‘Moral kidnapping’: Is skipping Ne Zha 2 unpatriotic? Heated debate follows Chinese animation’s box office success

SINGAPORE: In traditional Chinese folklore, he has been portrayed as a mischievous child deity, a tragic hero who would sacrifice himself to save his family and country. 

Now he has been reimagined in a new animated retelling - a modern punk protagonist and patron saint for misfits in society, a trope that has strongly resonated with new generations of young Chinese moviegoers. 

“There might be a similarity between Nezha and me. We both care about how other people see us,” said Yang Chenxi, a 17-year-old student from the city of Huzhou who has watched Ne Zha 2 five times already. 

This new animated version was “different from the typical storyline” of a historic Chinese figure, Yang told the China Daily newspaper. 

Online, many have gushed about the character’s quirks and traits: a fiery temper with a stubborn personality, who also possesses sensitivity deep down and shows “filial piety and kindness”. 

“I hope I can also become like Ne Zha, the kind of person who is capable and strong … and dares to stand up for himself,” said Qi Zai, a user on the popular Chinese social media app Xiaohongshu.

“The different iterations of Ne Zha have watched me grow up,” said another Xiaohongshu user named Kaycee. “I hope that I will be able to ‘meet’ Ne Zha again in the next milestone in my life.” 

The character’s animated transformation is “in line with spiritual aspirations of today’s youths and their determination to fight against labels”, said research fellow Sui Chuan at China’s Xiamen University of Technology. 

“This kind of modification breaks the character's "sacredness" myth, enabling it to resonate with the audience,” she told China Daily.  

On other Chinese social media platforms like the microblogging site Sina Weibo, excited fans continue to generate discussion about the film, hoping its success in China can be replicated globally.

There is also no shortage of Ne Zha praise in Chinese media, with glowing reviews of the film’s success and championing of Chinese patriotism and culture. 

But in this fandom, there is no place for haters. 

A viral post by a Xiaohongshu user named NiCheng, who shared his views of not liking the movie, sparked a particularly heated debate about patriotism, drawing thousands of comments. 

It prompted discussion on whether support for the film, or the lack of, equated to “loving one’s country”.  

“Not supporting Ne Zha 2” does not necessarily mean one is unpatriotic, NiCheng wrote.  

Another user agreed with NiCheng. “Stop forcing me to watch it - don't use this as a moral kidnapping and claim I'm unpatriotic,” he said. “If I don't love my country, then I guess the donations I made for social causes (in China) are all wasted." 

“You really can't say anything bad about Ne Zha 2 (online),” said another user with the handle MiU, adding that negative sentiments or comments would set off fierce online mobs, as she had experienced. 

“I paid money to watch the film and shared neutral thoughts on social media - I ended up getting scolded by a bunch of people,” she said. 

Some overzealous fans have even gone to great lengths to keep score of ticket sales across Chinese cities.

Shanghai in particular, was singled out by disgruntled fans who chastised the film’s overall second place performance in the city, making 277 million yuan (US$38,185,830) as of Feb 12, and losing out to Marvel’s Avengers 4, which has taken in almost 300 million yuan in ticket sales. 

Shanghai audiences are “worshipping foreign countries”, one critical fan said. 

Writing in Jiefang Daily, a newspaper in Shanghai, writer Jian Gongbo said it was “blind arrogance” and “narrow nationalist sentiment” on the part of toxic fandoms. 

Another writer, whose article was shared on the Chinese online news site 163.com, said the film’s box office success should not be seen as a “litmus test” for patriotism in China.  

“An absurd (form) of logic has quietly taken place,” he said. “(In which) box office sales are the word of law, and watching a movie means you are patriotic.”