Over the Moon

Very sweet movie several adorable characters, message about moving on from grief

From Netflix comes the extraordinary animated musical Over the Moon. When Fei Fei discovers that her father is planning to remarry she attempts to build a rocket to go to the Moon to prove an ancient Japanese legend, hoping that it might persuade him to wait for her mother until the afterlife. The animation style is really interesting, and mixes traditional CGI and 2D anime. And, the songs do a good job at feeling organic to the story and have a strong lyrical flow. Additionally, the film as a positive, uplifting message about family, love, and perseverance. Entertaining and fun, Over the Moon is a magical adventure that the whole family can enjoy.

I am not the biggest fan of animated movies with a lot of singing. However, this time I think I can overlook it. The songs were well done and fit into the story well. The characters were cute and had their own personalities. The animation was great. Story-wise however, it was a little cliched. But overall, a great family movie.

How I rate:
1-3 ❤ = seriously! don't waste your time
4-6 ❤ = you may or may not enjoy this
7-8 ❤ = I expect you will like this too
9-10 ❤ = movies and TV shows I really love!

I went in the watching completely blind, didn't know anything about this movie, and wow, was I surprised.
This felt A LOT like a Disney flick (of course there's Glen Keane at direction, he's one of the best...), it had it all: a cute female character, an adorable animal sidekick (thank god the bunny didn't talk), musical numbers, beautiful animation, FEELINGS! I also loved learning a bit more about chinese traditions!
I must admit I cried in the ending. The film has a beautiful message of not dwelling in the past after a personal loss, but open yourself to love again. It felt good, I felt good.
The only downsides: a bit too short for an animated movie with such good animations, and the songs weren't very memorable (except maybe one sang half in english, half in mandarin).
Overall it is definitely worth a watch and it's truly a pity to not have seen this in movie theaters.

The Good:
* The animation was great
* The colours (omg, the colours!). Reminds me of Coco
* The songs were well sung and produced
* The characters were fun and believable

The Bad:
* The Story was very "meh" (but thats to be expected from a kids movie)
* The main principles of the story [spoiler](loneliness, loss of a parent, replacement of a parent)[/spoiler] felt shoe horned in.

Best Part:
[spoiler]The start of the movie when the mom becomes ill and... y'know. That hit me in the feels. Even though it feels like a ripoff of Up[/spoiler]

Overall I thought the animation was top notch (which should come as no surprise since the animation company used to work for DreamWorks) but the story was a little lacking. If they spend a little more money on decent writers they could really could go far. Looking forward to seeing what they make in the future.

Best thing about this movie was the rabbit.

While it may take a little suspension of disbelief, Over the Moon is beautiful, well written, and beyond creative.

HOWEVER

Not every animated movie needs to be a fucking musical. I don't know why this bothers me so much, but I hate it with a passion. Just make a normal goddamn movie Netflix. You will never be Disney. Stop trying.

If you don't plan on watching this film than at least Google "Over the Moon Ping-Pong Song" and then you may understand my... frustration

That ping-pong match was dope!!!

I'm not completely over the moon about this film. The animation was great, and the voice overs were fine. But it was cliched, occasionally bonkers, and had far too much singing. Admittedly, I am not part of the target audience, so despite my misgivings, I'm sure there will be those who dig it!

**THE WACPINE OF 'OVER THE MOON'**

WRITING: 5
ATMOSPHERE: 5
CHARACTERS: 7
PRODUCTION: 9
INTRIGUE: 5
NOVELTY: 2
ENJOYMENT: 6

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**The Good:**

It's always great to see more films set in China with a script delving into Chinese culture and myths.

The animation style is surprisingly fluent and soft, and not too close to Pixar or Dreamworks. The colours are vibrant and beautiful.

Ultraluminary is the only memorable song from the movie, and that's because it's so vastly different from the other songs and clearly made to be a radio hit single.

The moon looks like a Candy Crush level populated by Angry Birds, and I don't know if I should like or dislike that.

Kudos to the writers for featuring a "villain" who isn't a villain for evil's sake, but because of heartbreak, sorrow and loneliness. Chang’e is the most interesting and well-developed character in the film, and her emotional side is well depicted.

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**The Bad:**

What strikes me as disappointing is the very safe and formulaic route Netflix has taken with this film, by effectively copying a formula beaten to death by the countless Disney animated musicals that have been released over the decades. Netflix had all the opportunity in the world to try something different.

The animation style is not distinctively different from what other studios have produced, which is a shame.

The songs are a bit meh. They are repetitive, forgettable and not very original in the first place.

The script attempts to make Fei Fei a role model for girls and boys alike by making her some kind of tech and science genius and adventurer, but she doesn't rise above other similar characters in other animated films.

While I appreciate the moon sequence more than the scenes set on Earth, I would have wished to see more adventure and thrills. What we get now is a sequence of events that never goes anywhere.

The plot is predictable and lacks major hooks, so it flows by without allowing the audience the time to contemplate things.

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**The Ugly:**

Candy Crush with Angry Birds on the moon. Now there's an idea for a new mobile game!

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**WACPINE RATING: 5.57 / 10 = 3 stars**