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Had a good time watching this.
I read the book as this release came nearer, and I thought that while good, it was clearly a ‘first big passion project that grew in scope and theme in the telling’. And that resulted in a charming work, but also one that could be refined and sharpened if given a second go around and seen by experienced eyes. Well, this movie did that and then some. It’s an affecting allegorical fairy tale for our time, one I honestly sorely needed after all that happened today.
If there’s one word to sum it up, it’s unapologetic. There’s a very big reason Disney didn’t take this on, yes, but there’s a whole lot smaller ones too. This is daring in a way their work hasn’t been allowed to be in years, if not a decade or two. A gay romance is one of its centerpieces, but it also tackles the fear of the other hurting so many today, the classism holding so many down, how it’s rooted institutionally, how you can’t just play nice and appease them. Balister did everything right, he played by the rules, he excelled, he gives them chance after chance, but that’s never going to be enough. The system and those behind it will toss you aside because you don’t belong.
Riz Ahmed plays him perfectly, making what could’ve been a stick in the mud such fun to listen to, and displaying his journey from lost and tossed aside golden boy to a man who’s found strength in the truth and most of all, his friend. In conjunction with the most effective set of puppy dog eyes I’ve ever seen, you can’t help but feel and root for him. Beck Bennett is always a gem in any ensemble and gets some big laughs. Eugene Lee Yang was a sleeper hit- I didn’t expect a Try Guy to remind me so heavily of Crispin Freeman, and that is high praise. It’s not that he sounds like a discount version of him, but that he has a similar lived in earnestness and genuine personality amidst a theatrical and dramatic performance, somehow grounded and knightly all at once. And Conroy is a risible antagonist, one who has convinced herself her paranoia and prejudices are noble and for the greater good and all the worse for it. She does not consider herself a monster by any means, but an aggrieved martyr doing what must be done, and Conroy makes her real while not sympathetic to anyone but herself.
But the most striking performance of all, of course, is Chloe Grace Mortez as Nimona. She put her heart into this role and you can feel it. She straddles the line of what could’ve been either ‘softened and smoothed so as to lose all edges’ and ‘so obnoxious and bloodthirsty so as to lose empathy’, and makes it look easy, instead conveying a character who’s found her way to survive in a world that turned its back on her first. An inner pain at the heart of her rage, one that’s always hoping that she’ll be proven wrong. Or rather, proven right with what she first saw all those years ago- that people can accept and love something different. But the film also never frames her as in the wrong for pointing that anger where it belongs- at the system that props up what was done to her. Many films would’ve agreed the director was the only problem, but this one asserts that the institute and the wall that enables and created her must also be torn down. Mortez goes hand in hand with immaculate writing and gorgeous animation to craft a character who’s hilarious, heartfelt, and devastating. Nimona in motion is such a striking vibrancy against everything else, bringing a life and beauty and color they don’t see until the end. And it makes it such a gut punch when Nimona has lost hope and that pink is replaced with black and white.
There’s a lot of ways Nimona resonates with today. The Director exclaiming Balister has a weapon is a subtle, brief one that only lasts a minute but hits like a punch to the gut. There’s Nimona defending herself being taken as self evident proof she is a monster. There’s her suicide attempt, where the rampage in the book is a path of vengeance here it’s just a last resort after once again losing everything and being rejected on a fundamental level. All that is one reason Disney wouldn’t take this on. But another is it’s sense of humor, or in acknowledging that yes kids know what blood is and many like it and they can handle it. The movie’s not a bloodbath by any means, but blood is just. There! Gay people are there! This movie, despite Disney, despite the conservative backlash against queer children’s media, is here. Saying you are seen. You are not alone. It’s something I think a lot of people, of any age, needed to hear today, and will need to hear in the future. I know I’m one of them.
I need Nimona as my sidekick!
Now!
Absolutely metal :metal::fire:Seriously very good movie. Would recommend it to anyone, funny and light, a bit of slapstick, loads of good jokes. Some great drama. Stellar action scenes. The 3D animation style worked really well, and fit the comics style a lot better than I expected tbh. Perfect adaptation of a perfect comic
best movie I have seen all year.
Great animation and nice story but they are pushing hard on the lgbtq
just like the comic, really good timing in jokes and animation.
On the opposite side of the animation coin from yesterday with Ruby Gillman, Nimona is colorful, unique, and very clever. The animation is beautiful, the production design is wildly imaginative (medieval futurism?), and there is queer representation abound. It’s on Netflix - highly recommend.
I liked it. It was good fun, and Nimona's character was very strong and well done. Unfortunately, I found that every other character was pretty bland and forgettable. Still, not a bad way to spend an evening.
Nimona's character is the best thing in the film and steals the focus from the first time she appears. Then no other character matters unless he's used as comic relief, not even Ballister.
"Nimona" lacks real conflict. The whole question is summarized in "I don't have any problem, it's society that is wrong." It is obvious what the correct answer is, no viewer will support society, not when you present it in such a simplistic and one-dimensional way. On top of that, the topic is something already quite hackneyed that has been discussed hundreds of times in recent years and apparently no one knows how to execute it in an organic and credible way. However, I appreciate that "Nimona" has something to tell even if it doesn't manage to tell it well.
The half-medieval, half-futuristic setting is dissonant and strange. It feels absurd, but seeing the tone in which the film works and the direction it takes, it seems like a conscious decision.
The jokes are great, at least for me. That's why the movie is entertaining even if it fails in many other aspects.
"Nimona" does not respect serious moments, it is as if it was afraid that the film was too serious for his audience. Every time something remotely strong happens, it's interrupted by comic relief. That kills the immersion and seriousness that the film tries to build.
The last conflict where Ballister has the fight with Nimona when he doubts her because of the piece of parchment that her boyfriend gives him... Terrible. How is it possible that all this time Nimona gives you to understand that society and everything in it must be questioned, but when they show a parchment all worn out that was in God knows where, drew it God knows who and talks about a time in the past when you were not born, you believe what it says and question the person who was helping you not die all this time? You more than anyone know that the director is the real villain of the matter, she said it herself, she herself tried to kill your boyfriend when she was confronted by him. Are you really going to question everything you saw and know with complete certainty because of a piece of paper? Teeeerrible execution, an attempt to create a simple conflict at the expense of the realism of your characters and your own narrative construction.
Read the graphic novel nearly 8 years ago when it came out. This was very different from the original story, but it stayed true to the heart of it. Really enjoyed this!
My only problem with this movie is that everyone changed for the better and hailed Nimona a hero at the end. The reality is, if this were reality, not allegory, even with all the proof in the world, the simple folk would be calling FAKE NEWS and would rally behind the director with even more vigor than before. Amazing movie, 100% recommend for anyone who is capable of independent thought.
Honestly not as good as I was hoping. Still decent, but ultimately falls a little flat for me.
My biggest gripes are with the world and characters. Almost every single person in this movie is frustrating to watch, with misunderstanding and lack of communication being an annoying, ever-present trope on display. Everyone also acts very irrational and cruel, often where it doesn't make sense or seems out of character.
On that topic, it breaks my suspension of disbelief seeing literally everyone in the setting be ignorant and unquestioning of everything. They live in a futuristic society that's progressed 1,000 years, and yet nobody knows what's on the other side of their city's walls? The story seems to focus far more on symbolism and ideas than actually making logical sense.
Other than the writing itself, the rest of the movie is pretty decent. Visually it looks great, the shading and colors are quite pleasing to witness. And it's nice to see a movie not still following the uninspired style of most Disney or Illumination movies. Music ranges from great to serviceable, which I'll definitely take.
Overall not a bad film, but I think it struggles a bit where it really counts.
What an absolute surprise gem, that I only noticed via the trending movies on Trakt.
The first two acts, are up there for me for the best comedy so far this year which was not at all what I was expecting.
Great visuals, a great story that added enough fresh elements to keep it interesting, even down the familiar setting with a slight variant, very funny first two acts, but still in line with establishing the characters, and a bit of heart.
In the 2023 movie season, we have had a lot of big expectation movies that have kinda fallen into "meh", not good, not terrible but kinda forgettable. So getting something like this, was unexpected and really enjoyable.
Spoilers for the film in advance. It's story is simple and straightforward but entertaining. At times, it feels like it drags on and repeats plotpoints but overall a good movie. 6/10.
The Voice acting is pretty solid, nothing too spectacular, the art style matches the tone which is nice, and the comedy is solid but sometimes corny.
For some of my cons of the movie.
The first half of the movie and second half feel the exact same. Someone is framed, mistrust, conflict, they get the evidence, save the day. It's like they wanted a longer film but didn't know how to do it so they just decided to reframe someone.
The scene where Goldenloin was claiming Nimona manipulated Boldheart could've easily been fixed by Boldheart saying "I was there when she admitted to killing the Queen.". Like, he witnessed the entirety of her admitting she framed Boldheart and killed the queen but he just didn't say anything.
I also didn't care for how the first solution was just to find the guy who gave knights swords. They had the proof just from finding this dude. Then later the only evidence they had was shot because they decided it was best to go out in public to show his ex.
The scene where Nimona was a kid and the past queen betrayed her was pretty dumb too. They hung out all of the time then Nimona has to defend herself against people trying to murder her so the queen gets scared of her? Really? Thought that was pretty lame.
It felt like it rushed through the story. Especially the ending, it was just over all of a sudden.
I never felt like the two main characters were in trouble, it made it hard to feel worried about the stakes. Nimona can be so over the top that it just feels forced at times. Which could be the point, but it just feels unnecessary. I was really hoping I was going to love this movie, but it just felt kinda alright. It could have been so much more with its themes and ideas. Maybe a more fleshed out show would have been a better choice for the story. I did like how seriously it took things when Nimona became the monster she was always told she was and attempted suicide at the end. She was just done and couldn’t do it anymore. I wish more of the story had that much effort and attention put in it. I do think Nimona should have stayed dead. So many shows or movies have this big emotional scene with someone important dying and then somehow they come back. It almost always feels cheap and lessons their sacrifice for an easy smile from the audience.
Movie has a ton of charm and such a great story that I honestly didn't expect. My only complaint is that I honestly wish it were longer since I feel like certain parts could have been even more fleshed out. Regardless this is still one of the best animated movies I've seen this year.
The concept of humans being the "real monsters" is not necessarily new. But I haven't seen it implemented as well as in the animated film "Nimona" for a long time. The movie is extremely clever, incredibly funny, beautifully animated, and boasts a really strong voice cast. It is also entertaining from the first to the last minute, including a thoroughly satisfying finale. In times when most entries in the genre are very similar, it's really refreshing to be treated to one or two creative works of this kind every year.
Based on an award-winning young adult webcomic, this animation has a simple child-friendly plot around themes of identity and belonging with a sprinkle of punk style for Nimona. It watches brief breezy and cute, devoting more time to comedy than melancholic drama, which leaves it feeling far fresher than anything Disney has put out lately.
The film adaptation of Nimona takes us into a world full of fun and creativity, but also presents certain challenges that can raise questions. While the film stands out for its humour and originality, it does not escape questions about its setting and representation.
Nimona reveals itself first and foremost as an incredibly entertaining experience. The humour that permeates the narrative is fresh and infectious, eliciting laughter at every turn. The witty dialogue and comical situations make the film feel like a rollercoaster of laughter, where the viewer is carried from one hilarious moment to the next. The chemistry between the characters is palpable and adds an extra layer of fun to the plot.
However, the choice to set Nimona in a futuristic world rather than a medieval setting can lead to some confusion. The contrast between anachronistic elements and advanced technology may seem strange in a film that, at first glance, seems destined to fit into a medieval setting. This creative choice can be a double-edged sword, as it brings a visual uniqueness, but it can also distract some viewers and challenge their suspension of disbelief.
On the other hand, there is Netflix's constant refashioning of character portrayals, turning Caucasians into villains and minorities into heroes. While inclusion and diversity are important aspects of contemporary storytelling, the insistence on a predefined narrative is exhausting for some viewers.
Despite these issues, the film manages to entertain and captivate with its unique approach and character dynamics. The original story may leave some questions unanswered, but ultimately, Nimona is a reminder of the importance of fun in contemporary animated cinema.
Great acting and design. A lovely history. But the antagonism is weak.
Great movie, but the antagonist was too obvious.
Surprisingly excellent, considering the low bar set by recent animated efforts. Great story and top notch animation.
NOT FOR KIDS! Could have been a great movie if they left out the gay kissing, especially in a PG movie. The two of them should have been made to hug instead. Would have had the same effect without all the awkwardness and young girls turning around saying "I can't watch this". Despicable.
This film is entertaining and keeps you engaged and some aspects of representation were handled well.
However there were a lot of places where the potential was not realized.
It's great to see Ballister and Ambrosius' relationship presented very casually, but it would have been nice to have better dialogue between them, that showed the depth of knowledge about each other. That would have made their conflict more meaningful and the resolution more satisfying.
Nimona is an obvious allegory for queerness and particularly gender-nonconforming people. This holds up really well in her conversations with Ballister and her fiery confidence is a great representation of tragically using what others hate about you, as armor. Then with the flashback of her relationship with child Gloreth was doing a great job of showing that children's lack of prejudice continues to be lesson for all of us. But then it was ruined for me when Gloreth was supposedly suddenly afraid of Nimona, despite having seen her in many forms already. Considering the length of the film, I would have loved more time being spent showing how the culture around her, poisoned her against her BEST FRIEND, instead of her seeing Nimona attacked by her village, and Nimona non-lethally defending herself.
In order for Gloreth to have become so twisted by hatred, imposed by people around her, into fearing "monsters", that she created an order of knights to defend the kingdom; more needed to be shown of that process, since Gloreth is such a foundational figure for the kingdom's culture.
Also could have been nice to have some type of magical explanation for how some things that are a 1,000 years old haven't degraded in that time. Even if this was a movie aimed at children, worldbuilding consistency is important.
Which brings me to my last point, it feels like this movie is presented as a movie for kids, but it's messaging is actually for their parents who will end up watching it with them.
If my theory is true, than why does this film pull it's punches on the social commentary? I'm not asking for it to be bashing me over the head with it, but there's no time spent showing how the populace of the kingdom live and talk in context of their culture. It would have made the commentary about the classist, arbitrarily hereditary Institution that uses a myth to control the Kingdom, have much more weight. Especially in lieu of the dudebro knights, who are held up as heroes by the media, but dont seem to actually do anything (like bad policing).
Overall there's definitely things here to love, and I laughed a good amount, but if this was meant for adults, then it should've been more consistent and honest.
EDIT: I know there were countless issues in getting this film released at all, and I'm not ignorant of how difficult it is to get socially critical and queer representing media made. However my criticisms are about how the structure of the film and some of it's details could have better served those important causes. It's not my intention to bash it for being imperfect.
why was there no prince or princess they rly just were living heirless
Nimona was such a delight! Beautiful animation and an endearing and deep story, that manages to blend lighthearted humour with positive and nuanced queer representation, and themes that include the harms of indoctrination and demonizing those who are different, along with the seclusion and the longing for acceptance and connection by those who feel like they don't belong.
Interesting and different plot. Funny story with an unusual leading role. Funny dialogues, too.
[Netflix] Beautiful visual treatment for an animated film that manages to avoid commonplaces, or at least address topics such as tolerance in a different way than the traditional narrative of animated films. There are very funny moments but also a particularly moving third act in the relationship between Nimona and Ballister. It manages to maintain its spirit and its quality despite the many vicissitudes of its production, much more than other films of the last year. But it stands out mainly for the excellent treatment of Nimona's transformative chaos.
Loved this one. I'll be humming "Tra la la" all day!
What a fantastic film! The story is excellent and has a little bit of everything: action, comedy, romance and drama. The animation is great. Nimona is an incredible character, I was enchanted by her at all times.
Although there are some questions about the city that I didn't understand, that's just a minor detail. Overall, the film is incredible.
The movie was great except the protagonist being gay
A beautiful, well made, enjoyable adventure buddy movie, with a Warner Bros look.
More surprisingly it's from Netflix!
The kids really like it, and quote it often.
If it teaches anything, it's "some people are shit" and most others are ignorant sheep.
Mmmhh, I am a little bit confused why, even the movie is called Nimona, and she obviously carries it, the story isn't about her at all. Only for some minutes we get a little insight of her past, the rest is all about a guy who doesn't learn from his own mistakes. The mixture between the middle-ages and science fiction sometimes felt a little bit too chaotic for me, but also left some room for interesting ideas. The animation was ok and some facial expressions were absolutely hilarious, but I feel that the whole thing did not do her justice.
Like RuPaul's email inbox: fun, flamboyant and full of good messages.
This inspiring tale of an outcast who befriends an outsider to clear his name is so entertaining you may not even notice all the wholesomeness lolling beneath the surface.
never thought, there'd be movie i could relate to.
I watched this while feeling a little bad, and thus it mad me cry a lot harder than I had in a long time. It was really enjoyable and I would really like to watch this again sometime. It was really fun to experience and I absolutely loved Nimona. I think there could have been a longer negative feeling that could've lingered more after the basically suicidal moment, but resolving it right away might be the better choice for it's narrative, and, it's a children's movie so maybe it would be too much if it wasn't resolved as fast.
the meme of "Netflix version" is real.
The movie is great, such a good animation, camera position, colours, music...
recommended
Woah, this was such a cool movie! Amazing graphics, great word building, I loved how they combined medieval stuff like knights with modern/sci-fi elements.
Also is it only me or did Nimona and Bal remind you too of Ellie and Joel from The Last of Us?
There was totally trans queer-coding with Nimona
A good movie that has really good animation and expressions. The emotions are shown well through the characters, and the visuals are great (though once or twice were a bit off). Now for the story and characters. The characters were alright, the 2 best ones being Nimona and Ballister. I wasn't really connected to either of them, but they weren't bad characters. The story itself was honestly a bit lackluster. The plot was very predictable, and predictable isn't always bad, but in this case it isn't good either. The story wasn't keeping me interested at all, and I cared little for the stakes and the characters. I would still recommend you watch this movie if you like animated movies, though.
At Time of Review:
Low 7/10
Story and Characters: 6/10
Presentation: 9/10
Enjoyability: 7/10
I love it SO much!!
Full of emotion and a amazing plot, beautifully animated. I love it.
Incredibly chaotic, but that will land differently for different people. The extreme disorder and lawlessness of the story almost made me stop watching it, but the reaction of a friend, who so identified with the outcast Nimona, kept me watching to the end. There is a message here, I’m just not sure everyone will get to it. I give this film an 8 (buried treasure) out of 10. [Animated Action Adventure]
Look while the representation is great here, I don't feel like the story is anything to gush about. Especially the classic big monster fight, with a suprising resolution in the end.
The credits had the energy of Mitchells vs. The Machines, but unlike the latter, the movie didn't generate the right oomph for me to warran't credits like that.
Wonderful movie! Really enjoyed it.
Very fun, heartfelt and engaging but it missed out something to make it truly exceptionnal for me. I highly recommend it, however
Nicely acted title character, graphically not particularly exciting but bonus points for sensitively tackling contemporary identity issues for a younger audience in an accessible and not too preachy way...
It’s a little sad to see this fly under the radar due to being released on streaming. Here you have something that’s actually interesting, boundary pushing and accessible, so it’s unfortunate there’s no room for it on the big screen. Right from the opening scene its main reference point is made abundantly clear. It plays with similar themes as that film (it’s a celebration of outsiders), but the story and aesthetic go in a much more progressive direction. So progressive, in fact, that this couldn’t be made under the conditions of cynical box checking currently happening at Disney and its subsidiaries. Yes, you read that right, this project was rejected by a company that loves to pride itself on its representation and inclusivity. Looks like they’re just a bunch of gross, immoral capitalists after all, who saw that one coming? Thankfully their latest animated effort called Elemental smashes every creative boundary and box office record in existence.
Look, I’m of the opinion that representation doesn’t necessarily makes a difference for the quality of a film, however here its woven into the subtext and improves the overall narrative. It’s a great mix of comedy, action and adventure that feels fresh, and the medieval-futuristic setting is also pretty unique. The animation, while not completely state of the art, carries enough personality to make this an overall experience memorable. Sonically, it mostly just gets the job done; the voice acting, score and soundtrack are fine but nothing outstanding. My biggest issue really comes with the comedy, which I found to be a little hit or miss occasionally. The Nimona character starts out as a bit annoying, though she definitely grows on you as the film goes along. Overall, this is unfortunately very likely to be overlooked due to Across the Spider-verse dominating the cultural conversation about animation, but there’s an argument to be made for this being the bolder film.
7.5/10
Rated a Connor 10, normal 9
The movie is really pleasant to watch in terms of animation and story. There are a few twists and turns that I wasn't expecting. The animation is amazing. Overall a great movie.
An instant classic. A modern update of Shrek. Front runner for best animated films of 2023.
Shout by Kelvin MathewVIP BlockedParent2023-07-01T19:11:35Z
Glad Disney got rid of this movie cause it wouldn't turned out so good otherwise. Funny and likeable protagonist (great voice acting), girl power done right. Gay couple but not forced. Quite emotional as well. Glad to see the classic animation style made more creative and modern instead of the usual Pixar 3D models.