Movie · 2021 · Animation, Fantasy, Action, Adventure · 2h 12m · Chinese
Curator score: 3.8/10 (14.4K ratings)
Dependence arises from the previous life.
Overview
While trying to free her sister from Fahai's clutches, Xiao Qing winds up in a dystopian city and meets a mysterious man who can't recall his past life.
Ratings
Curator score: 3.8/10
IMDb: 6.8/10
Letterboxd: 3.27/5
TMDB: 8.1/10
Director
Amp Wong
Production
Light Chaser Animation Studios, Alibaba Pictures Group
Cast
Tang Xiaoxi, Zhang Fuzheng, Wei Chao, Zhao Mingzhou, Zheng Xiaopu, Song Xuchen, Qiu Qiu, Zhang Biyu, Ma Cheng, Zhang Zhe, Yang Tianxiang, Baomu Zhongyang, Lin Qiang, Zhang Kai, Xu Jiaqi, Shuai Guan
Where to watch
Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A visually inventive, high-energy fantasy sequel with striking animation and a bold shift into dystopian sci-fi, but the story can feel overstuffed, confusing, and emotionally uneven. It’s worth it for viewers who like ambitious worldbuilding and stylized action more than clean plotting.
Best for
fans of Chinese fantasy animation
viewers who enjoy surreal myth remixes
people who prioritize visual design and action
audiences open to messy but imaginative sequels
fans of queer-coded or gender-fluid character dynamics
Skip if
you want a straightforward, easy-to-follow plot
you dislike abrupt tonal shifts
you prefer folklore adaptations to stay traditional
you need strong emotional clarity and character motivation
you’re not in the mood for dense lore and spectacle
Overview
Green Snake takes a familiar myth and throws it into a neon-lit, dystopian pressure cooker. The result is less a reverent folktale than a feverish genre mashup: fantasy, action, sci-fi, and melodrama all colliding at once. When it works, the film is dazzling, with fluid animation, bold creature design, and a confident sense of scale.
Worth noting
The downside is that the movie often feels like it is sprinting ahead of its own logic. Characters and rules are introduced quickly, then swept aside for another chase, another reveal, another visual set piece. That instability can be frustrating, but it also gives the film a strange, dreamlike momentum that some viewers will find irresistible.
Bottom line
For audiences willing to meet it on its own chaotic terms, this is a distinctive animated sequel with real style. It’s not the most coherent fantasy film, but it is one of the more memorable ones, especially if you like your mythology reimagined through a futuristic, emotionally slippery lens.
Top Letterboxd reviews
ciubalmarcus (2★) · 149 likes
Cute but messy. Lowkey trans-friendly though.
gale (4★) · 120 likes
male reincarnation of blanca how do you like your eggs in the morning
Grey the Dot (3★) · 95 likes
White Snake II: Green Snake. I'll let the title sink in so we can appreciate it properly.
When White Snake (2019) sequel-baited me I did not expect the sequel to be "the green snake gets transported to a battle royal video game world where she's not even a snake anymore".
If that plot synopsis is anything to go by I'll simply expect the next movie to be a space epic because White Snake II sequel-baits yet again. That's right folks, this is a trilogy now.
wkyywen (4★) · 59 likes
Well, the only thing I can say about this movie is SMASH!
DreamScreamed (2.5★) · 58 likes
Soooo.....what happened to that baby at the beginning?