''Jiang Ziya'' (, sometimes spelt as ''Jiang Zi Ya'') is a 2020 Chinese 3D computer-animated

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, an ...

directed by Cheng Teng and Li Wei. Featuring the mythological and fictional version of the popular Chinese figure

Jiang Ziya Jiang Ziya ( century BC – century BC), also known by several other names, was a Chinese noble who helped kings Wen and Wu of Zhou overthrow the Shang in ancient China. Following their victory at Muye, he continued to serve ...

, the plot is loosely based on the novel ''

Investiture of the Gods ''The Investiture of the Gods'', also known by its Chinese names () and is a 16th-century Chinese novel and one of the major vernacular Chinese works in the gods and demons (''shenmo'') genre written during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Cons ...

'' by

Xu Zhonglin Xu Zhonglin (; 1567 - c. 1619 or 1620) was a Chinese writer who lived in the Ming dynasty. He is best known as the author of the 16th century semi-mythical novel '' Investiture of the Gods'' (). He was born in Yingtian Prefecture, present-day Na ...

. It is a follow-up to 2019's ''

Ne Zha Nezha ( 哪吒) is a protection deity in Chinese folk religion. His official Taoist name is "Marshal of the Central Altar" (). He was then given the title "Third Lotus Prince" () after he became a deity. Origins According to Meir Shahar, Nez ...

'' and the second installment of the Fengshen Cinematic Universe. The film was initially scheduled for release in China on 25 January 2020, but following the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

all

Chinese New Year Chinese New Year is the festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar and solar Chinese calendar. In Sinophone, Chinese and other East Asian cultures, the festival is commonly r ...

releases were cancelled. The new release date was on 1 October 2020. The film's official English title in China is ''Legend of Deification'', and it is released as ''Jiang Ziya: Legend of Deification'' in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore.

Plot

After a

Fox spirit Huli jing () are Chinese mythological creatures usually capable of shapeshifting, who may either be benevolent or malevolent spirits. In Chinese mythology and folklore, the fox spirit takes variant forms with different meanings, powers, charac ...

causes the downfall of the

Shang dynasty The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and ...

, A war is waged across the three realms. Eventually, the Fox spirit is captured. Jiang Ziya, a mortal who has gained renown via the war, is given the job of executing it. During the execution, the fox spirit shows Jiang Ziya that there is a young girl inside of her, and that going through with the execution would kill the girl as well. Jiang Ziya hesitates to continue the process but seemingly kills the fox spirit after it tries to escape. Unwilling to accept that the girl was supposedly an illusion created by the fox spirit, Jiang Ziya is stripped of his powers and banished to the North Sea until he can correct his mind. Jiang spends ten years on earth despondent with his friend

Shen Gongbao Shen Gongbao (申公豹) is a major character featured within the famed classic Chinese novel Investiture of the Gods. Shen Gongbao is a disciple of Yuanshi Tianzun, Jiang Ziya's junior fellow apprentice. Background Shen Gongbao is good at com ...

and his pet, Si Bu Xiang. Jiang encounters Xiao Jiu, an amnesiac young fox spirit who resembles the girl he saw during the fox spirit's execution. After a scuffle over a map, Jiang Ziya decides to accompany her to Youdu Mountain, where she believes her father is waiting for her, trailed by Shen Gongbao. During the journey, Jiang Ziya fights numerous dark demons- both evil fox spirits and the souls of the lost. At Youdu mountain, Xiao Jiu encounters the King of Zhou, who explains that she is tied to the original fox spirit and must be killed in order to fully defeat the former. Upon hearing this, Jiang Ziya attempts to kill her but inadvertently summons the fox spirit. She explains that the girl was Su Daji and was abandoned by her father to be given as a concubine. Jiang Ziya along with Shen Gongbao manage to fight off the fox spirit together, at the cost of the death of Si Bu Xiang. Shen Gongbao decides to sacrifice some of his power to spirit Jiang to the heavens, so he may speak to the Master,

Wenshu Guangfa Tianzun Wenshu Guangfa Tianzun () is a Taoist deity and character in the classic Chinese novel '' Investiture of the Gods'' (more commonly known as ''Fengshen Yanyi''). He is a disciple of Yuanshi Tianzun and one of the Three Great Immortals. The characte ...

. The Master explains that Jiang Ziya wasn't denied Godhood because he didn't kill the fox clan leader but because he was willing to risk the fate of the world to save the girl. Jiang Ziya convinces the Master to let him guide the girl to reincarnation, which would kill the fox spirit. Jiang Ziya takes Xiao Jiu to the Gate of Reincarnation, the fox spirit being held back by Shen Gongbao- however, the fox spirit manages to get past him and attack the gate. As the fox spirit regains her power, she explains to Jiang Ziya that originally, she had been promised Godhood but had instead been turned into a scapegoat to fight against to unite the three realms. Jiang Ziya attempts to save the girl, while the Master sends a

guillotine A guillotine is an apparatus designed for efficiently carrying out executions by beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secured with stocks at th ...

to kill her. Jiang Ziya realises his true powers come from his self-confidence and not the will of heaven, and manages to seemingly save the girl, only for her to be killed by the guillotine. The Heavens applaud Jiang Ziya for killing the fox spirit and once again ask him to ascend to godhood. Realizing how corrupt heaven truly is, Jiang Ziya destroys the bridge between the human and heavenly realms, severing the hold between the two. Years later, Shen Gongbao tells the story of Jiang Ziya to a disciple, framing him as a true hero above all others. A young girl and a dog, reincarnations of Xiao Jiu and Si Bu Xiang respectively, play together. In a

Mid-credits scene A post-credits scene (commonly referred to as a stinger or credit cookie) or mid-credits scene is a short clip that appears after all or some of the closing credits have rolled and sometimes after a production logo of a film, TV series, or video g ...

, three gods are posted to guard a heavenly prison. In another, Jiang Ziya has dinner with

Nezha Nezha ( 哪吒) is a protection deity in Chinese folk religion. His official Taoist name is "Marshal of the Central Altar" (). He was then given the title "Third Lotus Prince" () after he became a deity. Origins According to Meir Shahar, Nez ...

. In an End-credits scene, the film

Deep Sea The deep sea is broadly defined as the ocean depth where light begins to fade, at an approximate depth of 200 metres (656 feet) or the point of transition from continental shelves to continental slopes. Conditions within the deep sea are a combin ...

is teased.

Cast

* Zheng Xi as

* Yang Ning as Xiao Jiu / Su Daji * Tutehameng as

* Yan Meme as Si Bu Xiang * Ji Guanlin and

Shan Xin Shan Xin (, literal meaning The New Mountain, born 1 January 1989), also known as Wang Youji or Wang Shuang, is a Chinese mainland singer, voice actress and a core member of the TrioPen Studio () and Drama Times (). Her name is derived from Ka ...

as Jiuwei / Demon Queen *

Jiang Guangtao Jiang Guangtao () is a Chinese voice actor and voice director of Mainland China, dubbing and directing foreign content in the Mandarin Chinese format. Most of the roles that Jiang dubs for foreign films are considered protagonist or secondary ro ...

as Tianzun

Production

Inspiration

The film tells the story of the mythological and fictional literary version of

from the ''

'', a gargantuan Ming-dynasty (1368–1644) ''

shenmo Gods and demons fiction () is a subgenre of fantasy fiction that revolves around the deities, immortals, and monsters of Chinese mythology. The term ''shenmo xiaoshuo'', coined in the early 20th century by the writer and literary historian Lu ...

'' novel that is traditionally attributed to

, and incorporates various existing myths into a wider narrative. Jiang Ziya is traditionally depicted in Chinese fiction as a Taoist adept in

Chinese folk religion Chinese folk religion, also known as Chinese popular religion comprehends a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. Vivienne Wee described it as "an empty bowl, which can variously be filled ...

and

Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...

. In this film, Jiang Ziya is portrayed as a middle-aged man who insists on following his heart despite having a complex past.

Release

On 12 December 2019, the producers released their first trailer. Due to the

, the film's mainland Chinese release date was changed from 25 January 2020 to 1 October 2020. The film was released on that date simultaneously in China, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore.

Reception

Box office

In China, pre-sale tickets totaled up to 90 million yuan (US$13.3 million). In just eight hours since its release, the film has grossed a total of 297 million yuan (US$43.7 million). The film surpassed its predecessor, ''Ne Zha'' (144 million yuan, or US$21.2 million) to become the highest grossing animated film opening day in China (308 million yuan, US$45.4 million). the film legged out fairly well, dropping to $303 million CNY on its second day, and $115 million CNY by its fifth, ending up with $1.037 billion CNY by the end of its first week. The film ended up with $1.6 billion CNY ($240 million USD), making it the second highest-grossing Chinese animated film ever, and the highest grossing animated film of 2020.

Critical response

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film holds an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The film holds a 6.6 and an 8.3 out of 10 on aggregator sites

Douban Douban.com (), launched on 6 March 2005, is a Chinese online database and social networking service that allows registered users to record information and create content related to film, books, music, recent events, and activities in Chinese c ...

and

Maoyan Tianjin Maoyan Culture Media () is a Chinese company that owns the largest online movie ticketing website in China, maoyan.com, with 30% share of the market in 2015. In 2016, Wang Changtian of Beijing Enlight Media offered to buy a controlling stak ...

respectively.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jiang Ziya 2020 films 2020 computer-animated films Chinese 3D films Chinese computer-animated films Chinese fantasy films Films based on Chinese myths and legends Films based on Chinese novels Films postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Films set in the Shang dynasty IMAX films 2020s Mandarin-language films Works based on Investiture of the Gods Films directed by Li Wei (Chinese director) Animated feature films