Curious Tales of a Temple | Watch Online & Full Details
🎬 Title: Curious Tales of a Temple / 聊斋：兰若寺
Story: An epic animated fantasy anthology film intertwining six storylines from China's classic supernatural story collection "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio" by Pu Songling. The six stories center on Lanruo Temple, an ancient ruin haunted by spirits. Weaving in classic tales like "Taoist from Laoshan Mountain," "Princess Lotus," "Nie Xiaoqian," "The Painted Skin" and "The Daughter of Magistrate Lu." These stories — spanning humans, ghosts and demons — explore love, death and morality against shifting time. The film merges six distinct styles into one anthology. For example, "Taoist from Laoshan Mountain" uses felt-textured animation, while "The Painted Skin" mirrors Song dynasty painting aesthetics.
⭐ Rating: 6.7 (6 votes)
📅 Release date: 2025-07-12
⏱️ Runtime: 2h 32m
🎭 Genres: Drama, Comedy, Fantasy, Animation
🎬 Director: Xie Junwei, Zou Jing, Cui Yuemei, Liu Yuan, Huang Heyu, Liu Yilin
✍️ Writer: Shen Junle, Zhang Xuejie
🌍 Countries: China
🏢 Production companies: Light Chaser Animation Studios, Shanghai Ruyi Film & TV Production, Wanda Pictures, Tao Piao Piao, China Film Group Corporation
👥 Cast: Lu Lifeng (蒲松龄（配音）), Lin Qiang (灵蟾上人（配音）), Zhang He (玄龟子（配音）), Chen Ziping (王承（配音）), Fu Bohan (窦旭（配音）), Chen Linling (莲花公主（配音）), Liu Xiaoyu (小倩（配音）), Gu Jiangshan (宁采臣（配音）), Yihui Xie (陈氏（配音）), 傅婷云 (画皮妖（配音）)
Editor’s note: Our short take on Curious Tales of a Temple (2025): Firmly a Drama, Comedy, Fantasy, Animation piece, but with a personal touch. Xie Junwei keeps the storytelling tight, favoring character beats over empty flash. Performances (especially Lu Lifeng, Lin Qiang, Zhang He) give the story human stakes. Clocking in at 2h 32m, the pacing is controlled, with room to breathe. A respectable mid-tier entry with a couple of memorable beats. If the premise speaks to you, this one’s easy to recommend.
