant amount, The Legend of Hei is the story of a little cat spirit trying to make his way in the modern human world. Hei has no guardian or permanent home, so when he meets the spirit Stormend, he's quick to settle in, along with fellow spirits Void, Bamboo, and Brush Tiger, all of whom are looking for a place to live where they don't have to accept the spread of humanity. However, the day after Hei is invited to stay, a human enforcer from the Spirit Guild arrives. Hei is captured by the enforcer, Infinity, who is determined to bring him to the guild. Whether they can make it there at all will depend on whether Hei can bring himself to trust a human and whether he can come into the powers he possesses to use them for the right purpose.
The Legend of Hei can be streamed for free on the Roku Channel.
From adaptations of ancient tales to modern stories of the gods, these movies are the perfect way to get into the spirit of the Chinese New Year and usher in the prosperity of the Year of the Tiger, perhaps while also learning something of China's vast and vibrant mythology. Happy Chinese New Year to all who celebrate.
