Chang' An (2023)
Chinese animation is big business. Its biggest films equal or surpass the box office takes of the biggest films from Hollywood or Japan. One recent film to join this illustrious club is 2023's Chang'an, which went on to become the fourth highest-grossing Chinese animated film ever.
Chang'an was released in mainland China on July 8, 2023. It was produced by Light Chaser Animation, Alibaba Pictures, Tianjin Maoyan Weiying Culture Media, and Weibo Corporation, in association with China Film Co., Ltd.. It was directed by Xie Junwei and Zou Jing and written by Hongni Xiaohuolu. It was produced by Song Yiyi. The film is released in the United Kingdom and Ireland by Dazzler Media on February 28, 2025.
The film is set during the Tang Dynasty of Chinese history. It follows the lives of two warrior poets (and real-life figures) Gao Shi and Li Bai, and charts their decades long friendship as they try to climb Chinese society. Along the way they are caught up in some of the most significant events in Chinese history, including a rebellion led by one of the Emperor's favourite generals.
Chang'an is not a particularly easy sell. A subtitled, nearly 3-hours long animated drama about poets may not sound like the most riveting film in the world. But it is worth persevering with as Chang'an is a rewarding watch. For starters, it's much more action-packed than the synopsis makes it sound, with some excellent action set pieces. The film opens with an impressive battle sequence and features several throughout the film. There are also several martial arts fights that are incredibly smoothly animated and superbly choreographed. It's not wall-to-wall action or anything, but what's here is mightily impressive.
The film unfolds largely in flashback as an elderly Gao Shi (now a respected general) recounts his past and friendship with Li Bai to a visiting dignitary. The format works well for the most part, as it is an effective way to cover a long stretch of time.
Light Chaser are renowned for their beautiful animation, so it's no surprise that Chang'an is an extremely good looking film. The characters are a mix somewhere between stylised and realism, with excellent facial animation. The environments are simply stunning- snow covered vistas, cherry-blossom filled towns and bustling metropolises. They all make you feel like you could really be there.
This film is an epic in the truest sense of the word. And not just because of that mammoth running time. The whole film has an epic sweep to it as it recounts events that take place over the course of many years. Animators can depict characters at different ages without any need for de-ageing/ageing technology.
Having heroes who are poets is unusual, although these particular poets are also handy in a scrap. The actual Tang-period poetry is featured quite prominently in the film. In all, 48 poems are featured in the film, making this a fascinating watch for fans of classic Chinese literature.
Chang'an also feels like an adult film, with themes and concepts that are more likely to appeal to a grown-up audience. The film can be fairly dry, too- although Li Bai provides some comic relief. Overall it's pretty hard to imagine an audience of kids wanting to sit down for 168 minutes of this.
Despite the lengthy running time, the film moves at quite a clip. It's extremely effective at covering many years of story in a relatively brief time, meaning it doesn't feel as long. It also serves as a Chinese history lesson (although it's not entirely clear how true to life it really is) and will be of particular interest to those studying the Tang dynasty.
The central characters of Gao and Li Bai are richly drawn, but sometimes other characters are little more than archetypes. The (very few) female characters particularly got the short end of the stick in this regard. The opposing army is presented as a barbaric foreign horde, while the Chinese are presented as the height of sophistication and high culture. At times it's not hard to feel like you're watching a work of extremely well made pro-China propaganda.
Ultimately though, Chang'An is an exquisitely made and captivating film. It maybe could have done with being a good half-hour shorter but otherwise this is a singularly impressive piece of work. There aren't many animated features made like Chang'An, so the chance to catch it on the big screen, is one that shouldn't be missed.
IN A NUTSHELL: A frequently thrilling, often dazzling, epic look back at Chinese history
★★★★☆
