The Girl Who Stole Time Review
The Girl Who Stole Time (2025) Film Review from the 29th Annual Fantasia Film Festival, a movie directed by Ao Yu, Tienan Zhou, Kuo Liu, written by Yicheng Shu, Ao Yu and Tienan Zhou and starring Xiaoyu Liu, Karry Wang, Huang Bo, Shen Zhou and Junkai Wang.
From China comes the delightfully ambitious animated gem, The Girl Who Stole Time, which is as complex and sorrowful as it is happy and upbeat. Directed by Ao Yu, Tienan Zhou and Kuo Liu, this new animated picture has plenty of humor that manifests itself throughout the story line yet there is a major core of the picture in which the central character, Qian Xiao (the fine voice of Xiaoyu Liu), embraces the sadness in life which is complemented by the many joys of being human which make life worth living. In the special and deeply moving plot the film employs in an old school setting, a Time Dial can reset the time which makes it the central point of interest for characters in this fresh take on happiness, loss and enjoying every day with the realization that time is a genuinely precious gift.
The Girl Who Stole Time loves the theory of the magic of cinema and the beauty of art as it employs movie theaters, and certain forms of artistry in its story line. This picture even has a mid-end credits scene that justifies this fact and is worth sticking around to see when the credits come up at the end. On the more humorous end, there is a motif of a young overweight boy trying to enjoy some ice cream which keeps slipping away from him at intervals that make it a funny little segment or two within this magical picture.
You could go as far as to say that Qian Xiao is China’s answer to a Disney princess and has just as much charisma as any of the young women who have worn that title in animated films of the past. Qian Xiao isn’t afraid to take big risks and love with her whole heart which makes her the most charming of the female animated characters I’ve seen this year at the movies. She comes from a village where she’s experienced a past that has its difficulties, but looks ahead to the future with great optimism.
Seventeen (Junkai Wang) is the man whose motives are in question here. Seventeen is an assassin, but one who could be redeemable if the plot will allow him to be. He gives Qian Xiao control of the Time Dial, but what is fair in terms of which one of these two characters gets to justify the need to change time at any particular moment, for better or worse. Yes ,Qian Xiao has big dreams, but at the same time, Seventeen needs certain things to happen in order for events to play out in his own life more satisfactorily.
Qian Xiao and Seventeen form a strong bond as the movie goes on and the film makes the viewer wonder which way the plot will take their relationship from moment to moment. Sadness permeates some of the scenes here, but so does hope and happiness which gives the movie a sense of brilliance despite the movie’s needless necessity to throw in semi-violent, but well orchestrated, action scenes that could make this unsuitable for certain younger viewers.
As The Girl Who Stole Time moves forward with each scene, there is a wondrous quality in the film’s portrayal of Qian Xiao who is so beautifully written and drawn that the character fairly leaps off the screen as a larger than life, energetic force of sunshine. Although she will learn some life lessons the hardest way of all, she will ultimately understand the value of precious moments and appreciating time for all its depth and complexity as a concept.
In a sense, there are good guys and bad guys in this picture, for sure, but at its heart, the movie displays a genuinely human story of uplifting possibilities that await us in life no matter what the time period is that the movie sets itself in. This film explores those missed opportunities that can only truly come back to us in our memories or through the power of art. Cinema, itself, is also a beautiful thing in this movie and fans of the cinematic experience will enjoy getting lost in the film’s complicated, but nevertheless amazing, labyrinth of wonder.
This film explores many unique concepts and ideas. Turning back time can be dangerous and those who need to do it should think twice here because the consequences could come back to be painful in many ways. Through a plot of assorted characters going through various revelations, the true nature of the human spirit and condition is revealed as the film reaches its touching conclusion. The Girl Who Stole Time has the power to steal your heart and should be seen by those who believe time stands still for no one but also believe it would be interesting if it did stand still for someone.
Rating: 8/10
Leave your thoughts on this The Girl Who Stole Time review and the film below in the comments section. Readers seeking to support this type of content can visit our Patreon Page and become one of FilmBook’s patrons. Readers seeking more Fantasia Film Festival news can visit our Fantasia Film Festival Page, our Film Festival Page, and our Film Festival Facebook Page.
Readers seeking more film reviews can visit our Movie Review Page, our Movie Review Twitter Page, and our Movie Review Facebook Page.
Want up-to-the-minute notifications? FilmBook staff members publish articles by Email, Mobile App, Google News, Apple News, Feedly, Twitter, Faceboo