Ne Zha 2—The Chinese Blockbuster that you've probably never heard of
I hadn’t heard of it either until recently—and yet, it’s one of the highest grossing movies of all time.

Wealthy Jaishankar meets and falls in love with Aarti, successfully woos her and agrees to meet with her dad to discuss their marriage. On the way there he ironically runs over him, killing him instantly. Guilt-ridden, he attempts to make amends to look after Aarti, her brother, Pappu, and sister, Mala, but conceals the fact that he was responsible for their father's death. Things get worse after Aarti not only discovers the truth, but also witnesses him getting intimate with a cabaret dancer, Rita. Then Jaishankar is first disowned by his father after the family find out that he had sired a son from Rita, and then subsequently arrested by the Police for killing Rita.
I hadn’t heard of it either until recently—and yet, it’s one of the highest grossing movies of all time.
“And I think to myself….what a wonderful world”. Louis Armstrong sang about this notion via his classic 1967 song, an ode to witnessing elements of our life that should be but some reminders of exactly what that concluding line of each verse indicates. Now we see our contemporary realities and, just being honest, it makes a sentiment like this seem SO overtly far away….perhaps even impossible….to accept or believe could be. It sounds harsh, but again, so much of what is occurring speaks not to beauty, but bedlam.
One young woman with an unusual background tries to find and establish herself in the real world, which isn't exactly as festive as she hoped it would be.
The film seems like an extreme interpretation of the conspiracy theorists that exist in real life. And then, there’s the twist.
Overall, Sand Castle was another lack luster war drama that will eventually fade into the many similar war dramas I have seen throughout my life.