What if the best animated movie of the summer was on Netflix? Don’t miss Nimona!

A new animated production is coming to Netflix this week, an event in more ways than one. The adaptation of ND Stevenson’s graphic novel Nimona is now available on the platform, an epilogue to the nightmare production that nearly prevented the feature film from being released.

Originally developed by the Blue Sky (Ice Age) company, Nimona saw its production eventually cease after Disney closed the animation studio following the group’s takeover by 21st Century FOX.

Directors Nick Bruno and Troy Quan (Incognitos) then moved heaven and earth to revive the project, before producer Megan Ellison, British animation studio DNEG, and the Netflix platform acted as guardian angels to help Nimona complete her preservation. with the original vision of its designers.

Nimona’s story takes place in a futuristic medieval world, with knight Ballister Blackheart wrongly accused of murdering a queen. A rebel at heart and with the power to change her appearance, Nimona decides to help the most wanted man in the kingdom.

It would be a shame if Nimona never made it to the screens because the world would never get to discover this absolutely delightful nugget of animation. The work serves as both a pastiche of the fairy tale world and a poignant portrait of adolescence through the titular character facing an identity crisis.

First in mainstream production

Nimona’s power to change her appearance echoes the personal life of graphic novel author ND Stevenson. The character was born from his pen when he, then nineteen, was going through a similar crisis that preceded his transmasculine and non-binary outings a decade later (he has since specified to use male pronouns).

The peculiarity of Nimona is that the word “normal” does not apply to the character. No one knows her true appearance, and her features as a pink-haired girl are only one transformation among others, most often animal: ostrich, rhinoceros, shark, dragon, etc.

An important fact about Nimona is that they use neutral pronouns, and this element was completely respected by the Netflix adaptation, including in the subtitles of the original version.

Never before has a production of this magnitude had a non-binary protagonist as the main character, much less associated with a character who is openly gay.

Nimona’s inclusive subtext blends perfectly with the humorous tone of the film. It’s hard to stay cool in the face of the title character’s incessant mimicry, his multiple transformations – including an absolutely terrifying little boy.

The film’s soundtrack consists of titles from metal and punk rock bands (The Dickies, The Dollyrots, Judas Priest…), which perfectly match Nimona’s rebellious attitude.

Inventive in form and as entertaining as it is, the animated film Nimona is an undeniable success. And despite the many problems that arose during its production, its arrival on Netflix will certainly allow its message of tolerance to be heard by a wider audience.

A few months after the triumph of Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio at the 2023 Oscars, Netflix is ​​ready to conquer the general public market with this feature film, the success of which will only be a fair reward for both its undeniable qualities and the stubborn spirit of the state. From its directors!

The animated film Nimona, adapted from the graphic novel of the same name, is now available on Netflix.

Discover the list of all movies currently available on the platform!