'Over the Moon' Ending Explained: Here is Chinese myth the film is based on

Netflix’s latest animated film Over the Moon arrived on the platform on October 23. The comedy-drama is helmed by Glen Keane and based on the epic screenplay written by Audrey Wells in collaboration with Alice Wu and Jennifer Yee McDevitt. Ever since the film was released, fans on Twitter have been appreciating its heartwarming storyline and mesmerising animated sequences. Read on to find out, what happened in Over the Moon ending.

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Over the Moon Ending 

In Over the Moon, Fei Fei takes a bite out of the mooncake and finds the other half of the amulet, which is the gift she was looking for this entire time. Chang’e combines the amulet when Fei Fei gives her the other half and the amulet finally becomes a complete one piece. When the amulet becomes a whole and complete piece, Chang’e’s deceased husband Houyi is resurrected.

Chang’e and Houyi reunite for a brief moment before he fades away. While he is fading away Houyi tells Chang’e that she needs to move on. Suddenly the entire place is engulfed darkness and the characters are taken into the exquisite chamber of sadness. Fei Fei is warned that if she enters the chamber she might never return but she goes in anyway and pleads Chang’e to return. But Chang’e gives her the same advice, her husband gave to her, it is to ‘move on'.

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When Fei Fei sees that there are other characters with Chang’e on the moon, she realises that Chang’e does not need to return. Chang’e gives Fei Fei a picture to remember her by and after Fei Fei leaves Chang’e realises that the real gift wasn’t the amulet, instead, it was Chang’e all along. When the flying lions bring Fei Fei back to Earth, she is taken aback to see that there has been a time skip and her father is now married to Mrs Zhong. They have also gotten a new dog, which parallels the beginning of the film when Fei Fei’s mother told her the story of a space dog who chewed off half of the moon. Upon her return, Fei Fei and her family begin celebrating the moon festival. The movie finally ends with Fei Fei chasing Chin. The reason that Over the Moon looks a lot like a Walt Disney animation, even though it's not is because its director Keane, has served as an animator for Walt Disney Animation Studios.

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Over the Moon ending explained

Over the Moon on Netflix has been dedicated to Audrey Wells, its screenwriter who passed away in 2018, after a long battle with cancer. Some of the greatest themes from the movie are learning to deal with grief and moving on in life. Chang’e has to move on after her husband passes away and Fei Fei has to move on after the loss of her mother. But in reality, neither Chang’e nor Fei Fei is truly alone, they both still have people to care for them.

Furthermore, the movie’s title, Over the Moon has a double meaning. The title seems perfect as the characters are literally travelling to the moon, but the phrase also means a state of being delighted or extremely happy. The characters find happiness in bonds and meaningful relationships. Over the Moon is quite similar to the Disney film Onward, wherein the protagonist, Ian is trying to recover from the death of his father. Hence, moving on is one of Over the Moon’s major themes. Moreover Over the Moon is also based on a Chinese myth.

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Over the Moon story and the Chinese myth

A report on Travel China, reveals that Over the Moon is based on a popular Chinese myth which goes like this, there are ten suns in the sky and it is always very hot. A skilled archer named Houyi shoots down nine out of the ten suns and as a reward he receives the elixir of immortality. However, it is only enough for a single person. Houyi soon realises that if he becomes immortal, his wife would not be with him for eternity and he will have to spend most of his life alone. Hence, Houyi decides to stay mortal and hides the elixir.

However, one-day Houyi’s wife Chang’e finds the elixir and drinks it. She soon starts floating to the moon. Houyi is very angry at Chang’e’s selfish actions but still misses her. Houyi misses his wife so much that he leaves out food for her every night, in hopes that it would make Change’e feel less lonely. Houyi does this till the day he dies. This tradition has become more popular across China and is celebrated as a mid-autumn festival now. People often consume what are known as mooncakes during this time.

Image Source: Over the Moon (Instagram Official)