The Legend of Hei

A cat spirit left homeless when his forest is destroyed meets others like himself in the city. Then a human who captures him begins teaching him his own way of doing things. The film draws no clean line between good and bad; the narrative ties its real question to whether it is possible to live alongside the people destroying nature, or whether one has to resist. The fight scenes drew attention for their hand-drawn fluidity. It was directed by the Chinese animator working under the name MTJJ, grew out of a web series and was made largely by a small team. It was an unexpected box office success in China. Before watching: the short series that precedes it introduces the characters. The film works without it, though some of the relationships land better with it.