A few days ago, I went on Netflix to rewatch a show that I wanted to get back into.
The first thing I saw when I opened Netflix was an ad for the movie Nimona.
I had never heard of Nimona but I decided to give the ad a shot rather than ignoring it and was pleasantly surprised by the brief scene I was shown.
The animation looked solid and the dynamic between the two main characters Nimona (Chloë Grace Moretz) and Ballister (Riz Ahmed) had me chuckling.
So I decided to give it a watch and was not let down.
Directed by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane, and based off the webcomic and graphic novel by ND Stevenson, Nimona is set in a futuristic version of a medieval kingdom, 1000 years after the kingdom’s hero, Gloreth, defeated an evil monster that threatened it.
A young man named Ballister Boldheart is set to become the first commoner to be accepted into the Elite Knights who protect the kingdom.
However, on the day of his ascension, he is framed for the Queen’s murder and has to go on the run.
This is where Nimona comes in.
A shapeshifting, anarchy loving, hell raiser, Nimona joins Ballister, first to be his villainous sidekick and then to help him clear his name when she learns of his innocence.
Back when I watched the ad for this movie, the dynamic between Nimona and Ballister was the thing that drew me in, and their growing bond is definitely the highlight of the movie.
Nimona is often darkly hilarious and Ballister plays off on this perfectly with his often horrified reactions to her chaotic actions.
There is also a lot of heart between these two characters, as they bond over their experiences, which leads to some pretty tragic and dark places for Nimona’s character.
Speaking of heart, Ballister is actually in for a heartbreak as his boyfriend Ambrosius (Eugene Lee Yang), the descendant of Gloreth, is chosen by the Director of the Elite Knights (Frances Conroy) to hunt Ballister and Nimona down.
The relationship between Ballister and Ambrosius is also well done with a lot of interesting tension between the two since they stand on opposite sides after the inciting incident of the Queen’s murder.
Disney, however, were apparently not impressed by this.
From what I have heard, Disney almost cancelled the film entirely, all because of a scene where Ballister and Ambrosius kiss.
Well, the joke’s on Disney in the end because of how many of their recent films have flopped, while Nimona is soaring.
I will not say that the film is entirely perfect though, as there are a few criticisms I do have.
For one thing, although Ballister’s status as a commoner is important to the beginning of the story, the divide between commoners and nobles isn’t really focused on that much afterwards, which felt like a missed opportunity to expand the world building.
This could have helped further cement the motive behind the villain of the movie, which also felt quite lacking.
They are pretty much just a standard surprise twist villain, a trope which has been especially common in animated movies over the years.
Not to mention the identity of this villain was incredibly predictable.
The rest of the movie, however, was far from predictable, with quite a few surprises, especially concerning Nimona’s powers, which the writers get really creative with, allowing for many excellently animated scenes.
The animation honestly reminded me a lot of Arcane at times, and given how much I love Arcane that is strong praise from me.
All in all, Nimona is a great animated movie with a charming and funny friendship between its two lead characters.
I would highly recommend checking it out.
THE REVIEW MONSTER 