“White Snake”, the Chinese animated film revisits the legend of a love between a human and a snake

The Chinese animation blockbuster White Snake tackles the French market. This fantastic feature film from Amp Wong and Ji Zhao and studio light chaserwas a great success in China, it will be released in theaters on February 9.

Xuan is a hunter of snakes flanked by his fearful dog Doudou. One day in the mountains he meets Blanca, an unconscious young woman with amnesia. The stranger, pursued by mysterious creatures, turns out to be endowed with powerful powers. The hunter decides to help Blanca find her memories and her identity, even if he realizes that the young woman is not human.

White Snake is freely inspired by a Chinese legend recounting the love story between a man and a white snake which takes on the appearance of a woman. This film imagines the initial meeting between the two lovers, while questioning the conflicting relationship between man and nature.

White Snake pours out the Chinese mythological bestiary in its entirety: giant snakes, woman-vix, common crane with three heads… The spectator enjoys contemplating these sublime creatures. The fights offer muscular scenes where magic mixes with martial arts for a hair-raising result. References to Chinese myths and legends are not lacking but are sometimes difficult to grasp for Western audiences.

We regret that the first part of the film is a little fast, many beginnings of stories are not or little deepened thereafter. We remain hungry. The second part of White Snakeclearer on the stakes, captures more attention: the story gains in fluidity with impressive fights, turnarounds and majestic scenes.

From the plains tinged with purple by the setting sun to the sugar loaf mountains, characteristic of the Hunan region, White Snake is an ode to China. The viewer will also appreciate the colorful characters: the explosive Verta, sister of Blanca, strengthens the plot. The scenes with the vixen-woman, which escape the laws of gravity, are among the most audacious and the most successful.

Too bad the characters lack finesse in their expressions, unlike the latest American animated films (Encanto) and Japanese (Beautiful). Blanca, heroine of White Snakesuffers from it in her human form, her duality between her identity as a woman and as a demon struggles to convince.

A film, in the end, is pleasant to watch and the love story touching. The end, poetic, calls for a continuation of the saga. A second movie green snakederived from the universe of White Snake but this time centered on the character of Verta, is already available on Netflix.

These two productions are part of the franchise New Legends from the studio light chaser who aims to make a multitude of animated films in the same universe, like the Marvel saga. The Chinese animation market has not finished talking about it.

Gender: animation, fantasy, action
Directors: by Amp Wong, Ji Zhao
Country : China
Duration : 1h38
Exit in France : February 9, 2022
Distributer : KMBO
Synopsis : Xuan, a snake hunter, finds a young woman wandering in the mountains. She has lost her memory and only remembers her first name, Blanca. The hunter decides to help him find his identity. But dangerous spirits and powerful creatures will stand in their way, as it turns out that Blanca is most likely not human…