Mulan is a 2020 fantasy action drama by Walt Disney Pictures. The movie is adapted from Walt Disney Animation Studios animation movie of the same name based Chinese folklore story, Ballad of Mulan. The movie centers around a young Chinese woman Mulan (Yifei Liu) living in Imperial China. With social stereotypes existing all girls are expected to be well-mannered and serve as a good wife. However, Mulan is nowhere near an ‘ideal girl’ let alone an ideal wife. She has always been the adventures type and is never shy in showing her physical prowess. Her father Hua Zhou (Tzi Ma) is one of the great war veteran having served the Emperor when the Imperial Empire was last attacked. Having two daughters and being the only man in the house, Zhou chooses to once again pick up his sword when the Emperor orders every family in the kingdom to volunteer a warrior. Knowing that her father won’t survive if he were to enter the battlefield, Mulan decides to take his place. Deceiving her family and leaving to join the army Mulan starts her great journey. However, it won’t be the simplest of tasks as no women are allowed in the army so she needs to maintain her disguise all the while fighting on the battlefield as a great warrior.
Firstly, the adapted story feels like a perfect one offering great excitement and entertainment potential. The writers however don’t do justice to it entirely, but more on that later. Liu and Ma do a great job portraying their characters. Niki Caro too needs to be applauded having done a stellar job believably depicting Imperial China. The cinematography with location setting and great visual effects make the film look excitingly great. Lastly, the film is kept concise and to the point which is not always the case in such movies.
As I mentioned earlier the writing is a little bit of a letdown with poor dialogue and a clumsy flow to the story. As far as origin stories go, here there was no story but a few sets of scenes which honestly don’t justify the exact motivation for the character to choose the heroic path. I was expecting a little more in the music department, it wasn’t a complete letdown but still, there’s room for improvement. One thing that is not clear is whether it’s a superhero movie; the main character surely doesn’t give that feeling but the background of the storyline and other characters make you look in the superhero direction. This is a possible confusion viewers might have come across when viewing the movie.
The film is not well received among audiences, but honestly, it is not that bad. For major parts, I enjoyed the movie apart from the end, but hey every movie has its flaws. The movie could have pressed on a little bit more on gender stereotyping, but seeing that it is not set in modern times maybe they showcase just enough. In conclusion, I would recommend the movie condition you can watch it with an open mind. If you have your pre-judged notions I doubt watching the movie will change your mind.
Acting- 7.5
Casting- 7.5
Cinematography- 8.5
Dialogue- 6
Directing- 8.5
Editing & Effects- 9
Sound & Music- 5
Story- 7.5
Storytelling- 5.5
Rating- 7.5
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