Bai Ze, a healer banned for destroying an island, returns years later as he must heal a child and redeem himself.
Written by Jianming Huang, Liang Li, and Xiaoyu Wu, and directed by Jianming Huang, Goodbye Monster is a sweet, adorable story of becoming a better monster, redeeming oneself, and selflessly helping others. It’s so cute and filled with monsters, it’s just right for monster kids of all ages. If the kind of story that has a lesson but doesn’t clubber you the head with it. It takes the story and makes it feel like more than it is, like an adventure, and like something that could have been in a film for adults and not just for kids. It’s for kids, but it doesn’t dumb everything down to the point that adults can’t enjoy it. It’s a well written film with good direction, and the result is entertaining and easy to put on as a Saturday morning cartoon for the whole family.
The characters here are adorable and well-drawn, the credits indicate visual effects artists on IMDB, but no drawing artists, so it looks like first impressions were right and it is a computer animated film. Nonetheless, it’s very well done. The current WellGoUSA release of the film has a brand-new English dub which works well here, giving the characters personality. As a sub-title snob, films are usually watched in their original language with sub-titles on almost no matter what, but in the case of animation, this is something that is not necessarily needed. The dubbed to English here is done well and works well with the animation. The voices are good and feel right for the different characters. It must be kept in mind that this is a children’s movie, so the voice over was clearly done with that in mind. It’s perfect for the film though, so it’s all good.
Here is where things are bit more limited as there is no cinematography to really speak of, but there is music, which is also just right for the film. It works with the story and characters, but it doesn’t come off annoyingly sweet or too childish, helping adults be able to watch this without annoying theme songs or music that gets on the nerves. There’s no Baby Shark here, but there is also no Be Our Guest. The music is good, but it’s not something you’ll look for to listen outside of the film.
Overall, Goodbye Monster is an excellent children’s film made with adult watchers in mind. It’s a solid film with sweet characters, adorable animation, and the right music to go with it. It’s enjoyable and entertaining without being cloyingly sweet. It’s a great option for a kids’ monster movie that everyone can watch.