WesternAnimation Punks Have Layers
Nimona tells the story of an unlikely alliance between Ballister, a former knight who is framed for murder, and a delinquent shapeshifter called Nimona, as they attempt to break open the conspiracy that keeps their advanced sci-fi society trapped in the Dark Ages.
Nimona works on two levels. The first is in watching the wacky antiques of its eponymous hero. Nimona is perpetually chipper, always rushing on to the next act of chaos, desperate to live up to her reputation of being a villain. I like this level less. I don't enjoy high-energy, zany comedy protagonists, as with Harley Quinn or Deadpool. But then again, these exact same sort of characters were all the rage when I was a kid, usually played by Jim Carrey or Robin Williams, so there is clearly a wider established audience that is fond of such characters. I once loved Carrey and Williams, so it is probably just a bitter age thing.
The second level, which I liked a lot more, is the movie's smart examination of labels. Ballister is not a villain, but society considers him one anyway. He aspired to be a knight, a designated "good person", but in spite of his virtues, the public are predisposed to dislike him because of his common background, making him the perfect fall guy. And despite suffering through all this, he struggles to realise it is his society that is at fault, and he is not just the victim of a few bad apples. As a result of that, he has his own ingrained prejudices to overcome, particular around Nimona, another nominal villain and nominal monster who only decided to start acting the part when she realised she could never convince people to give her a break.
These themes are easily transferable onto any maligned minority group in real life, Nimona picking gender queer people in particular. Nimona is essentially genderfluid, able to transform into anything she wants at any time. Sometimes she identifies as a girl, boy, or shark. Society treats her changes as abhorrent due to their draconian beliefs (and the fact that she keeps wrecking stuff). There is a parallel between how Nimona is regarded and how trans and non-binary people are, by the conservative elements of hers and our world. It is that same subversive wisdom behind Shrek, updated for the 2020s. It is just about subtle enough that the message would pass over the heads of the sort of small people who wouldn't want to hear it, but cheekily apparent to anyone else.
So all this to say that there are parts for anyone can enjoy. Kids will like the colourful, action set pieces and silly interplay between its heroes, and adults enjoy unpicking the clever analogy working underneath it all. I understand this was originally a shelved Disney project, and whilst it may not have the glorious standards of animation of a Disney movie, Nimona's escape from the clutches of the "family friendly" corporation was probably the only way to keep a lot of its more subversive commentary intact.
WesternAnimation An emotionally and politically dense tale.
Long ago, the brave warrior Gloreth slayed a terrible monster. Her legacy remains eons later in a medieval-futurist society in the knights' academy she founded. Ballister, a first for the knighthood due to his common roots, is supported by his boyfriend Ambrosius, Gloreth's descendant. But disaster strikes and puts Ballister on the run from the law, where a chaotic and psychotic shapeshifter, Nimona, lends her services. The film is pretty darn fraught.
The animation is the only part of this film that isn't quite standout, but it's still very appealing. It's painted CGI to resemble 2D hand-drawn animation, and the timing and visuals are great even if the style doesn't feel the most high-budget. I really like the cast. Nimona is obviously the highlight, being a wisecracking young psycho who is herself in every form she takes.
The film can't really be discussed outside of its leftist politics, but I happen to find those messages very welcome and well-expressed here. It's getting authoritarian these days and messaging like this deserves to have larger platforms. The film talks about the prejudices that are baked into society and systems and how one's viewpoint can be broken open to question "givens" that are bigoted in reality. Nimona's portrayal is a reflection of trans or fluid gender identity—always herself in any form, and always has been, but struggling with not being accepted because people have seen her either as a freak outright, or only as the Nimona version of whatever form she takes. Ballister's reactions to her echo biases cis people have to question and shake off to become true allies. The film is also targeted at the police system, with the purpose of knights and heroes being questioned and both Ballister and Ambrosius's faith in their role being shaken at different speeds according to their in-story privilege. We see notes of video accountability culture and how even that is losing trustworthiness. It's also good for the film to have depicted minority characters as being capable of blindspots and upholding bigoted systems. This isn't a story of flawless minorities, nor of wholly irredeemable majorities. Everyone has biases that can be bigotry if unchecked.
Powerful radical allegories aside, the film is just super charming and effective. It's funny, emotional, tense, sweet, and surprising as it goes on, and it's just very strong filmmaking. Disney is completely lost at the moment because they tried to suppress this film and thus continued a pattern of literally everyone else making Great animated movies and putting them to shame!
Nimona is a film for a time where it seems like bigots in power are well-equipped to choke out diversity and disregard their people ever more by the day, but I think the film will remain relevant as a story about acceptance and dismantling injustices held up by time and those who fight to keep them. This movie means so much.
WesternAnimation An age-old story with a modern twist
Much has been written about Nimona's political messaging, to the point where it almost feels like the story of a disgraced knight and his sassy shape-shifting sidekick is being buried under an avalanche of LOOK AT THIS LGBTQ+ ALLEGORY TALE LOOK AT IT LOOKIT LOOKIT LOOKIT! Which, to be fair, is not entirely unwarranted — the movie's subtext of transgender tribulations and the oppressive nature of traditional orthodoxy is never far beneath the surface, and a viewer with even a modest understanding of 2023 gender identity issues can see the parallels that the movie draws in bold, bright lines.
But what about Nimona as, well, a movie? How does it hold up as only a story of a disgraced knight and his sassy shape-shifting sidekick?
Fortunately for animation fans of all ages, Nimona holds up very well. Stripped to its core, the story of Nimona is one that's all too familiar, a parable of the universal human desire for acceptance and belonging, of the importance of inclusion and understanding, and the soul-searing pain that comes from being ostracized simply for who you are. The movie's Science Fantasy setting and painted CGI art style gives a fresh veneer to the tale, but its characters are all too human and highly relatable, and its message is timeless and eternally relevant. While the plot is not entirely unpredictable, there are enough twists and surprises to keep things engaging.
It's almost a disappointment, then, to point out the few places where Nimona stumbles. The barrage of comedy in the beginning helps ease viewers into this emotional fairy tale, but it does become a little overbearing at times. Nimona's whirlwind of snark and chaos can be a bit much when coupled with the Keystone Kop antics of the Institute's knights — the movie sometimes teeters on the edge of being an all-out zany comedy, which induces some Mood Whiplash from the deeper themes here. Similarly, while the Science Fantasy setting helps give Nimona a distinctive identity, it also opens some small headscratchers about the social stasis of its world, especially how nobody seems to have any curiosity or motivation to venture beyond the kingdom's walls in a thousand years. They're small blemishes in an otherwise pristine canvas, but they are still there.
In the end, though, Nimona is an entertaining, captivating, and heartwarming coda for Blue Sky Studios, and well worth watching for everyone. Sure, there are some barely-hidden socio-political themes here, but that's not a bad thing, as True Art™ is supposed to be about holding a mirror to the people and time of its creation. And if you happen to find Nimona's themes messages to be disturbing and uncomfortable, then maybe it's time to reconsider who the real monsters are.