Big Fish & Begonia is the newest anime movie from the studio that gave us The Legend of Korra, and it’s probably their best yet in terms of animation. This is a Chinese movie that is likely China’s answer to Spirited Away, and it’s great.
We understand the movie was co-directed by Zhang Chun and Liang Xuan, two men who have been working on this film for around 10-years. They got lucky when the movie was financed, and finally, it’s before the eyes of millions of people via Netflix.
OK, so Big Fish & Begonia is all about a girl called Chun, from a mystical place who travels to the human world as a dolphin as part of her initiation. It’s a ritual of her people for whenever a child turns 16, and it’s a dangerous one.
You see, the idea is to visit this place and travel for seven days, but on the seventh day, all children must return before the portal closes shut.
Visiting the human realm can be problematic since humans, at times, are awful creatures. Therefore, over the years, some children never make it back. In fact, our main character almost failed to return home, and the reason why she made it back is actually the primary reason that pushes this story forward.
You see, during her seven-day quest, Chun while in Dolphin form, came across a young fisherman. She first saw him after coming through the portal, and finally when it was time to go home on the seventh day.
While swimming towards the portal, Chun got caught in a finishing net, and the young fisherman realized what has happened. He swam out into the deep to set what her free, but in the end, he drowned.
As it stands, then, Chun felt it was her fault. If she was more careful, this young man would have lived. Chun then decided to save his soul an return him to the land of the living, and that’s where things took a bad turn for her entire world.
We have to say that many things about this movie are quality. The animation is top notch, and the story is decent. What we are looking at here is the best Chinese anime we’ve ever seen, and because it made over $90 million at the local Chinese box office, you can be certain more Chinese animators will try their luck in the future.