Qin's Moon — The Legend of Qin film (2014)
At a glance90 minutes
On 8 August 2014 Qin's Moon reached cinemas with Qin Shi Ming Yue: Long Teng Wan Li (秦时明月之龙腾万里), a 90-minute 3D animated film produced by Sparkly Key. Distributed internationally as The Legend of Qin, it made a notable start at the Chinese box office.
Production and behind the scenes
The film was directed by Shen Leping (沈乐平), founder of Sparkly Key and creator of the animated series. The Hangzhou studio saw it as a chance to prove that a donghua could fill cinemas, at a time when Chinese animated film was dominated by movies for young children. The standalone story follows on from the series and pits Tianming, Shao Yu and their companions against a new threat.
How it differs from the donghua
The film adapts neither the novel nor a specific season: it is an original adventure, designed to be understood without knowing the series. The cinema budget allows smoother animation and richer backgrounds than the TV seasons of the time. In return, the 90-minute format imposes a simpler story, with less room for the political intrigue that gives the donghua its charm.
Reception and success
On opening day the film took around 12.8 million yuan, the best first day for a Chinese animated film in summer 2014. It then passed 60 million yuan during the National Day holiday. A respectable success that showed teenage and adult audiences were ready to follow donghua into cinemas, a year before Monkey King: Hero Is Back.
Trivia
- Sparkly Key (玄机科技) is based in Hangzhou. The studio went on to produce the Swallowed Star donghua and Tianxing Jiuge, a Qin's Moon spin-off.
- The title Long Teng Wan Li roughly means "the dragon soars over ten thousand li".
- Monkey King: Hero Is Back, released a year later, confirmed the trend opened by films like this one.
- The Qin's Moon series, launched in 2007, is one of the oldest donghua series still in production.
My take
This film is a nice bonus for fans but not an ideal entry point. The animation is good for 2014, the fights have scope and seeing the characters on the big screen is a treat. But the plot is light compared to the series and has little impact on what follows. I see it as a deluxe special episode, to watch between two seasons.
Who is it for?Series fans who want a standalone adventure, and anyone curious about the history of Chinese animated film.
— Spidermas, for Donghua Fan