So I just finished watching this on Netflix and have to say I am greatly disappointed. After doing a little research I can see why, obviously the version available on Netflix is the worse possible version to watch as it is neither the original or the US version. It is in fact an American dubbed version where not only is the script terrible for the dubbing but the voice acting is equally as bad. It's frustrating because the animation itself is impressive but honestly if you were thinking of giving this film a go don't watch it on Netflix you would be better off watching the original with English subtitles.

Advantages:1, The character image is more mature.In the animation image design, the film didn't use children's characters for leading roles, like Monkey King, make the characters more mature.The image of Monkey King and Pig Zhu Bajie are all adult who have a background of adult socialization, which is beneficial to the depth of the hero image, rather than the superficial adventures.It is very distinctive that Villain the leading monster's face design for Sichuan Opera Face, and the leading monster's body feels elegant in the sky, I would like give him a name of "the beauty of evil".But after he become a big worm, disgusting, and the modeling of the worm, feel copying the image of the other films.2, Technical level greatly ascend.The mouth moving is more realistic;The background picture more rich layered. Disadvantages:1, The plot is weak.Writers had neither according to the novel, nor made innovation. The screenplay is only designed some abused poking fun which amused the audience once or twice. Even more worse, the focus is not prominent that the Monkey King turned into a hero of justice, slightly weak, it is not enough to convince me.2, Poor continuity in action.Action before and after in a few action scene is not smooth, give me a feeling of unknown cause and effect.3, Insert abrupt improper music.When the Monkey King, Pig Zhu Bajie, and Liu went alliance, background music style suddenly turned from the traditional Chinese opera into rock & roll, it appeared not harmonious.

I must warn you that this review may hold some nostalgic bias. After last year's Frankenstein's monster of a movie adaption ( Da Nao Tian Gong), 'Journey to the West' or 'The Monkey King' gets not the adaption we need, but the adaption we deserve. Though Sun Wukong's heaven-slaying conquests and prideful persona are skimmed over, 'The hero is back' requires prior knowledge of the original tale in order to have that emotional punch to the stomach we all want. Those who are new to the story though, can still enjoy it just fine.This is a nation's childhood re-imagined- the righteous monk (Tang Seng) is now an energetic young boy, while our hero is a lackluster ghost of his past self. The story delves into the toll of being imprisoned under a mountain for 500 years, as you know. Typically, this is a story of resurgence and finding oneself after having lost the way: a fun romp for children that resonates with adults too. Though rather clichéd, the story is a welcome departure from the traditional telling of Monkey King's adventures. What wins loyalties however, are the characters rather than the mostly one-dimensional story. The casting of the child actor for the role of Jiang Liu'er ( I watched it in mandarin dub) is something to be applauded- it really bought out a charming innocence that never once became annoying. Liu'er is a delight.The one that carries the movie is of course the Monkey King himself, who mainly went by his title, The Great Sage equal to Heaven. The voice acting is phenomenal here; with everything at a minimal, the Monkey King delivers his conflict to the audience brilliantly. Gone is the squeaky high-voice , gone is the corniness of line-delivering in previous incarnations, this Monkey King is genuine and ridiculously endearing through his relationship with the boy. When his voice breaks in high-stirring emotions, my heart breaks with it :)Animation wise, this is the best animation that has come out of china so far, period. All of those people who accepted that eastern animation would forever be inferior to the west need to re-evaluate their life choices-like the Monkey King. This movie looks about not far from big blockbusters out of dreamworks. Unlike the mostly easy-going tone between conflicts, the fight scenes elevated the movie to a whole new level- expect well choreographed, quick-fire action and an intensity that keeps both adolescents and adults invested. Beware the tear-jerker scenes, they sneak up on you unexpectedly.However, keep in mind that 'the hero is back' is first and foremost a children's fantasy story, and falls back on slap-stick humour most of the time; though in my screening it got quite a few good laughs too, just not me. Other than the two main leads, the secondary characters are a shambles.The villain did all the villainous things expected. It seems like Pigsy is purely here for cringe-worthy comic relief, though the kids seem to enjoy it. The pig is demoted here more than ever before. More glaringly is the fact that the third disciple Sandy ( Sha Wujing) is completely omitted, meanwhile, even the white horse-dragon has a happy cameo. But no matter I guess...The resolution, though satisfying, was somewhat lacking compared to what was an equally rash, but spectacular, build up. beware mild spoilers: The ending suffers from a deus ex machina feeling, though it made sense in terms of the Monkey King's emotional journey. The fight seemed to have ended just as audience blood pressures began to peak. In the end, removing the Monkey King's powers from the equation made perfect sense- all the fights would have lasted mere seconds had he had them from the get-go. Spoiler spoilers:The Monkey King's trauma would have been more impactful if he was imprisoned consciously, instead of being frozen in time as portrayed. It would have been nice to see him acknowledge that Jiang Liu'er was the one who freed him, but again, no matter. How much badassery can you shove into a single moment? This movie challenges this through the Monkey King's entrance in the last act, when the all-too-familiar theme song (from Stephen Chow's incarnation I believe) plays in the background.End Spoilers: Edit: Did you know the director Tian Xiao Peng also worked on the 1999 cartoon series of journey to the west? Clearly it shows.All in all, this is the resuscitation of a literary classic and, for me at least, a childhood (and adulthood!) hero that I will gladly follow re-envisaged again, and again.

With an almost Pixarian flair that marries perfectly with an Miyazaki-type of emotional twist, "Monkey King, hero is back" is an uproar in a usually quiet Chinese animation market. Cheap tearjerker, well some of those who have had enough of Hollywood stuff might grumble, but it was wrong to juxtapose "Monkey King, hero is back" to other mainstream American animations, at least not in a Chinese scenario. For the adaptation of the classic Chinese Novel "To the West" this film is a bold departure from the old word- by-word translation that nobody really cares anymore. Monkey King, portrayed as an outcast was only able to pick himself up from words of a little monk. In some way, this was significant as it applies powerfully to the real world. What we are afraid of is nothing but figments of our own fears. The movie deals courageously with the theme of lost. Donned with a old cloth, nothing suggests even a remote element of kingness except his occasional up-hands on small monsters. To put it another way, he was a loser, a pariah who has lost faith in himself. There are a couple of close-up scenes which presented an unusually meticulous and delicate approach to the portrayal of Monkey King's mentality. Few words were being said and yet the emotion rocked us powerfully. For me personally, the story of Monkey King has always held a special place in my mind since I was young, which I believe applies to many other people who were born in the twenties century China where American and Japanese popular culture had yet made their strides into the quiet and sometimes monotonous Chinese entertainment market. Since all the way back, there has always been Monkey King and the story of "Journey to the West" where fable-like interplays between pigsy, Monkey King, Liuer (who in the book was called tang sen) serve as lessons to Chinese kids, where moral creeds like respecting the elder and knowing thy place insinuate into people heads and ultimately define us as Chinese. Whereas in the movie "Monkey King: hero is back" the Monkey King was the indisputable protagonist, the novel written in Ming Dynasty China focused more on the interplays between different characters where Monkey King was always portrayed as irrational. This definition would carry on in modern Chinese history till now. There's a sense of powerlessness in the otherwise almighty character. After being locked up under a huge mountain for five hundred years, Monkey King has certainly lost his edge. Worn-out and beaten, his weariness and regret are evermore powerful to Chinese viewers just like American viewers seeing Captain America getting beaten up and driven away. Yet this powerlessness draws us ever closer to the once sacrosanct image. Gone was the Monkey King who were once inscrutable, manically irrational. What appears in front of us instead is an individual swept away in a current he was not longer able to ride on, a person just like us. I could never fail to connect Monkey King with the rest of us, swept away in a social current we had no control of. Beaten up by the mounting expectations and pressures society demand upon us. May not we haven't been locked up under mountains for five hundred years, but we were just as beaten-up and as tired. Then what could we do. Was there a way we could find our younger selves lost during our journey in life?In the movie, the bracelet that kept Monkey King's power was a metaphor of our inner feeling of lost and powerlessness. The bracelet was shattered not by spells or powerful magics. It was shattered rather by a renewed sense of hope and drive, an edge that most of us have only when we were young, when we were carefree and fearless. The climax seems to resonate well with a sometimes cliché but nevertheless true statement: we are never normal and we have nothing to fear. I was almost driven to tears during the movie and I rank it the best Chinese animation I've ever seen in my life. Good news is that it will come to US soon, which I anticipate a great deal of. It makes me proud to be able to introduce to my friends something that is not only Chinese but also sheer pleasure.