Review: Nimona

Directed by: Nick Bruno & Troy Quane

Written by: Robert L. Baird & Lloyd Taylor

Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Riz Ahmed, Eugene Lee Yang, Frances Conroy, Lorraine Toussaint

Rating: [3.5/5]

As we have learned aplenty in life, what we perceive as evil in the world does not always match reality, especially when it stems from a lack of firsthand experience but rather what we get told. It becomes easy to demonize rather than understand, and through its punk rock style of storytelling Nimona dissects this through a refreshing fantasy tale employing some fun animation as well. 

Receiving the honor of being the first commoner to become a knight, Ballister Boldheart’s (Riz Ahmed) blade releases a laser that kills the Queen. Framed for his crime but with no evidence to prove it, Boldheart, now in prison, gets visited by a teenage shape-shifter named Nimona (Chloë Grace Moretz), who dreams of being a super villain like Ballister. Despite Ballsiter’s protests and insistence he’s not evil, they form a friendship as the knight hopes to exonerate himself. 

Wildly different from any type of animated movie in the marketplace, Nimona breaks into the stage with this rambunctious attitude, bringing us into this new world and with wildly fun characters. Set in a walled community with fear from creatures from the outside, we have a world that blends futuristic technology with the customs and living environment of medieval times. Never did I think I would see knights with lasers in their swords but this fantasy world builds out quite the unique environment and has the characters to give it even more texture.  

The dynamic between Boldheart and Nimona ultimately serves as the best element of the feature in the way it shifts throughout the narrative. It begins with this misunderstanding of Nimona thinking Boldheart is some cool villain for killing the Queen. The innocent Boldheart continues to insist he’s not this villain mastermind but rather someone framed for such a heinous crime. Nimona refuses to listen and the hijinks between them makes for much of the comedy the film has to offer. Even with that said, this film also features some beautifully moving moments between them that punctuates the true message behind this film. Their relationship summarizes the entire film and the beauty of knowledge that firms up their dynamic as much as the harm done by bigoted condemnation has the chance to ruin everything. It displays this film taking some strong swings with its storytelling and how it positions Nimona as a character beyond just this teenaged little menace but something quite tragic upon learning her story and why she has resorted to her current tactics. 

As we dive into Nimona’s place in this world, it also serves as a reexamination of this community and how it came to exist compared to what the citizens believe and the truth of the past. It displays the difference of who holds the truth of what occurred and how they can manipulate it to best serve their needs, even if not bearing all of the relevant elements at hand. We have this history of a legendary heroine Gloreth who helped build this community against this monster but we receive a much more truthful look at how this actually occurred that recontextualizes the entire history of this community. This happens aplenty not just in stories but our real world as sanitized versions of history appear in the history books for a particular agenda. The truth gets stretched and with just enough kernels of truth to form a reality many can believe and therefore transforms into the general understanding. 

Audacious in its animation and wildly fun in its presentation, Nimona serves as yet another banger in the collection of animated films Netflix continues to add to its library. They continue to display their value in different animation styles that allow for stories told in ways that can communicate these grand ideas and having the flexibility to do so strongly through its style. This film is no different in the way it all comes together and how its narrative moves from the more silly elements into the deeply tragic that allows for larger discussions. This proves to be a wonderful combination of tones and techniques that make it stand out amongst most of the animated films that come out in a given year and it makes me appreciate these types of films continue to get the green light.