Deftly handles child-sensitive subject of grief

Over the Moon Review

By Tharishi Hewavithanagamage

Glen Keane, the legendary character animator behind much-loved Disney classics like ‘The Little Mermaid,’ ‘Aladdin,’ and ‘Tangled,’ takes his seat in the director’s chair for the new Netflix animated film, inspired by a popular Chinese legend about the Moon Goddess Chang’e. The film is co-directed by John Kahrs, with a screenplay by the late Audrey Wells, and animated by Sony Pictures Imageworks, with featured songs written by Christopher Curtis, Marjorie Duffield and Helen Park.

Netflix released the animated musical feature and offered versions in over 30 languages, each with different voice casts. The English version of the movie has an Asian-American cast, with stars such as Sandra Oh, Ken Jeong, John Cho, Cathy Ang and Phillipa Soo voicing the Moon Goddess Chang’e. Netflix has been introducing more culturally diverse projects, and producer Peilin Chou sees ‘Over the Moon’ as an entry point, for audiences to immerse themselves in a world they may not know much about.

Set in the water town of Wuzhen, outside Hangzhou, the film follows a brilliant young girl, Fei Fei (Cathy Ang) who grows up listening to the legend of the Moon Goddess Chang’e, who lives alone on the moon with her jade rabbit, pining for her lost love Houyi. The untimely death of Fei Fei’s mother with whom she shared a close bond, leaves the young girl pining for her mother. Four years after the death of her mother, Fei Fei’s reality changes when her father (John Cho) introduces Mrs. Zhong (Sandra Oh) and her son Chin (Robert G. Chiu). Thinking that her father has forgotten her mother and determined to remind him of the love they shared, young Fei Fei and her pet rabbit sidekick Bungee, set out to build a rocket to the moon and prove that Chang’e exists. After much planning Fei Fei, Bungee and Chin (a stowaway) make it to the moon, but things turn out to be very different from what they expected.

The film interweaves the real-life myth of Chang’e with a touching story of family, love and loss. The movie handles the subject of grief, usually considered a heavy subject matter for children, with extreme gentleness, and delivers a well woven tale that helps all individuals regardless of age, to come to terms with their own forms and versions of grief. The brilliant parallel between Fei Fei and Chang’e as two individuals blanketed by misery, waiting and hoping for things to return to normal, is central to the delivery of the poignant message about dealing with grief. They cope with grief in their own way and are unable to move on. Depicting emotions through an Asian lens was critical in ensuring authentic Asian representation in the film, according to the creators. Consequently, the vivid colors, imagery and actions of the characters are animated in great detail for the benefit of the audiences.

The film touches on the themes of family, love and grief using an Asian lens. The family gathering shown in the film, is a classic example of activities in an Asian household, with the presence of aunts, uncles and grandparents, the busy kitchen, the grandmother complaining that Fei Fei hasn’t been eating well, and so on. In addition, the adorable pets Bungee and Chin’s pet frog Croak are portrayed as those who they rely on as a breakaway from their reality and who provide much needed comfort. Furthermore, the film anchors its acts on emotional songs by both Fei Fei and Chang’e for the most part, and also delivers a surprising and heartwarming performance by Ken Jeong’s green moon creature ‘Gobi.’ The strong vocal talent from the characters is commendably showcased.

Despite the visual and auditory images that cast a colorful glow, the plot struggles to keep up with the original goal of the tale. The pace quickens when Fei Fei reaches the moon, and they are sent off on a side-quest upon meeting Chang’e. The character development also hastens leaving no space for anyone to breathe. Moreover, the film’s struggle to balance cultural specificity with mainstream Western tastes and the patchwork of conflicting styles affecting their goal to maintain cultural authenticity has been critiqued. The creators have evidently aimed to add a bit of modernity to the tale. Chang’e’s musical numbers on t

he moon are a case in point. ‘Ultraluminary,’ and ‘Hey Boy,’ both sung by Chang’e (the latter sung with Chin), are bursting with borrowings from American pop songs and K-pop beats. She’s portrayed (at least for the first half) as a glitzy dancing diva, before returning to her traditional appearance. It tends to add an American twist on a Chinese folktale and presents a version of China that is more appealing to Western audiences.

At the end of the day, despite the issues ‘Over the Moon’ manages to deliver its message to audiences of all ages, especially those who know what it means to loose someone dear to them. It’s not a simple story, but one with complicated, three-dimensional characters who audiences can relate to. It’s a visual poem that talks about death and loss. Fei Fei, her father (to a certain extent) and Chang’e’s desire to escape from their unbearable reality and the different approaches they take to handle their grief and find solutions to overcome it, are all depicted vividly and presented with vibrant dashes of color and mind-blowing imagery. Themes like family, love and grief transcend culture and the film weaves them carefully together and gives audiences a breathtakingly memorable animated musical.