A sad fact about the movie, Audrey Wells wrote the script as a gift to her daughter and husband in order to aid them as she was dying of cancer. She sadly died at the beginning of the movie's production.
I wanted this to be a separate comment, but i whole heartedly believe that the reason why Fei Fei believes in both science and the moon goddess is because of her parents. Her dad is extremely scientific, but her mom believes in mythology and in the beginning we see that her parents cater to that belief system where, yes the moon is far away and science is real but also Chang'e and her story is very much real. After her mom died, i think she held onto the idea of Chang'e even more which just furthered that belief. Basically, its the mixture of her parents beliefs, thats why Fei Fei believes in both science and mythology
Plus, to be a scientist on the forefront of research and discovery you need to believe in things you can't quite prove yet - that's what research is all about. Okay, maybe not Moon Godesses and the such, but she is a child. A child who believes in something and sets out to find proof. Seems pretty scientific to me.
I can't get over that the screenplay writer for this movie, Audrey Wells, wrote it as a love letter to her own daughter and husband as she was battling cancer. This movie was her legacy that she wanted to leave behind. I think she passed away right before they started production.
THAT’S WHY THEY HAD HER NAME THERE!!!! Oh my god!!! That’s so sad and beautiful. I hope her family loves this movie. It’s not prefect but the message is great and told it right.
I WAS ABOUT TO SAY THAT! she wrote the story and I was like "Dude you forgot to talk about her" lol. She passed away when they started to film the movie so it's good to know that she saw some of it.
Her believing the moon goddess story while still believing science is actually her clinging on to one of the last good memories she has of her mother. They established that right in the beginning of the movie. There was even a line in the beginning when her father, interjected with the story and said, "Does anyone want to hear the scientific explanation?" and she said she thought her Mom's explanation was the best. It isn't that she fully believed it, but not believing it means letting go of her mother's memory and she wasn't ready for that. The belief of the myth is a representation of her mother's memories.
OMG yess finally someone understands why she believes in chang'e. Also they did address this in a line after the fight with the aunt she says "she's at the top of her class and still believes in chang'e.
I also think that Fei Fei clings to Chang'e and Houyi because they represent an ideal love, one between two people, even through death, and thats what Fei Fei expects of her dad
I’m glad they acknowledged the fact their are multiple versions of Chang'e’s myth on how exactly she ended up taking the pills and leaving Houyi behind on Earth. I liked they left it kind of ambiguous when we actually meet her. Chang'e did seemed to take offense to the boy saying she took the two pills herself for selfish reasons but never denies it. The only thing we know for sure is this version of Chang'e loves and greaves for Houyi no matter how this ended up happening. Side note, I remember being confused by pop star Chang'e and then like three quarters in I remember mythologically she was a performer (specifically a dancer if I’m remembering it right) before the whole moon thing. I felt like an idiot for forgetting that.
@@AuzzieAnxiety If I remember correctly, the Chinese subtitles say pills, but the English subtitles say potion. This is because in Western culture, the idea of an immortal elixir is more familiar to us. However, historically, the pills are much more accurate and make more sense to a Chinese audience.
The lack of world building may be because to us Chinese, there’s very curious integration of Chinese myth, superstition and folklore in daily life that’s just kinda taken as given, and the film seems specifically targetted at people of Chinese descent. The thing is that Chinese folkloric customs are so ingrained that it’s kinda common to all Chinese populations. Im a Chinese Singaporean, I know about Chang’e, the moon rabbit, and everything. I’ve watched animations and even used text books that used Chang’e as an example. And Singapore’s not purely Chinese, we also have our own myths and traditions that differ a lot from mainlanders (as Chinese here are mixed or already changed, some are Nonya who are mixed of indigenous Malay and Chinese for generations), yet there’s always a set of stories and beliefs that are universal to a lot of Chinese. You could prolly say the same story to Chinese Vietnamese, Taiwanese, Chinese Americans too, they’d know about Chang’e. So the attitude in the film reminds me of how Chinese people treat our folkloric culture - it’s there, always. And we go about life assuming it’s there, and even if it isn’t, it honestly doesn’t really affect our practical daily lives.
yeah it's like a european grandmother who tells the protagonist about fairies or a gothic setting with ghosts that just exist, it's present in other movies
I was gonna say the same. I'm also Chinese (on my mom's side) and I grew up with these legends, so the world-building isn't all that necessary for us who are from the culture. To me, having just watched the movie, it's not about the world Chang'e created for herself so much as it is about her and Fei Fei dealing with their grief. The world of Lunaria doesn't really need to be as expansive because I think it does what it's supposed to do, and that's drive the reason for it's existence which is Chang'e's loneliness and grief. I used to live in China too and it was really fun to see elements of things I saw in my daily life in the movie, so it didn't feel like it was pandering like some other movies do.
@@bluelfsuma Honestly considering Nonya is used as a term to describe like, a Nonya restaurant, Nonya clothes etc, ‘Nonya business’ is legit used as a term lol, so the pun’s lost on me.
I can’t believe you forgot to mention Audrey Wells. The writer of the movie. She wrote this while she was dying from cancer for her daughter and husband. This movie is also a personal message
As a Chinese guy who is somewhat detached from my culture (not as bad as my friends), I absolutely loved this movie. The plot is mostly just ok for me, but the music absolutely hits, since you hear the Chinese influences. It’s also so pretty!!! The part that really broke me watching it was at the end when Fei Fei was sitting at the dinner table with her family. The fact that it’s beautifully animated movie where a little Chinese girl sits at a Chinese table with Chinese food on it watching her Chinese relatives interact really hit. I’ve always said representation matters but I don’t think I’ve ever really processed why until this movie. My culture is being showcased in a great movie and that just feels amazing. Every time I listen to Rocket to the Moon, I want to cry.
China's lunar spacecraft program is called Chang'e; in 2019, Chang'e 4 landed on the far side of a moon, and deployed a small rover called Yutu... Jade Rabbit. Yes, a reference to the Moon Rabbit.
I thank the Touhou series for teaching me about these little bits of Asian mythology. There's Moon Rabbits, Earth Rabbits, Youkai, Ghosts, etc but they're all cute girls that shoot lasers. Even Chang'e and the Lunar capital are referenced.
Yeah the first five minutes into the movie I was like “this is more Disney than what Disney has recently put out! Look even the movie’s doing the one parent only rule!!”
As someone who lived in China and has Chinese heritage, this movie made me really happy. I saw elements in the film that were familiar to my daily life (like ping-pong, square dances and the way Chinese grandmas stuff you with food) in China and one of my favorite legends is the centerpiece of the film. I liked how beautifully animated it was and the songs were mostly pretty good! I liked how Chang'e when you first meet her, is seemingly cool and confident but is really broken and grieving when it comes down to it. It really drives home how many people try to bury their sadness deep down and not actually address it. Overall, a solid 9/10 film.
I liked that she was into science and also believed the mythology of the moon goddess, I think kids should enjoy STEM while still having their imagination!
Chang'e in her myth is either a selfish, desperate wife who's willing to leave her husband to die a mortal, or a selfless, loving wife who's willing to self sacrifice for her husband's safety and well-being. Either way, her husband remains mortal and dies while she remains on the moon cuz she's technically banished from heaven and on the count of being immortal, can't stay on earth. Tragic on both ends but one of them is sweeter
this movie made me straight up sob when chang'e and fei fei were both in the chamber of exquisite sadness, specifically whenever chang'e realized fei fei was in there with her. it was just.. so tender. chang'e develops this maternal flare, wanting to guide fei fei out of the depressive pit that she herself has been trapped in for so long. altogether, the scene is kinda adrupt, but it's such a quiet and soft one that i'm okay with the overall jankiness. it carries this beautiful message of nurturing those suffering, so that they might find the consolation you yourself are missing. given the screenwriter wrote this script as a sort of farewelll to her family, i imagine she poured her heart and soul into this scene to try and get that messgae acrosss.
With regards to the 'world building' I really liked how, "zoomed in" it was. This story is about a girl processing the loss of her mother written by a dying mother. Audrey Wells wrote it as she was battling cancer, so this was her saying good bye and I love you and it's okay to find new love and happiness, The process of Grief is a personal one, so it makes sense that the story would be very personal. I would've liked a bit more about Chin (His dad is gone, could've drawn parallels with FeiFei, and maybe if the movie was longer or aimed at an older audience they would've), but it seemed to me that the animal sidekicks were like a shorthand to draw those parallels. As far as not learning about the Lunarians. They were made from tears and dust, their purpose was to provide company for Chang'e. So I think that's all we needed to know for the story being told. As far as her believing in Chang'e on the moon and Science: People contain multitudes. And she's a kid. If she was scientifically inclined and believed in Santa, we wouldn't rag on her; there's plenty of Christian Scientists. If she was grown-up we would understand her belief as maybe more metaphorical. (And with all kindness and respect, the bit about not being able to pronounce names falls flat when it is said constantly throughout the movie.)
The animal that were side kicks were actually parts of the legend, in some cases Chang'e is with a jade rabbit, in a different version of the legend she was turned into a frog on the moon.
YES!! This comment expresses my opinions on this, most especailly the last comment, like what the hell dude, Chang'e name was said so many fucking times this movie, did you even watch? smh smh
I think the reason she believes in the moon godess but is so scientific accurate is because her mother used to her the story of the moon godess, that was what the whole family could cherish. The moon godess reminds Fey Fey of her mother and how it brought her family closer. In my opinion it made total sense to me but hey, just my opinion :)
The "e" in Chang'e is is pronounced like "ah", like, "Ah, I get it.'" Also, the rabbit "sidekick" for Chang'e is a part of her lore; the rabbit of the moon who makes Mochi. It's known as the Jade Rabbit.
Yeah I dunno how he got it wrong the movie is in English and they pronounce everything correctly so...why couldn’t he be bothered to check? I watched it as well and can pronounce it correctly. It comes off as kinda lazy.
So much so, in fact, that Spooky (the antagonist of Pac-Man World 2.. and one of the racers in Pac-Man World Rally) played the song in clubs while the Pac-People jammed to it!
As someone who is a huge fan of rabbits, I just gotta say they animated every movement with Fei Fei's rabbit Bunngee (I cant remember how to spell it) but when she holds her rabbit, she holds it the correct way and I found that so fascinating. Even all the small rabbit details on things like ribbons, the mooncakes on Earth, clothes, etc. was such a beautiful on how they paid so much attention to every bit.
I’m a student at SCAD. We recently had the director: Glen Keane speak at our film festival. Based on what he said I think there was so much thought and love put into this film
@@thymicere3911 how do you know the other person wasn’t lying and they are telling the truth? or maybe the both of them had the same experience... don’t jump into conclusions
@@froggbones i know, that’s what I just said... Edit: when I said "they might have the same experience" that is what I alluded to, maybe i wasn’t clear enough?
Oh oh one thing that I was super happy to see was they had a chinese pangolin as a main character (Gobi). Pangolins are beautiful animals and they are the most trafficked mammal in the world. Not many people know about them so it is nice to see some representation for them in the movie world.
I've had a recent loss too. And the moving on scene toward the end between Chang-e and Fei-Fei made me cry a little bit. I was very invested in the two rabbits being a thing. haha So cute!
I enjoyed this movie SO much. The animation was incredible, the characters were incredible, the music was incredible, the voice acting (and singing) was incredible. The only problem I had was that it was a little too “kiddy” for me. It had a really mature plot near the beginning, but near the middle, it became apparent to me that this movie was mainly meant for kids. However, the ending of the movie was REALLY good, so I can forgive it. This movie is very solid, and I really recommend it. A solid 9/10
You are the first person i see to talk about this. I just wrote a comment about this, and i'm so glad i found someone who agrees. Honestly, the songs the Moon Goddess sings are just cringy as hell to me.
@@spinning_dogs7295 yeah it was a huge tone shift and really weird. Like i get she was supposed to seem self centered cause of the whole loss thing and then them adding the jello dog. Like you already had chin
I agree, the middle of the movie was meh for me, certain songs would make me cringe and the amount of annoying animal sidekicks was too much. On the bright side the beginning and end were amazing, the animation was on point and the designs for backgrounds and characters were awesome.
@@spinning_dogs7295 really? My sister and I watched it yesterday (we’re Chinese) and her reaction was “this is 100% C-pop.” Chinese people are a bit behind on the pop music, lol.
@@zamiaramirez1390 Jello dog was there to help make Fei Fei realize that Chin wasn't so bad. Sometimes people need a new perspective to get over their dislike of someone, and the jello dog provided that new perspective.
That's how it should be indeed. Some people seemed to have understood this in the older times. Such as Gregor Johan Mendel who went full on scientific discovering genes and heredity only to know how it works to get closer to God.
Right, I hate how everyone acts like it’s an either or situation. I’ll never forget when someone said they were an atheist because “atheists believe in science!” as if anyone who’s a theist just can’t do that too😬
Exactly what I do, I hate when people assume all religious people can’t have a mix of both. It’s ok to believe and still love science at the end of the day
Guys, I was ugly crying all throughout the movie and when I saw it was a tribute to Audrey Wells who had died and who intended to make this masterpiece for her family.....I was bawling for 20 minutes y’all.
Another reason for the rabbit sidekick is because Chang’e is connected with that animal through her myths. Also, her lover Hou Yi is the god of the sun and it’s actually a very interesting love story.
They kinda address the reason why she believes in Chang'e in the beginning when the father says " do you want the scientific explanation?" And Fey Fey says "no I like the Mom explanation!" And I also think she continues to believe in Chang'e not so much as she wants the goddess to be real but that all the stories she shared with her mother are precious memories and Fey Fey just isn't ready to let them go. She wants to remain in the time that her mother was alive and she, just like Chang'e, wants to have her loved one back. I do total feel Saber tho as this movie slapped me in the feels. Very lovely movie overall
The one detail I like in this movie is the 'jelly' people as you call them. Look like moon cakes. During the Moon festival they are given out. But in mythology Hou Yi leaves them as an offering to his wife Chang'e. Until the day he died. If you're wondering where I learned this it's Red from OSP.
@@thymicere3911 I have seen you on "the bee movie but it's 3 seconds". You literally just straight up replying on comments like "iT'S nOt fUnnY lOl StUpId KiD". And I know you'll respond to me in "I don't care little piece of garbage".
My only gripe with Book of Life is the lack of original songs, it's all covers and I can't get over that, especially that cover of "Creep" by Radiohead, ugh.
@@lainiwakura1776 "no matter where you are" is an original though. they called "Us the duo" for permission, rightfully so because the song was their wedding vows.
6:30 *They did* after the first dinner you can here in the background "She's at the top of her class, yet she still believes in Chang'e" from the grandnother
@@septemily literally what I said🤣 everybody mentions it many times throughout the movie. And also it wouldn't have hurt to go check again before the video.🤷🏾♀️
I sat in my room saying her name so many times because of how he said it. Also kinda funny to see him confused on the cultural parts but I love to see it anyway.
For me, this movie reminded me a lot of Up. I don't know, maybe because - protagonist was happy with the loved one - the loved one passes away - protagonist deals with grief - protagonist goes to a land with outlandish solution - annoying to protagonist joins in unintentionally - protagonist and the kid reach the destination and of course, - they meet on the destination a lot of talking local comic relief wit a dog face
I feel like the science vs religion thing you pointed out has a bit of a deeper meaning in that she does believe somewhat in the folklore but she really is hanging on to that specific one for her mom
To me it was more like "you're leaving your whole family behind for a guy you met literally a few hours ago and interacted with for less than 5 minutes". It was cute, sure, but forced and predictable as all hell too.
Ya I’m Chinese and there’s an old legend that a moon goddess lives on a moon with her pet bunny looking down on the earth just like the movie (she doesn’t party tho)
Fei Fei is so much more cute and well thought out design wise jsksenkfjwidb i think the differences are very clear, it might just be because they’re both asian as to where you drew the similarities- i get what you mean, but i don’t really agree i might just be biased because i myself am asian, but the only similarities imo are that they’re both asian young girls with short black hair
As someone who lost their mom to cancer just last year, this movie's message and tones hit me in the first 5 minutes when I saw her mom. But despite all that it was a perfect way to not only teach younger kids to accept change but also adults to know when to move on. Hands down it was a 10/10 for me and when I saw Glen Keane was working on this I thought of his short, "The Duet" and was really excited
@Leif Emmanuel Chang'e is a goddess though. Fei Fei is a human. Life is too short for mortals to not move on. Chang'e has all the time in the world to change, but Fei Fei does not.
Oh those jelly beans, I think they’re more like the sweet candies/biscuits that people pray with. They’re offerings to the souls of the dead during the Hungry Ghost Month for example. They could be kueh/gui, which just means a sweet snack like a greenbean cake, or made of agar agar. Those are also use for prayers.
I wanted to see the boy's story explained more. How does HE feel about not having his father? about his mom remarrying, about getting a big sister? and why is he reacting differently? And also I wanted to see who of the Aunts was right about the Moon Goddesses' motivations
I think he never really know his father or at least don't remember him to much. His mum is happy with this new guy and this make him happy. And have new family members mean much for him. We don't saw the new wife family members in the end. I think they were just 2 of them. Single mum without family members, i don't think our boy have enough attention, witch is reason, why he try get attention by his behaviour.
And rabbits are associated with the moon in a few eastern folklores. Hell that's why Sailor Moon is named Usagi... And Astolfo after regaining his sanity in Fate has some rabbit in his design
6:14 Maybe deep down she doesn't really believe it, and knows the facts of science, but since she's a kid blinded by grief she just wants to have something to hang on to, even if it is false hope.
Perhaps but I feel like if she did have false hope they would sneak in a little nod to that. Also there was a scene similar to what Saber was talking about. One of her Aunt's said something like "she's the top of her class and she still believes in that". So plot hole or no plot hole... *Y e s*
@Zakaria Ogle In 1912, the Bureau of Education (not to be confused with its successor agency, the United States Department of Education) was tasked by then Secretary of the Interior Franklin Knight Lane with completely restructuring the American education system for the twentieth century. In response, the Bureau of Education, together with the National Education Association, created the Commission on the Reorganization of Secondary Education. The Commission was made up of 16 committees (a 17th was established two years later, in 1916), each one tasked with the reform of a specific aspect of the American Education system. Notable among these was the Committee on Social Studies, which was created to consolidate and standardize various subjects which did not fit within normal school curricula into a new subject, to be called "the social studies".
My little sister couldnt stop sobbing at the end. She kept crying “The bunny left!... the bunny left and its the last thing from the mommy!” My sister was heartbroken but loved the movie. I used this movie to help explain that its ok to mourn our grandfather because he’s very sick and my little sister won’t understand how to cope when he passes
1. Girl lives with her parents. 2. Mother dies. 3. Mourning. 4. Father starts dating. 5. ??? 6. *Girl flies a rocket to the moon.* That escalated quickly...
Oh man I was 13 years old watching this in the cinemas when it originally released and it destroyed me. Rewatching it in 2016 when the signature edition came out the ending hit 30 year old me just as hard.
@@indigowendigo8165 Hm I thought they made one and it wasn't that great... or I may be thinking of a different movie. But I'm kind of glad they didn't, they have a tendency of fucking up great movies with sequels.
When I watched this I immediately yelled at my friends that this was better than the movies Disney’s been making recently, and that was surprising considering I didn’t have that much hope for this, but I found I actually really liked it, and I definitely think it needs more but all in all it was👌
Want me to tell you something funny that happened to me with Blood of Zeus? Look im 10 years old and my mom say me to see that series, and I say to her: but this is an anime, and she said to me: we has seen more violence in other movies. I was like WTF IS HAPPENING HERE! And I am seeing ot and is every good
I think there is a comment by her aunt when she says “She’s the top of her class* but she still believes in Chang’e?” But yeah I do wish they made a bit more effort to at least say something about her contradicting beliefs to her face. Maybe that would’ve gotten through to the audience a little more that her belief in Chang’e is about faith more than science.
i dont know. it feels very much like an asian parent/ family thing that my family does to me sometimes. it hit harder to me knowing that that's how a lot of asian family members can act.
But why? Its pretty obvious why she does believe in it. The moon goddess holds a special place in her heart because of her mom, i mean that's the whole reason shes going there, to prove something about her mom. Plus not everything needs a spoken reason.
s u n i - I said why I wanted it, to drive home the fact that her belief in Chang’e was about faith over science to the audience. I’m sure the guy in the video isn’t the only person who had that nitpick with her character.
I also felt like comparing it to Coco when I watched this. I think there could've been some flashback scenes to flesh out the character relationships more. Like in Coco we saw the flashback of baby Coco, instead of just being told about it. I feel like Over The Moon did too much 'telling us how to feel' about character's pasts rather than showing. And I think Gobi showed up too late, I would've removed the forgettable Biker Chicks and replaced it with more time with Gobi. Because I did like Gobi, but his relationship with Moon Goddess felt very one-sided. The same with Jade Rabbit and even the little brother, needed more. But I enjoyed this movie overall too!
Big agree!! Especially when it came to Gobi, in my opinion a good amount of the side characters just felt kinda.. forgettable to me? Like I just feel like there wasn't as much to them as there could have been lol
@Leif Emmanuel Yeah with that I think it implied that it was too soon & she wasn't ready to hear it from someone who didn't relate to her pain. But once Fei Fei revealed her own loss to Chang'e, they both learned that showing empathy to others can be healing. But it definitely could've been clearer since Chang'e barely acknowledged Gobi. Maybe Jade Rabbit and Gobi could've been combined somehow, or at least more involved with him? Then Jade not being able to make the potion until the visitors came would also feel more connected. I dunno.
I saw the Netflix trailer and my first response was “THE MOON GODDESS IS A K POP SINGER?!?” (Laughing) Legit that’s what I thought as first impressions.
Mine was.. "hey honey, Does Chang'e have a pop singer skin in Smite? How about a ping pong champion skin?" He told me to quit watching movies with Smite characters in them... ( this isn't the first one I've stumbled upon, Check out Sita Sings The Blues)
Being (half) Chinese myself it's actually really interesting to see that there's more representation in children's movies, and it's nice to know there's kids these days that are seeing this and they get to have more people like them, compared to when I was a kid. Having more and more movies that incorporate Chinese culture, significant characters being Chinese, it's all really uplifting to know my little sisters get to have more characters and movies to latch onto.
The only thing I think they missed on this was how the Moon Goddess (Chang’e) was trying to help Fei Fei with grief and they missed the chance of having the brother (Chin) share his grief so he and Fei could bound over it. That whole scene (though really BEAUTIFUL) felt off to me since I was expecting Chin and Fei to truly bond
Agreed. I was so nervous when I saw the bunnys falsie lashes lmao. Pretty glad that 1. neither could talk and 2. They weren't obnoxious comedy relieves like the raindeer from frozen fe. I didnt mind them at all. While they didn't contribute much for me as an adult, I can see why they put them in for kids, besides obviously being part of the mythology.
@@funsize69 For sure, I don't even dislike animal sidekicks but they have to be done well in order to be pleasing , this one was toned down but didn't do it for me
Good thing they gave her a huge role in this movie, in The One and Only Ivan on Disney+, she was wasted as a parrot that only repeats what the others say.
I recently lost both my grandparents this month. my grandfather died and my grandmother moved away forever to live out her final days with her daughters. (She's my step-grandmother so it makes sense that she'd want to do that.) This whole year has been filled with death and misfortune for me. I've had 3 beloved pets die within this year and 3 die right near the end of last year. They all died of old age and natural causes. The most painful thing is my best buddy, the dog I had since I was 5, has mouth cancer, and is also going to be dying this year, maybe early next year. I nearly cried on that last song... The only reason I didn't was that I had company and due to past trauma I don't let people see me cry.
If they would’ve done the Mulan remake in this art style and fixed everything that was wrong with the live action one. We would have a perfect Mulan remake.
I saw this title and thought of the visual novel To the Moon. Ironically, I just added someone's beautiful piano cover of "River's Song" to my Spotify playlist so that was in my head as I watched this review.
Hello from China. Great job on the review. I like your style. Just a few things on the world building aspect: In the Chinese folklore about Chang'e (pronounced Chang Err) and the moon, the overarching theme of the mythical moon world is loneliness. The moon palace is called 广寒宫 which translates to The Palace of Vast and Cold. It is supposedly a traditional Chinese style architecture sitting in a cold Gobi desert-like landscape, with Chang'e and a Jade Rabbit and no one else (again in a different version there is a mythical dude chopping down a tree for some reason and the tree heals after every chop). In this film the creators made it much more lively and colorful so it's more suitable for an animated film targeted at a wide range of audiences. I also feel that they are doubling down on that science and myths coexist idea so they made the inhabitants and the environment kinda like aliens. The guards being mooncakes are funny while not complicating things with extra characters who need to be explained. I have no idea what the jelly dog is. Frogs or toads are also from original Chinese folklore associated with the moon and Chang'e. One theory is that the darker parts of a full moon looks like a toad and a rabbit.
I watched this review and immediately went to Netflix. Definitely holds out. And also, i love Glen Keane’s work, their facial expressions make the movie
I was mostly annoyed with the overly cliched set-up of “surprise! I’m getting married and you should learn to deal with it real quick!” This dad has been dating the new woman for enough time to decide to get married to her. Her son is fully aware of the situation and the extended family do not seem perturbed by a “surprise fiancé” at family celebration which made me feel like they knew this was happening. So the father has knowingly kept this from his daughter for what reason exactly? I mean, other than a trope-y plot device.
Knowing Fei-Fei she probably avoided any hint and conversation with all her might. I did like that they showed the step-mom making a constant effort during the long time it took to make the rocket. It really helps showcase how much Fei -Fei is in denial.
@Kim Jong-un, you are a man of great taste. I see you like to watch EmmyMadeinJapan as much as I do! What's your favorite movie review by Saberspark, or food video by Emmy?
What did you think about the not yet released “Wolfwalkers„. It’s a movie I am really excited of, the story sounds very interesting and the 2D animation That is really grate and that’s why I’m really excited🤩
I was so happy they made sure to include my boi the Jade Rabbit! He is my favorite Chinese myth. And if you thought Chang'e’s story is sad, Jade’s origin story is SUPER tear jerking in pretty much all versions. What happened is some dudes from heaven needed a replacement immortal pill maker and decided to go with an animal this time around because humans are too shady. They disguise themselves as beggars and cry for food in the Forrest. Some kind animals gather them some food, but the Rabbit couldn’t because rabbits are grazing animals so they can’t gather food. But that little rabbit wanted to help these starving people so bad, he legit jumps into the fire to be cooked and eaten! These dudes were so touched by his sacrifice they immediately give his spirit the position and to show people how awesome this little bunny is, they made his fur the color of jade (some interpretations specifically white jade) which is where he got his name. He ended up on the moon with Chang'e because he felt extreme guilt over making the extra pills that lead to her being sent to the moon. He goes to be exiled on the moon so she isn’t there alone. Such an undeniably selfless little character. 🐇
The movie actually did address Fefe being scientifically driven, but also believing in the moon goddess. During the first dinner scene, one of her family members goes "I can't believe she's so intelligent, and still believes in Chang'e!"
I showed this to my mother in law and she said: “ugh, why is everything shoved down OUR throats”? I didn’t know how to reply, 😐 like WTF DOES THAT MEAN BROOOOOO!
Honestly when I saw the ad for it after finishing a show I thought it would be one of those things that look cool but wouldn’t be that good, but after this review I should probably watch it lol
Chang’e is pronounced “Chang-uh” Not really sure how to write it out phonetically for english speakers. In chinese “ang” is less hard on the a and sounds a little like aang. I see people writing “ah” which doesn’t really sound right.
I'm glad you pointed out how to pronounce her name because I was a little annoyed that he couldn't pronounce it right. I'm sorry if I sound harsh, but it came off as disrespectful to the culture behind the movie for not taking the time to learn how to pronounce the name properly.
The movie pronounced chang’e name correctly and it’s not that hard seriously Also is no one really going to talk about her hanfu? It’s Beautiful like all 3 of them And is no one I’d going to talk about how the Chinese version is WAY better than the English version 7:01 that’s part of the actual myth of Chang’e has a rabbit
Exactly like dude put a bit more effort -_- this bit of yours not pronouncing stuff that well is fine and all but this movie literally said her name a lot so..??
Ikr. Same. The music didn't do much for me, not memorable at all imo. I liked the one where fei fei built the rocket but that's about it. At least chang'e pop concert was visually pleasing af. The ping pong one tho...
@@ConcealedWeaponry SAME AYE! especially when she steps on the table that did it for me espcially the rap part its so good AND THE TRANSITION TO THE COLORS SDPCKASDPK its just not that much which im aware of but i love the transitions as she spins to a lighter color
The mention of loss right now is hard for me but getting better, this is just me getting out some thoughts but, halloween just went by and i get saddened every year during or just after october, cause my first cat i had since i was 3 died a few years ago halloween week so, seeing this being reviewed... i think it could help people like me (my case is really not severe compared to other people's losses and struggles i just really miss the cat i grew up alongside) who may need the message this movie gives, it's not a life changer or anything, but i feel like it could be a genuine comfort. I haven't watched it yet, but since I'm at this point in the year again, i might watch it tonight at work or when i get home, who knows it could be my new comfort movie. I definitely need one
That movie gets referenced a lot, if only the "rocket crash-landing into the moon's eye" bit. Maybe they'll remake it someday, likely for the 100 year anniversary
Made me cry and when you showed that scene of the one song I cried again. I lost my father a long time ago so time didn't soften the impact of that song on me. Anyway great movie highly recommend.
This was a US-China co-production. Chinese animation was really great last year with White Snake and Ne Zha. And we also had Jiang Ziya this year which also did really well.
It's not often that I cry because of a movie but this one got me. Did it get anybody else?
I did......😔
Haven't seen it.
Is it good?
Do you play monster hunter world
i didnt watch the vid yet
i may or may not have been in tears after and during watching it
A sad fact about the movie, Audrey Wells wrote the script as a gift to her daughter and husband in order to aid them as she was dying of cancer. She sadly died at the beginning of the movie's production.
Why must you make me sad
That make the movie so much heavier and sad. :((
@@thymicere3911 Annd, we found the 'jerk comment'.
@@thymicere3911 "far left shit" what, like power to the proletariat and that people shouldn't die to conglomerate hegemony?
@@thymicere3911 found the crypto fascist
I wanted this to be a separate comment, but i whole heartedly believe that the reason why Fei Fei believes in both science and the moon goddess is because of her parents. Her dad is extremely scientific, but her mom believes in mythology and in the beginning we see that her parents cater to that belief system where, yes the moon is far away and science is real but also Chang'e and her story is very much real. After her mom died, i think she held onto the idea of Chang'e even more which just furthered that belief. Basically, its the mixture of her parents beliefs, thats why Fei Fei believes in both science and mythology
Plus it's not unrealistic for someone to believe in science and the supernatural.
@@aliyahmaidenname9255 Actually, there’s people who believe in both.
Plus, to be a scientist on the forefront of research and discovery you need to believe in things you can't quite prove yet - that's what research is all about. Okay, maybe not Moon Godesses and the such, but she is a child. A child who believes in something and sets out to find proof. Seems pretty scientific to me.
@@Cyber-Hexagon that's what they said, "it's NOT unrealistic"
Yeah I believe in both (I know it sounds weird)
I can't get over that the screenplay writer for this movie, Audrey Wells, wrote it as a love letter to her own daughter and husband as she was battling cancer. This movie was her legacy that she wanted to leave behind. I think she passed away right before they started production.
At the end there is a in memory of Audrey Wells, So yeah. That made me sadder.
THAT’S WHY THEY HAD HER NAME THERE!!!! Oh my god!!! That’s so sad and beautiful. I hope her family loves this movie. It’s not prefect but the message is great and told it right.
I WAS ABOUT TO SAY THAT! she wrote the story and I was like "Dude you forgot to talk about her" lol. She passed away when they started to film the movie so it's good to know that she saw some of it.
That is so touching but also sad.
Wow, I did not know that. That's super deep. Knowing that now, the message in the movie is a lot heavier now.
Her believing the moon goddess story while still believing science is actually her clinging on to one of the last good memories she has of her mother. They established that right in the beginning of the movie. There was even a line in the beginning when her father, interjected with the story and said, "Does anyone want to hear the scientific explanation?" and she said she thought her Mom's explanation was the best. It isn't that she fully believed it, but not believing it means letting go of her mother's memory and she wasn't ready for that. The belief of the myth is a representation of her mother's memories.
OMG yess finally someone understands why she believes in chang'e. Also they did address this in a line after the fight with the aunt she says "she's at the top of her class and still believes in chang'e.
I also think that Fei Fei clings to Chang'e and Houyi because they represent an ideal love, one between two people, even through death, and thats what Fei Fei expects of her dad
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU SOMEONE FINALLY SAID IT
That's exactly what I was thinking!!
Almost 666 likes what n9w
I’m glad they acknowledged the fact their are multiple versions of Chang'e’s myth on how exactly she ended up taking the pills and leaving Houyi behind on Earth. I liked they left it kind of ambiguous when we actually meet her. Chang'e did seemed to take offense to the boy saying she took the two pills herself for selfish reasons but never denies it. The only thing we know for sure is this version of Chang'e loves and greaves for Houyi no matter how this ended up happening.
Side note, I remember being confused by pop star Chang'e and then like three quarters in I remember mythologically she was a performer (specifically a dancer if I’m remembering it right) before the whole moon thing. I felt like an idiot for forgetting that.
In the movie they had Chang’e take an immortality potion, not pills
@@AuzzieAnxiety??
@@AuzzieAnxiety they talked about both
That’s not what I was taught lol
@@AuzzieAnxiety If I remember correctly, the Chinese subtitles say pills, but the English subtitles say potion. This is because in Western culture, the idea of an immortal elixir is more familiar to us. However, historically, the pills are much more accurate and make more sense to a Chinese audience.
The lack of world building may be because to us Chinese, there’s very curious integration of Chinese myth, superstition and folklore in daily life that’s just kinda taken as given, and the film seems specifically targetted at people of Chinese descent. The thing is that Chinese folkloric customs are so ingrained that it’s kinda common to all Chinese populations. Im a Chinese Singaporean, I know about Chang’e, the moon rabbit, and everything. I’ve watched animations and even used text books that used Chang’e as an example. And Singapore’s not purely Chinese, we also have our own myths and traditions that differ a lot from mainlanders (as Chinese here are mixed or already changed, some are Nonya who are mixed of indigenous Malay and Chinese for generations), yet there’s always a set of stories and beliefs that are universal to a lot of Chinese. You could prolly say the same story to Chinese Vietnamese, Taiwanese, Chinese Americans too, they’d know about Chang’e. So the attitude in the film reminds me of how Chinese people treat our folkloric culture - it’s there, always. And we go about life assuming it’s there, and even if it isn’t, it honestly doesn’t really affect our practical daily lives.
yeah it's like a european grandmother who tells the protagonist about fairies or a gothic setting with ghosts that just exist, it's present in other movies
Hehe ua-cam.com/video/VFkxXzWwpek/v-deo.html
I was gonna say the same. I'm also Chinese (on my mom's side) and I grew up with these legends, so the world-building isn't all that necessary for us who are from the culture. To me, having just watched the movie, it's not about the world Chang'e created for herself so much as it is about her and Fei Fei dealing with their grief. The world of Lunaria doesn't really need to be as expansive because I think it does what it's supposed to do, and that's drive the reason for it's existence which is Chang'e's loneliness and grief. I used to live in China too and it was really fun to see elements of things I saw in my daily life in the movie, so it didn't feel like it was pandering like some other movies do.
I'm sorry, but
"Some are Nonya"
"Nonya?"
_"NONYA BUSINESS!"_
You may now jeer and boo.
@@bluelfsuma Honestly considering Nonya is used as a term to describe like, a Nonya restaurant, Nonya clothes etc, ‘Nonya business’ is legit used as a term lol, so the pun’s lost on me.
Everybody knows the moon is made of cheese, Gromit
Cheese goddess
@@christianfarren1179 yes sirrrr
@@christianfarren1179 hi how are u
@@christianfarren1179 how has been your day
@@christianfarren1179 so far
Nobody talkes about the grandfather. His facts about the crab are amazing.
IKR!
YEAH
Yeah dem crabs doe
Fav character for SURE
He spitting facts
I can’t believe you forgot to mention Audrey Wells. The writer of the movie. She wrote this while she was dying from cancer for her daughter and husband. This movie is also a personal message
I'm assuming he probably had no idea about her when he made the video.
As a Chinese guy who is somewhat detached from my culture (not as bad as my friends), I absolutely loved this movie. The plot is mostly just ok for me, but the music absolutely hits, since you hear the Chinese influences. It’s also so pretty!!! The part that really broke me watching it was at the end when Fei Fei was sitting at the dinner table with her family. The fact that it’s beautifully animated movie where a little Chinese girl sits at a Chinese table with Chinese food on it watching her Chinese relatives interact really hit. I’ve always said representation matters but I don’t think I’ve ever really processed why until this movie. My culture is being showcased in a great movie and that just feels amazing. Every time I listen to Rocket to the Moon, I want to cry.
That rabbit side kick is definitely a reference to East Asian's folklore about Moon Rabbit. It's cute reference, I guess
It made me think of a Webtoon called Lunar the Moon Rabbit. I've never read it, just see it around often.
@@awebtoonreader4979 yep, that's also from that exact folklore. Also Sailor Moon's real name. Tsukino Usagi, literally means "Rabbit of the Moon"
China's lunar spacecraft program is called Chang'e; in 2019, Chang'e 4 landed on the far side of a moon, and deployed a small rover called Yutu... Jade Rabbit. Yes, a reference to the Moon Rabbit.
I thank the Touhou series for teaching me about these little bits of Asian mythology. There's Moon Rabbits, Earth Rabbits, Youkai, Ghosts, etc but they're all cute girls that shoot lasers. Even Chang'e and the Lunar capital are referenced.
Its the jade rabbit
It's weird how when Saber was talking about "Disney checkboxes" he didn't mention the dead parent
Yeah the first five minutes into the movie I was like “this is more Disney than what Disney has recently put out! Look even the movie’s doing the one parent only rule!!”
@@MeBeCreepy well it was directed by a former Disney animator
Must be the reason why they got into the superhero business
Yeah that's what I thought he was going to mention to ngl. 😅
@@myaedelman plus it’s a true story
As someone who lived in China and has Chinese heritage, this movie made me really happy. I saw elements in the film that were familiar to my daily life (like ping-pong, square dances and the way Chinese grandmas stuff you with food) in China and one of my favorite legends is the centerpiece of the film. I liked how beautifully animated it was and the songs were mostly pretty good! I liked how Chang'e when you first meet her, is seemingly cool and confident but is really broken and grieving when it comes down to it. It really drives home how many people try to bury their sadness deep down and not actually address it. Overall, a solid 9/10 film.
I see that grandmas stuff you with food everywhere in the word. Lovely
This probably isn’t a coincidence, but I feel like Yue and Sokka’s love story may have been inspired by the Moon Goddess myth
I thought that too
@@flowers4grett yeah me too
It 100% was
the creators of the show did a really deep research from asian cultures so probably they indeed took inspiration from this myth
Most likely, the creators did tons and tons of research In multiple asian cultures
i must admit i inmediatly fell in love with Chang'e. she was so beautiful, and her outfits, her personality. it killed me
I love her design. She's breath taking to look at. Also I can't help but see mulan when she had her hair down. Oh and I love how flowy she is.
@@bigboomer1013 YESSSS
I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY ONE!
She kinda has the personality of Azula, but of course not evil
@@gisming Y E S. She kinda reminded me of Kyoshi idk, maybe its because i also L O V E Kyoshi's design idk
I liked that she was into science and also believed the mythology of the moon goddess, I think kids should enjoy STEM while still having their imagination!
there's actually so much depth and information behind mythology, it's like exploring a completely different world when it comes to myths and beliefs!
_”I have to prove the existence of the Moon Goddess so I can convince my Dad to wait for my dead mom to return.”_
*”That’s rough, buddy...”*
Underrated commentary
Why does that work....
I understood that reference
The perfect reference exists, and it’s right here.
Chang'e in her myth is either a selfish, desperate wife who's willing to leave her husband to die a mortal, or a selfless, loving wife who's willing to self sacrifice for her husband's safety and well-being. Either way, her husband remains mortal and dies while she remains on the moon cuz she's technically banished from heaven and on the count of being immortal, can't stay on earth. Tragic on both ends but one of them is sweeter
Yeah a lot of moon goddesses don’t get true love or they can’t see them which is really sad
this movie made me straight up sob when chang'e and fei fei were both in the chamber of exquisite sadness, specifically whenever chang'e realized fei fei was in there with her. it was just.. so tender. chang'e develops this maternal flare, wanting to guide fei fei out of the depressive pit that she herself has been trapped in for so long.
altogether, the scene is kinda adrupt, but it's such a quiet and soft one that i'm okay with the overall jankiness. it carries this beautiful message of nurturing those suffering, so that they might find the consolation you yourself are missing. given the screenwriter wrote this script as a sort of farewelll to her family, i imagine she poured her heart and soul into this scene to try and get that messgae acrosss.
Grow up.
@@metalixx1212 How does it feel to be such a cold and bitter person?
With regards to the 'world building' I really liked how, "zoomed in" it was. This story is about a girl processing the loss of her mother written by a dying mother. Audrey Wells wrote it as she was battling cancer, so this was her saying good bye and I love you and it's okay to find new love and happiness, The process of Grief is a personal one, so it makes sense that the story would be very personal. I would've liked a bit more about Chin (His dad is gone, could've drawn parallels with FeiFei, and maybe if the movie was longer or aimed at an older audience they would've), but it seemed to me that the animal sidekicks were like a shorthand to draw those parallels.
As far as not learning about the Lunarians. They were made from tears and dust, their purpose was to provide company for Chang'e. So I think that's all we needed to know for the story being told.
As far as her believing in Chang'e on the moon and Science: People contain multitudes. And she's a kid. If she was scientifically inclined and believed in Santa, we wouldn't rag on her; there's plenty of Christian Scientists. If she was grown-up we would understand her belief as maybe more metaphorical.
(And with all kindness and respect, the bit about not being able to pronounce names falls flat when it is said constantly throughout the movie.)
THANK YOU!!! Couldn’t have said it better myself
this was said perfectly!
@@mushroomgirlie IKR? I was confused by him mispronouncing her name...
The animal that were side kicks were actually parts of the legend, in some cases Chang'e is with a jade rabbit, in a different version of the legend she was turned into a frog on the moon.
YES!! This comment expresses my opinions on this, most especailly the last comment, like what the hell dude, Chang'e name was said so many fucking times this movie, did you even watch? smh smh
I think the reason she believes in the moon godess but is so scientific accurate is because her mother used to her the story of the moon godess, that was what the whole family could cherish. The moon godess reminds Fey Fey of her mother and how it brought her family closer. In my opinion it made total sense to me but hey, just my opinion :)
I am the cool kid from Germany making videos for the USA and the rest of the world. I will make your day so don't say nay to my videos today, dear do
@@AxxLAfriku spammer
how is some chinese mythology "scientific accurate"
@@twiddlerat9920 they're talking about fae fae. Fae Fae believes in the mood goddess despite being fairly scientifically accurate.
@@raccoon7955 thank you! That's exactly what I ment thanks :)
The "e" in Chang'e is is pronounced like "ah", like, "Ah, I get it.'" Also, the rabbit "sidekick" for Chang'e is a part of her lore; the rabbit of the moon who makes Mochi. It's known as the Jade Rabbit.
@Leif Emmanuel I honestly haven't seen the movie. I didn't even know it existed until watching this video.
@@joshroehl6098 dude, you’re super annoying and disrespectful by spamming your links on other people’s channels. STOP.
Its actually pronounced like “ugh” or uh”
“Ah” sound is attributed to the romanization a
”啊，原来是这样”
@@rawonions8827 You're right. I kinda got the "ah" and "uh" mixed up.
Yeah I dunno how he got it wrong the movie is in English and they pronounce everything correctly so...why couldn’t he be bothered to check? I watched it as well and can pronounce it correctly. It comes off as kinda lazy.
"Ultraluminary" is an absolute banger.
So much so, in fact, that Spooky (the antagonist of Pac-Man World 2.. and one of the racers in Pac-Man World Rally) played the song in clubs while the Pac-People jammed to it!
It has no reason to slap this hard.
IT IS
In my opinion I don't really like it, I've listened to a lot more better songs
Well, the backing music is great... but the lyrics... eeehhh
As someone who is a huge fan of rabbits, I just gotta say they animated every movement with Fei Fei's rabbit Bunngee (I cant remember how to spell it) but when she holds her rabbit, she holds it the correct way and I found that so fascinating. Even all the small rabbit details on things like ribbons, the mooncakes on Earth, clothes, etc. was such a beautiful on how they paid so much attention to every bit.
Saberspark: animals, comedy relief and musical numbers
Me: dead mom
Hey mom? Dead moooom
“HAHAHA LE FUNNI DEAD PARENT!1!1!!111 XDDDDDDD NOW LAUGH!1!1!!1111”
@@reasyrandom i neeeed a little help here
@@catbear5200 im probably talking to myself hereee
@@hamsiniraichur8097 but dead mooom I gotta ask
I’m a student at SCAD. We recently had the director: Glen Keane speak at our film festival. Based on what he said I think there was so much thought and love put into this film
Don’t lie. You didn’t. Someone else already claimed this in the comments.
@@thymicere3911 how do you know the other person wasn’t lying and they are telling the truth? or maybe the both of them had the same experience... don’t jump into conclusions
its true, im the film festival
One Piece Got Me In Love shocking news I know, but I think there might be more than just one person who goes to SCAD and uses the internet
@@froggbones i know, that’s what I just said...
Edit: when I said "they might have the same experience" that is what I alluded to, maybe i wasn’t clear enough?
Oh oh one thing that I was super happy to see was they had a chinese pangolin as a main character (Gobi). Pangolins are beautiful animals and they are the most trafficked mammal in the world. Not many people know about them so it is nice to see some representation for them in the movie world.
Oh is that what he is?? Thank you so much because my boyfriend and I were trying to figure out what Gobi was cuz he's sooo cute!
@@CrazyChiks1000 Agreed! Gobi is the cutest haha
Gobi is very cute. But I hate him so much because of how annoying he is.
So that is what he was!!!
Did anyone here thought he was a hedgehog lmao?
I've had a recent loss too. And the moving on scene toward the end between Chang-e and Fei-Fei made me cry a little bit. I was very invested in the two rabbits being a thing. haha So cute!
I enjoyed this movie SO much. The animation was incredible, the characters were incredible, the music was incredible, the voice acting (and singing) was incredible. The only problem I had was that it was a little too “kiddy” for me. It had a really mature plot near the beginning, but near the middle, it became apparent to me that this movie was mainly meant for kids. However, the ending of the movie was REALLY good, so I can forgive it. This movie is very solid, and I really recommend it. A solid 9/10
You are the first person i see to talk about this. I just wrote a comment about this, and i'm so glad i found someone who agrees. Honestly, the songs the Moon Goddess sings are just cringy as hell to me.
@@spinning_dogs7295 yeah it was a huge tone shift and really weird. Like i get she was supposed to seem self centered cause of the whole loss thing and then them adding the jello dog. Like you already had chin
I agree, the middle of the movie was meh for me, certain songs would make me cringe and the amount of annoying animal sidekicks was too much. On the bright side the beginning and end were amazing, the animation was on point and the designs for backgrounds and characters were awesome.
@@spinning_dogs7295 really? My sister and I watched it yesterday (we’re Chinese) and her reaction was “this is 100% C-pop.” Chinese people are a bit behind on the pop music, lol.
@@zamiaramirez1390 Jello dog was there to help make Fei Fei realize that Chin wasn't so bad. Sometimes people need a new perspective to get over their dislike of someone, and the jello dog provided that new perspective.
"You can believe in science, but also something bigger than science."
Basically how most religions should be.
That's how it should be indeed.
Some people seemed to have understood this in the older times.
Such as Gregor Johan Mendel who went full on scientific discovering genes and heredity only to know how it works to get closer to God.
Thats what I think. I'm Christian, but I still love science and believe it.
Right, I hate how everyone acts like it’s an either or situation. I’ll never forget when someone said they were an atheist because “atheists believe in science!” as if anyone who’s a theist just can’t do that too😬
Exactly what I do, I hate when people assume all religious people can’t have a mix of both. It’s ok to believe and still love science at the end of the day
Albert Einstein has a belief similar to that
I lost my mother, i understand fei fei's feelings. this movie hit me hard, and i was really struggling not to cry.
I am so sorry about your loss
@@VultureCultureArt I appreciate your apology. 💖
I’m so sorry I can’t Imagine loosing someone so close ⭐️
That must be rough, can't imagine going through something like that
I’m so sorry for your loss. Please remember that you are loved ❤️
6:17
There was a scene
One of her aunt's said something along the lines of "she's the top for class and she's still believing that"
Guys, I was ugly crying all throughout the movie and when I saw it was a tribute to Audrey Wells who had died and who intended to make this masterpiece for her family.....I was bawling for 20 minutes y’all.
Another reason for the rabbit sidekick is because Chang’e is connected with that animal through her myths. Also, her lover Hou Yi is the god of the sun and it’s actually a very interesting love story.
whoah really :0 that would’ve been so cool to investigate in the movie !!
They kinda address the reason why she believes in Chang'e in the beginning when the father says " do you want the scientific explanation?" And Fey Fey says "no I like the Mom explanation!" And I also think she continues to believe in Chang'e not so much as she wants the goddess to be real but that all the stories she shared with her mother are precious memories and Fey Fey just isn't ready to let them go. She wants to remain in the time that her mother was alive and she, just like Chang'e, wants to have her loved one back. I do total feel Saber tho as this movie slapped me in the feels. Very lovely movie overall
It reminds me of how fundies are. They refuse to accept the truth despite enormous evidence.
@@thymicere3911 Christians too
The one detail I like in this movie is the 'jelly' people as you call them. Look like moon cakes. During the Moon festival they are given out. But in mythology Hou Yi leaves them as an offering to his wife Chang'e. Until the day he died.
If you're wondering where I learned this it's Red from OSP.
omg! I too love OSP
I look there now
Y E S
He’s saying “Chinese” as if it’s a rare new species of animal lol.
The moon goddesses rabbit is part of the original Chinese story just so you know.
Truee, this guy is just talking about stuff, not really well researched? idk
I don’t understand.did you mean to type this on another video or something? The story of change’E does not include any of what your saying
@@LycanMOON ? the jade rabbit is part of her story
@@LycanMOON ummm I have read that story IN CHINESE since I was 5 the jade rabbit is like her sorority animal
Saber:
Smite players: *I already know what this story is about*
“:” isn’t funny, little kid.
@@thymicere3911 that moment when you have a kawaii anime girl pfp and therefore don't have rights
Didn't know she was even there
@@thymicere3911 I have seen you on "the bee movie but it's 3 seconds". You literally just straight up replying on comments like "iT'S nOt fUnnY lOl StUpId KiD".
And I know you'll respond to me in "I don't care little piece of garbage".
@@thymicere3911 Lmao stop being so sensitive because of these harmless jokes
If you really enjoy Coco, you should check out the movie “The Book of Life”. Really good movie and the animations pretty unique.
I second this.
Agreed
Agreed. The entire plot is spoiled in the trailer, but that in no way diminished my enjoyment of the movie, which is a rare thing.
My only gripe with Book of Life is the lack of original songs, it's all covers and I can't get over that, especially that cover of "Creep" by Radiohead, ugh.
@@lainiwakura1776 "no matter where you are" is an original though. they called "Us the duo" for permission, rightfully so because the song was their wedding vows.
6:30 *They did* after the first dinner you can here in the background
"She's at the top of her class, yet she still believes in Chang'e" from the grandnother
I know that frustrated me a bit. Also how did he not notice how Chang’e was pronounced when Fei Fei said it a hundred times in the movie?
@@septemily literally what I said🤣 everybody mentions it many times throughout the movie. And also it wouldn't have hurt to go check again before the video.🤷🏾♀️
I sat in my room saying her name so many times because of how he said it. Also kinda funny to see him confused on the cultural parts but I love to see it anyway.
For me, this movie reminded me a lot of Up. I don't know, maybe because
- protagonist was happy with the loved one
- the loved one passes away
- protagonist deals with grief
- protagonist goes to a land with outlandish solution
- annoying to protagonist joins in unintentionally
- protagonist and the kid reach the destination
and of course,
- they meet on the destination a lot of talking local comic relief wit a dog face
Me too, mainly from the intro
Damn bro... crazy... but we didn’t ask.
@@thymicere3911 Don’t be an asshole.
@@thymicere3911 and they didn’t ask for your comment..crazy
I feel like the science vs religion thing you pointed out has a bit of a deeper meaning in that she does believe somewhat in the folklore but she really is hanging on to that specific one for her mom
Can we all just take a moment to appreciate the Jade Rabbit and Bungee romance? They have the cutest subplot!!!😍😍
IT WAS SO PRECIOUS!!!
It was the cutest thing ever😭😭😭😭
And Bungee's lazer ears are so cool!
The different art styles made him look older than her, well, he is, I know that, but it was a bit weird.
To me it was more like "you're leaving your whole family behind for a guy you met literally a few hours ago and interacted with for less than 5 minutes". It was cute, sure, but forced and predictable as all hell too.
Ya I’m Chinese and there’s an old legend that a moon goddess lives on a moon with her pet bunny looking down on the earth just like the movie (she doesn’t party tho)
I thought her name was Princess Rosalina?
@@dingle2987 I’m pretty sure since it’s a chinese legend, the goddess’ name wouldn’t be Rosalina.
There’s a Japanese legend that the rabbit is making mochi
I can’t shake the feeling that Fay Fay, the main character looks like what’s her name… Chinese main character from Abominable.
its by the same company if im right
Fei Fei is so much more cute and well thought out design wise jsksenkfjwidb i think the differences are very clear, it might just be because they’re both asian as to where you drew the similarities- i get what you mean, but i don’t really agree
i might just be biased because i myself am asian, but the only similarities imo are that they’re both asian young girls with short black hair
Her name is spelled as * Fei Fei*.
@@cartoongame5007 nope abominable was no joke made by dreamworks.
*Fei Fei
As someone who lost their mom to cancer just last year, this movie's message and tones hit me in the first 5 minutes when I saw her mom. But despite all that it was a perfect way to not only teach younger kids to accept change but also adults to know when to move on. Hands down it was a 10/10 for me and when I saw Glen Keane was working on this I thought of his short, "The Duet" and was really excited
@Leif Emmanuel Chang'e is a goddess though. Fei Fei is a human. Life is too short for mortals to not move on. Chang'e has all the time in the world to change, but Fei Fei does not.
Oh those jelly beans, I think they’re more like the sweet candies/biscuits that people pray with. They’re offerings to the souls of the dead during the Hungry Ghost Month for example. They could be kueh/gui, which just means a sweet snack like a greenbean cake, or made of agar agar. Those are also use for prayers.
OHHHH!
I wanted to see the boy's story explained more. How does HE feel about not having his father? about his mom remarrying, about getting a big sister? and why is he reacting differently? And also I wanted to see who of the Aunts was right about the Moon Goddesses' motivations
I think he never really know his father or at least don't remember him to much. His mum is happy with this new guy and this make him happy. And have new family members mean much for him. We don't saw the new wife family members in the end. I think they were just 2 of them. Single mum without family members, i don't think our boy have enough attention, witch is reason, why he try get attention by his behaviour.
In the legend of chang’e actually includes jade rabbit *THATS* why fei fei got a rabbit as a gift
SIDEKICK ANIMAL FOR AN ACTUAL REASON OTHER THAN TO JUST BE CUTE?! THAT'S ACTUALLY PRETTY AWESOME
@@stressedvulture MHM! MHM!
And rabbits are associated with the moon in a few eastern folklores. Hell that's why Sailor Moon is named Usagi... And Astolfo after regaining his sanity in Fate has some rabbit in his design
@@firepuppies4086 :O
@@firepuppies4086 Don't forget Reisen Inaba from Touhou, who's also a moon rabbit.
6:14 Maybe deep down she doesn't really believe it, and knows the facts of science, but since she's a kid blinded by grief she just wants to have something to hang on to, even if it is false hope.
Exactly what I was thinking!! It was a childhood memory ingrained by her mother, so of course she'd stick onto it
Perhaps but I feel like if she did have false hope they would sneak in a little nod to that.
Also there was a scene similar to what Saber was talking about. One of her Aunt's said something like "she's the top of her class and she still believes in that".
So plot hole or no plot hole... *Y e s*
Someone can still believe in a faith and be scientific
Believing in a reIigion andscience are not mutually exclusive
Gru: don’t mind if I steal
@Zakaria Ogle Shut up we are talking about Gru
What the heck I just read ;-;
@Zakaria Ogle ok buddy
@Zakaria Ogle have you tried a tinfoil hat? And also quit weird drugs? That might help
@Zakaria Ogle In 1912, the Bureau of Education (not to be confused with its successor agency, the United States Department of Education) was tasked by then Secretary of the Interior Franklin Knight Lane with completely restructuring the American education system for the twentieth century. In response, the Bureau of Education, together with the National Education Association, created the Commission on the Reorganization of Secondary Education. The Commission was made up of 16 committees (a 17th was established two years later, in 1916), each one tasked with the reform of a specific aspect of the American Education system. Notable among these was the Committee on Social Studies, which was created to consolidate and standardize various subjects which did not fit within normal school curricula into a new subject, to be called "the social studies".
My little sister couldnt stop sobbing at the end. She kept crying “The bunny left!... the bunny left and its the last thing from the mommy!” My sister was heartbroken but loved the movie. I used this movie to help explain that its ok to mourn our grandfather because he’s very sick and my little sister won’t understand how to cope when he passes
1. Girl lives with her parents.
2. Mother dies.
3. Mourning.
4. Father starts dating.
5. ???
6. *Girl flies a rocket to the moon.*
That escalated quickly...
The only movie that made me cry was the ending to the Iron Giant
Oh man I was 13 years old watching this in the cinemas when it originally released and it destroyed me. Rewatching it in 2016 when the signature edition came out the ending hit 30 year old me just as hard.
Same
Mine was All Dogs Go To Heaven
I remember wanting a sequel to The Iron Giant for a few years given the Iron Giant was able to reassemble itself at the end. :p
@@indigowendigo8165 Hm I thought they made one and it wasn't that great... or I may be thinking of a different movie. But I'm kind of glad they didn't, they have a tendency of fucking up great movies with sequels.
When I watched this I immediately yelled at my friends that this was better than the movies Disney’s been making recently, and that was surprising considering I didn’t have that much hope for this, but I found I actually really liked it, and I definitely think it needs more but all in all it was👌
Better than the Mulan remake? Totally
It truly is better than Disney movies now a days.
Better than Wreck it ralph 2 but not as good as Moana
Thank you Netflix. You gave us this and Blood of Zeus at a time when we needed them.
Speaking of which, is Saber gonna cover Blood of Zeus?
I like this more than castelvenia but I'm a bit buyest because I am half Greek
I love that show!
I love it too! Plus he did cover Castlevania beforehand and this is from the same studio so hopefully he'll give it a shot.
Want me to tell you something funny that happened to me with Blood of Zeus? Look im 10 years old and my mom say me to see that series, and I say to her: but this is an anime, and she said to me: we has seen more violence in other movies. I was like WTF IS HAPPENING HERE! And I am seeing ot and is every good
It's such an outstanding anime. I absolutely love that the credits are behind the scenes!
I think there is a comment by her aunt when she says “She’s the top of her class* but she still believes in Chang’e?” But yeah I do wish they made a bit more effort to at least say something about her contradicting beliefs to her face. Maybe that would’ve gotten through to the audience a little more that her belief in Chang’e is about faith more than science.
i dont know. it feels very much like an asian parent/ family thing that my family does to me sometimes. it hit harder to me knowing that that's how a lot of asian family members can act.
But why? Its pretty obvious why she does believe in it. The moon goddess holds a special place in her heart because of her mom, i mean that's the whole reason shes going there, to prove something about her mom.
Plus not everything needs a spoken reason.
s u n i - I said why I wanted it, to drive home the fact that her belief in Chang’e was about faith over science to the audience. I’m sure the guy in the video isn’t the only person who had that nitpick with her character.
Glass?!???
"Fly me to the Moon,
Let me play among the stars..."
"Let me see what Spring is like on Jupiter and Mars."
I also felt like comparing it to Coco when I watched this. I think there could've been some flashback scenes to flesh out the character relationships more. Like in Coco we saw the flashback of baby Coco, instead of just being told about it. I feel like Over The Moon did too much 'telling us how to feel' about character's pasts rather than showing. And I think Gobi showed up too late, I would've removed the forgettable Biker Chicks and replaced it with more time with Gobi. Because I did like Gobi, but his relationship with Moon Goddess felt very one-sided. The same with Jade Rabbit and even the little brother, needed more. But I enjoyed this movie overall too!
Big agree!! Especially when it came to Gobi, in my opinion a good amount of the side characters just felt kinda.. forgettable to me? Like I just feel like there wasn't as much to them as there could have been lol
Completely agree!
@Leif Emmanuel Yeah with that I think it implied that it was too soon & she wasn't ready to hear it from someone who didn't relate to her pain. But once Fei Fei revealed her own loss to Chang'e, they both learned that showing empathy to others can be healing. But it definitely could've been clearer since Chang'e barely acknowledged Gobi. Maybe Jade Rabbit and Gobi could've been combined somehow, or at least more involved with him? Then Jade not being able to make the potion until the visitors came would also feel more connected. I dunno.
I saw the Netflix trailer and my first response was
“THE MOON GODDESS IS A K POP SINGER?!?” (Laughing)
Legit that’s what I thought as first impressions.
I think the correct name would be C-pop but i get your point xD
Actually, she's a Broadway actress... lol.
Mine was.. "hey honey, Does Chang'e have a pop singer skin in Smite? How about a ping pong champion skin?" He told me to quit watching movies with Smite characters in them... ( this isn't the first one I've stumbled upon, Check out Sita Sings The Blues)
@Zakaria Ogle ahat
C-pop not k-pop but I felt it
Being (half) Chinese myself it's actually really interesting to see that there's more representation in children's movies, and it's nice to know there's kids these days that are seeing this and they get to have more people like them, compared to when I was a kid. Having more and more movies that incorporate Chinese culture, significant characters being Chinese, it's all really uplifting to know my little sisters get to have more characters and movies to latch onto.
The only thing I think they missed on this was how the Moon Goddess (Chang’e) was trying to help Fei Fei with grief and they missed the chance of having the brother (Chin) share his grief so he and Fei could bound over it.
That whole scene (though really BEAUTIFUL) felt off to me since I was expecting Chin and Fei to truly bond
inaccurate: the rabbit is really sweet and not being a brat at all
Agreed. I was so nervous when I saw the bunnys falsie lashes lmao. Pretty glad that 1. neither could talk and 2. They weren't obnoxious comedy relieves like the raindeer from frozen fe. I didnt mind them at all. While they didn't contribute much for me as an adult, I can see why they put them in for kids, besides obviously being part of the mythology.
It depends on the person, I absolutely couldn't stand the rabbit but I liked the movie in general.
@@juli5945 of course :), I just find it pretty tolerable compared to many other mascots
@@funsize69 For sure, I don't even dislike animal sidekicks but they have to be done well in order to be pleasing , this one was toned down but didn't do it for me
(I’m talking about my sister’s real life pet rabbit but ok)
Is no one else talking about how Phillipa Soo (played OG Eliza in Hamilton) is in this movie as The Moon Goddess?
IKR love her so much!
Ah, she sang a pop song, that's why I didn't recognize her.
Good thing they gave her a huge role in this movie, in The One and Only Ivan on Disney+, she was wasted as a parrot that only repeats what the others say.
@@reasyrandom yeah, you can kinda hear her "rasp"
Her voice is amazing!
I only just realised....
The dad's girlfriend brings dates, because they are dating....
Me too. Right now I was like "oohhh"
It’s an Asian thing
@@kairiena2546 cool! I didn't know if it was a custom, but I also like to think the writers threw in a pun.😂
@@Elizabeth-iv2pr It could totally be both!
Moon:
exists
Eggman:
"Im about to ruin this mans whole carrere."
The scene where the Moon City got obliterated by Eggman's laser piss really hit home.
*I H A V E T O M A K E A N*
*_A N N O U N C E M E N T_*
"How do you like that, obama?"
Why does that look like sokka it scares me
Gru:
I recently lost both my grandparents this month. my grandfather died and my grandmother moved away forever to live out her final days with her daughters. (She's my step-grandmother so it makes sense that she'd want to do that.) This whole year has been filled with death and misfortune for me. I've had 3 beloved pets die within this year and 3 die right near the end of last year. They all died of old age and natural causes. The most painful thing is my best buddy, the dog I had since I was 5, has mouth cancer, and is also going to be dying this year, maybe early next year. I nearly cried on that last song... The only reason I didn't was that I had company and due to past trauma I don't let people see me cry.
When I first saw the Moon Goddess, I thought her dress looked like a pile of pringles.
If they would’ve done the Mulan remake in this art style and fixed everything that was wrong with the live action one. We would have a perfect Mulan remake.
YAY!! I literally JUST finished this movie 10 minutes ago and was hoping you’d do a review!!
I saw this title and thought of the visual novel To the Moon. Ironically, I just added someone's beautiful piano cover of "River's Song" to my Spotify playlist so that was in my head as I watched this review.
Both also deal with the death of a loved one.
Hello from China. Great job on the review. I like your style.
Just a few things on the world building aspect:
In the Chinese folklore about Chang'e (pronounced Chang Err) and the moon, the overarching theme of the mythical moon world is loneliness. The moon palace is called 广寒宫 which translates to The Palace of Vast and Cold. It is supposedly a traditional Chinese style architecture sitting in a cold Gobi desert-like landscape, with Chang'e and a Jade Rabbit and no one else (again in a different version there is a mythical dude chopping down a tree for some reason and the tree heals after every chop). In this film the creators made it much more lively and colorful so it's more suitable for an animated film targeted at a wide range of audiences. I also feel that they are doubling down on that science and myths coexist idea so they made the inhabitants and the environment kinda like aliens. The guards being mooncakes are funny while not complicating things with extra characters who need to be explained. I have no idea what the jelly dog is. Frogs or toads are also from original Chinese folklore associated with the moon and Chang'e. One theory is that the darker parts of a full moon looks like a toad and a rabbit.
That is fascinating! Thank you for sharing this lore with us
I cried. And I have been listening to Ultraluminary over and over again don’t look at me like that it’s a bop
At 3:47 the dog species is known as “Chow Chow in English (edit in Chinese 松狮 is chow chow )
I’ve been thinking about watching this on Netflix.. I was a bit sus about it so thanks Saber!
Yeah I might watch it too now
It's pretty good. Musical numbers could use a little help but still pretty good.
I watched this review and immediately went to Netflix. Definitely holds out. And also, i love Glen Keane’s work, their facial expressions make the movie
Idk if its was just me but this movie felt close to pixar quality.
No it definitely did
Not really. It’s good animation but not Pixar’s level.
not just you, I agree! I think what makes it "Pixar-like" is the superb character development and the "wholeness" of the story.
,, Disney animator worked on this movie" - so that's why my dad questioned is it Disney movie!
I was mostly annoyed with the overly cliched set-up of “surprise! I’m getting married and you should learn to deal with it real quick!” This dad has been dating the new woman for enough time to decide to get married to her. Her son is fully aware of the situation and the extended family do not seem perturbed by a “surprise fiancé” at family celebration which made me feel like they knew this was happening. So the father has knowingly kept this from his daughter for what reason exactly? I mean, other than a trope-y plot device.
Knowing Fei-Fei she probably avoided any hint and conversation with all her might. I did like that they showed the step-mom making a constant effort during the long time it took to make the rocket. It really helps showcase how much Fei -Fei is in denial.
Ik that is the one thing that bothered me in this movie
Took me outta the movie more than the science vs goddess belief.
I walked on the Moon before the US, but alas the mainstream media doesn't want me to tell you that
Have you also allied with the Martian people, glorious leader
Thank you, Kim Jong-un. Very cool.
Hey Kim can I nuke USA to save the trouble
Thanks Kim Jong un
@Kim Jong-un, you are a man of great taste. I see you like to watch EmmyMadeinJapan as much as I do! What's your favorite movie review by Saberspark, or food video by Emmy?
Me a age of mythology china main , sees Chang'e got her own movie, "Nice", I'm fully prepared and familiar with the lore
I wish age of mythology got more attention.
What did you think about the not yet released “Wolfwalkers„. It’s a movie I am really excited of, the story sounds very interesting and the 2D animation That is really grate and that’s why I’m really excited🤩
I paid $20 to stream it on its release day. I loved it so much I've been seriously considering paying another $20 to watch it again
’I’m so excited to see it! I’ll have to wait until december though😭
I was so happy they made sure to include my boi the Jade Rabbit! He is my favorite Chinese myth. And if you thought Chang'e’s story is sad, Jade’s origin story is SUPER tear jerking in pretty much all versions.
What happened is some dudes from heaven needed a replacement immortal pill maker and decided to go with an animal this time around because humans are too shady. They disguise themselves as beggars and cry for food in the Forrest. Some kind animals gather them some food, but the Rabbit couldn’t because rabbits are grazing animals so they can’t gather food. But that little rabbit wanted to help these starving people so bad, he legit jumps into the fire to be cooked and eaten! These dudes were so touched by his sacrifice they immediately give his spirit the position and to show people how awesome this little bunny is, they made his fur the color of jade (some interpretations specifically white jade) which is where he got his name.
He ended up on the moon with Chang'e because he felt extreme guilt over making the extra pills that lead to her being sent to the moon. He goes to be exiled on the moon so she isn’t there alone. Such an undeniably selfless little character. 🐇
The movie actually did address Fefe being scientifically driven, but also believing in the moon goddess. During the first dinner scene, one of her family members goes "I can't believe she's so intelligent, and still believes in Chang'e!"
Her name is pronounced "Chaung Ah"
Thanks Smite
it's pronounced in the movie, it's closer to "chung ugh"
I kept asking my husband ( someone who plays smite) if She had a pop star or ping pong champion skin.
I love Smite! I am either Hades or Aphrodite.
More like Chung AHH
I showed this to my mother in law and she said:
“ugh, why is everything shoved down OUR throats”?
I didn’t know how to reply, 😐 like WTF DOES THAT MEAN BROOOOOO!
Honestly when I saw the ad for it after finishing a show
I thought it would be one of those things that look cool but wouldn’t be that good, but after this review I should probably watch it lol
Chang’e is pronounced “Chang-uh”
Not really sure how to write it out phonetically for english speakers. In chinese “ang” is less hard on the a and sounds a little like aang.
I see people writing “ah” which doesn’t really sound right.
I'm glad you pointed out how to pronounce her name because I was a little annoyed that he couldn't pronounce it right. I'm sorry if I sound harsh, but it came off as disrespectful to the culture behind the movie for not taking the time to learn how to pronounce the name properly.
The movie pronounced chang’e name correctly and it’s not that hard seriously
Also is no one really going to talk about her hanfu? It’s Beautiful like all 3 of them
And is no one I’d going to talk about how the Chinese version is WAY better than the English version
7:01 that’s part of the actual myth of Chang’e has a rabbit
Exactly like dude put a bit more effort
-_- this bit of yours not pronouncing stuff that well is fine and all but this movie literally said her name a lot so..??
@@annepandesal Exactly. Its literally 2 syllables 😭
@@LetsBoogy512 yeah 😭😩 get your act together dude
Movie wasn’t that bad, it was kind of cute. 💫
Just so you know the moon goddess actually does have a pet in the real life myth, they didn’t add it for appeal.
I'm not gonna lie, *when Chang'e started singing I was thrown off.*
Ikr. Same. The music didn't do much for me, not memorable at all imo. I liked the one where fei fei built the rocket but that's about it. At least chang'e pop concert was visually pleasing af. The ping pong one tho...
@@funsize69 The ping pong one was the best. Honestly that was extremely catchy and I'm still humming it to this very moment.
@@ConcealedWeaponry SAME AYE! especially when she steps on the table that did it for me espcially the rap part its so good AND THE TRANSITION TO THE COLORS SDPCKASDPK its just not that much which im aware of but i love the transitions as she spins to a lighter color
@@UwU-lm9or That song was the one that actually made her feel like a Goddess and not some depressed pop-star and I loved EVERY second of it.
@@ConcealedWeaponry SDFJFEA YESS IT REALLY DID! I AGREE SO MUCH INTERNET HUMAN :DD
The mention of loss right now is hard for me but getting better, this is just me getting out some thoughts but, halloween just went by and i get saddened every year during or just after october, cause my first cat i had since i was 3 died a few years ago halloween week so, seeing this being reviewed... i think it could help people like me (my case is really not severe compared to other people's losses and struggles i just really miss the cat i grew up alongside) who may need the message this movie gives, it's not a life changer or anything, but i feel like it could be a genuine comfort. I haven't watched it yet, but since I'm at this point in the year again, i might watch it tonight at work or when i get home, who knows it could be my new comfort movie. I definitely need one
Moon: EXIST
Treyarch: let’s make a map out of it!
Me and my roommates watched it together and we were all crying by the end of it. It’s soooo good!
6:02 Gotta love the George Melies A Trip to the Moon reference.
That movie gets referenced a lot, if only the "rocket crash-landing into the moon's eye" bit. Maybe they'll remake it someday, likely for the 100 year anniversary
Made me cry and when you showed that scene of the one song I cried again. I lost my father a long time ago so time didn't soften the impact of that song on me. Anyway great movie highly recommend.
This was a US-China co-production.
Chinese animation was really great last year with White Snake and Ne Zha.
And we also had Jiang Ziya this year which also did really well.
I watched this and patiently waited for you to make a video about this film. Love the vid.