Mulan

 One of the earlier casualties of the COVID pandemic was Mulan (among many other films in that continuing string). It was Disney's next high-profile live action remake of the animated classic and, all things considered, seemed to have a decent amount of hype around it in terms of quality. 

They eventually made the [controversial] decision to release it on their convenient new streaming platform for an upcharge of $30. A steep price, even by VOD standards, and not one that I wanted to give in to mostly out of principle. I recognize that's an insanely cheap "trip to the movies" for a family, but I couldn't help but think of all the dangerous precedents for pay-more-for-this-content it could create. Thankfully it was only for Mulan, because I likely would have caved if we'd been talking about Black Widow. 

Initial reviews to Mulan weren't kind, which isn't all that surprising. These live action remakes lack a certain magic and...ahem...liveliness that makes the animated versions so memorable. But I've also found that reviews can be too harsh as I'm not sure I've encountered one of these that is anything less than okay/good - though to be fair, only a couple reach "great". Aladdin is a prime example of a movie that came out when I was too busy to get to it, I saw the mediocre reviews, and decided to skip. Low and behold, I'm watching it on a plane 9 months later and having a blast, loving it. Just like that, it was my "best" example of how these live action films should be and I was honestly perplexed at the very middling reviews it received. No, it couldn't touch the animated classic, but I'll be damned if I wasn't entertained the whole time. 

I find that Mulan reviews - while not equally so - were also harsh. There's a lot to admire here (and some to not) and while it's clear this is eons away from the wonderful animated version, it's also a very watchable, pretty movie. 

I do believe that's an avalanche comin for y'all!

Mulan suffers the most from not making up its mind what it wants to be. Does it want to be a full on martial arts film? A retelling of the animated classic? A new version of that story? Does it want to be a "princess" tale? All of these things are toyed with and it results in an experience that feels watered down from either and that should have chosen a path. Personally, I think there were only two options here: 1) You go all in on recreating cricket, Mushu, and the songs (aka the things that made the animated film so fun). Mulan (2020) distinctly lacks some fun and Aladdin proved that you could recreate animated characters in fun, modern ways. Having Eddie Murphy reprise his role would have been a hoot too. Option 2) Given the talent involved you dedicate the film to martial arts and double down on this aspect. Mulan almost goes there (more on that later), but feels frustratingly held back by its "Disney-ness" despite having a PG-13 rating. This is perhaps one of the softest PG-13s I've seen and it would have been much better - and highly interesting - to see Disney push the envelope further into PG-13 territory here. Because it decides to tread that middle ground, it really doesn't have much new to offer by the end, which feels like a missed opportunity. I didn't need an R-rated Mulan (although, that would be sweet) but something more in the violence territory as Lord of the Rings could have been special. 

Legolas but make it fashun!

The rest of the film is a combination [and consequence] of good and boring choices. Our actors and actresses do fine - none are special except Donnie Yen in his minimal role. Jet Li as the Emperor could have been special if given more to do. The original score has echoes, literally, of the original movie, but again - when you've got songs like the original had on the table I can't help but think this would have been more fun if I could belt "SWIFT AS THE COURSING RIVER!!!" at the top of my lungs. Where Mulan excels is the action, costume design, and cinematography. Unfortunately the action is over-edited, but there's a lot of special camera use here with some impressive wire work and choreography to admire. And in the slower moments, there's awesome cinematography that soaks in the nature and landscapes effectively. 

Perhaps people felt burned when they spent $30 for a okay/good movie early on, but I found Mulan, while certainly not anywhere close to the original, was an entertaining watch on a Saturday night. Would I watch it again? Probably not. Did it need to exist? Nope, not really. But is it bad? Nah. It's fine. 

CONS

• Should have chosen a path and dedicated itself to it. It's at times a scene-for-scene remake, and at others, a deliberate shift into martial arts. Choose one!
• Unmemorable performances
• Some sketchy special effects
• Overly long. Several areas could have been shortened, including the ending after the climax
• Misses that "magic" from the animated film
• Some action sequences are over-edited
• Doesn't take advantage of its PG-13 rating

PROS

• The tale of Mulan is still interesting and engaging to watch
• Martial arts choreography was impressive and the camera techniques are unique
• Gorgeous costume design
• Strong cinematography, particularly when epic vistas and colors are concerned

Rath's Review Score | 7/10