Disney's Mulan (2020)

Mulan

Mulan is an upcoming adventure flick—essentially a live-action reimagining of the 1998 animated classic.

The story follows a young Chinese woman who disguises herself as a soldier to protect her father from the front lines.

Release Date: March 27, 2020
Director: Nika Caro actor
Cast: Liu Yifei, Donnie Yen, Jet Li IMDb



IMDb

Does it feel like there isn’t a single Disney animated classic left that hasn't been remade into a live-action flick yet?

Based on this, I’m thinking they’re leaning more toward historical authenticity rather than a fairy tale vibe—I personally don't see any dragons or spirits popping up here.

The film will likely lean closer to the historical Chinese version—stripping away the music and the fantasy elements—presumably to cater to the massive Chinese market, where Disney seems to hold a certain prestige that other studios just don't quite reach.

After endless delays while everyone held their breath waiting for theaters to reopen so Disney could rake in billions at the box office, they’ve decided to just dump Mulan straight onto Disney+. So now, if people actually want to see it, they have to cough up an extra $30 on top of everything else.

Are you kidding me?!

https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/4/21...tenet-theaters

The absolute disaster of the year?

Honestly, I'm pretty disappointed. It’s seriously missing that whole atmosphere you get from the animated movie it's based on.

It feels full of naive scenes and almost completely lacks any sense of humor—or even just some actual soul, if you ask me.

I actually found myself quite enjoying the film. 🙂 The inherent naivety didn't bother me in the slightest; after all, that’s simply the nature of this kind of story. I also thought Christina’s little song at the end was a lovely touch—Loyal, brave, true. 🙂

Nathan Turner3 said:I’m honestly pretty disappointed—it really misses that specific atmosphere you get from the animated movie it's based on.

It feels full of naive moments and is almost completely devoid of humor—honestly, I'd say it lacks soul, too.

I haven't seen it yet, but even just from the trailer, it was obvious they weren't going for the vibe of the cartoon—instead, they went for that classic Chinese martial arts epic style (especially during the fight scenes).

Every single critic is trashing this movie, except for Grace Randolph who’s absolutely loving it lol

Just finished watching, and yeah, I agree—it’s pretty rough. It’s watchable if you're bored, but honestly, you aren't missing much if you skip it. The action scenes feel way too over-the-top, and the plot just follows the animated movie's beats—except everything was better in the cartoon. The animation had more tension, more drama, and actually felt interesting. Plus, the characters were so much better and more unique back then—this version misses Mushu, Chi-f, and even those three soldiers. Compared to the original, this one just falls flat. 5/10

What absolute garbage. Honestly, was this the worst movie I've seen all year?

Nathan Turner3 said:I am quite disappointed; I feel it desperately lacks the atmosphere of the animated film it was based on.

It is filled with naive scenes and is almost entirely devoid of humor—it even feels somewhat soulless, if I may say so.

If you had seen the 2009 Chinese film starring Vivian Zhao as Hua Mulan, then you would truly understand what a lack of humor means. 😁 American filmmakers tend to swing from one extreme to the other. I have watched films where the humor is relentless, yet on the flip side, I have seen many movies that leave me feeling completely shaken afterward. In those productions, the harshness of life is portrayed with such realism and vividness. Perhaps that is just my subjective impression, though; I cannot be certain.

All in All, I enjoyed the movie. I have watched the 2009 version a few times, and perhaps I prefer that one ever so slightly more than the Disney production, but regardless, I had a good time. Personally, I expected a bit more emphasis on martial arts mastery based on the trailer. I watched it on my computer, but as soon as it hits theaters here in Canada, I plan to go see it on the big screen. 😁 Chinese films, specifically martial arts epics set in the past, are my absolute favorite genre to watch.

Essentially, this version represents how the Western world perceives or views the story. It isn't a bad film by any means. However, if anyone wants to challenge themselves, they should watch the Chinese version from 2009. That is where you find that raw intensity. I found the ending particularly fascinating.

Is this at least decent enough as historical action?

Richard Wilson4 said:Is at least this part acceptable as historical action?

You’re asking quite a lot. 😁 I did a bit of digging through some history books a few years back and read up on the legend of Mulan.

I revisited both versions today—the 2009 version and the 2020 one. Honestly, no comment. I actually enjoyed both films quite a bit. However, I found that the newer version was lacking in action; based on the trailers, I truly expected much more, especially since Jackie Chan is in it (I've watched many of his films multiple times). Of course, everyone's experience is largely subjective. 🙂

Richard Wilson4 said:Is this even decent enough to count as a historical action flick?

Not really. It’s hard to call this a historical movie when—aside from the whole Mulan legend—there isn't much historical substance to it. If you're actually looking for history, you'd be better off watching the 2009 version. It's definitely an action movie, though I found some of those scenes a bit over the top and unrealistic. But hey, that's pretty common for Chinese action films.

Disney's remake of "Mulan" just pulled in a measly $23.2 million over the weekend in China, which is a pretty pathetic start for a massive blockbuster about a legendary hero hitting her home turf.

The movie didn't even come close to matching Christopher Nolan's "Tenet," which cleared $29.8 million in China just a week earlier. "Mulan" was basically built from the ground up to crush it in the Chinese market.

But since this thing cost a whopping $200 million to make, all that political drama surrounding the production really tanked it, leaving audiences in China totally split on whether it's even worth watching.

Social media has been a total mess over this one. People are calling for boycotts because the lead actress backed the Hong Kong police, plus there’s all that heat regarding filming parts of it in Xinjiang—where the Chinese government's treatment of the Uyghurs and other Muslim groups has caused massive backlash from Western governments and human rights groups.

To make matters worse, the Chinese authorities actually told the media to keep things quiet about the movie's release.

By Sunday, "Mulan" had managed to scrape together $37.6 million total across the seven countries where it was playing.

Meanwhile, Disney decided to just dump "Mulan" online in the USA and everywhere else you can grab a subscription to Disney+.

It’s just such a massive waste of talent when you take guys like Jackie Chan and Jet Li 🤦

Whenever I catch sight of those Bradley Fighting Vehicles and Strykers
it immediately makes me feel 😁