Mulan (2020)
Directed by Niki Caro
When the Emperor of China issues a decree that one man per family must serve in the Imperial Chinese Army to defend the country from Huns, Hua Mulan, the eldest daughter of an honored warrior, steps in to take the place of her ailing father. She is spirited, determined and quick on her feet. Disguised as a man by the name of Hua Jun, she is tested every step of the way and must harness her innermost strength and embrace her true potential.
66 connections found
View:
66 films that influenced Mulan
What critics say influenced Mulan
What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: Director Niki Caro borrows a few elements of upper-tier Wuxia films such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon or House of Flying Daggers , but it ultimately shows more influence from historical battle epics like The Last Samurai .
Mulan is clearly inspired by the wuxia films that first became become popular on Western shores in the early 2000s — particularly the works of Zhang Yimou, who combined luxurious, intricately detailed costumes and vibrant splashes of color to create jaw-dropping visuals in films like House of Flying Daggers .
The new “Mulan” is more frankly a hybrid of Eastern and Western filmmaking styles, and if it lacks the poetic majesty of the best entries in the genre — Zhang Yimou’s “Hero” and “House of Flying Daggers,” Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” King Hu’s classics in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Tsui Hark’s 1990s work — it’s solid enough to please family audiences and more than a few jaded adults.
And with Gong Li’s turn as a shapeshifting witch, the filmmakers might have tapped some of the camp deliciousness of Charlize Theron’s similar figure in Snow White and the Huntsman, or mined her instead for an operatic tragedy in the vein of House of Flying Daggers.
The notions of protectors and guardians are also key in a spirited story that’s part fable and part transformation of the original story into Wuxia warrior epic greatly inspired by the films of Zhang Yimou (“Hero” and “House of Flying Daggers,” in particular).
It clearly takes influence from wuxia films like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and House of Flying Daggers , along with western war epics like Gladiator and Kingdom of Heaven , but at its core the film Mulan clearly aspires to be compared to is Wonder Woman .
The action sequences in the new film are an uneven affair, somewhat hobbled by a conspicuous attempt to soften the blow for matinee crowds, or in this instance Disney+ subscribers, but not without moments of splendor that recall Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou (“Hero,” “Curse of the Golden Flower”) and Ridley Scott circa “Kingdom of Heaven.”
It clearly takes influence from wuxia films like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and House of Flying Daggers , along with western war epics like Gladiator and Kingdom of Heaven , but at its core the film Mulan clearly aspires to be compared to is Wonder Woman .
Luckily, it seems Disney has managed to hit the bullseye for the first time since 2016’s The Jungle Book , delivering a retelling that perfectly balances respecting its inspiration whilst forging its own identity and purpose.
So far, while most have been OK, the only one that really worked was Jon Favreau’s “The Jungle Book.” "Whale Rider's" Niki Caro directs the latest and while its story of female empowerment is great for kids, the battle action quite breathtaking (is that wire work or CGI or a combination?
Like 2015’s Cinderella and 2016’s The Jungle Book , the new Mulan , from Niki Caro, wisely sees its reason for being as a chance to explore elements further and, if need be, upgrade them instead of to reanimate and reclothe with assets afforded by a titanic budget.
Unlike “The Jungle Book” (2016), “Aladdin” (2019), or “The Lion King” (2019), the remake of the 1998 animated “Mulan” hasn’t been photocopied and touched up using pixels and/or live actors and then sold to audiences as something “new.”
It’s more The Jungle Book (2016) than The Lion King (2019) in that it’s both quite good and not the first live-action version of the tale to hit screens.
Thankfully, the 2020 live-action update of Mulan is a worthy successor to the original, more akin to 2015’s refreshing spin on Cinderella than last year’s visually arresting but hollow remake of The Lion King .
Mulan , the latest of them, follows in the footsteps of 2019’s Aladdin ($1.05 billion at the global box office) and The Lion King ($1.65 billion), which were less movies than they were recreations, proof that years of film advancements and increased resources could be used to make something so much worse than the original it was attempting to remind you of.
While The Lion King (2019) reboot was nearly a frame-by-frame copy of its predecessor, Mulan deviates significantly from the 1998 animated film.
Advertisement
But despite the absence of so many elements that endeared fans to the 1998 feature, the new “Mulan” holds together nicely, thanks in large part to director Niki Caro, While the New Zealander behind the Oscar-nominated coming-of-age drama “Whale Rider” is not exactly an inspired choice, she’s taken over the reins with storytelling efficiency, a keen eye for attractive imagery and a willingness to pay tribute to Chinese culture.
Not only is Niki Caro - the filmmaker behind such gems like “Whale Rider” and “McFarland U.S.A” - in the directing chair, one of a handful of female directors ever given the reins to a $200 million tentpole, but herself and writers Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Elizabeth Martin, and Lauren Hynek made the bold move to ditch the musical theatrics of its animated predecessor, and create a gritty, stylized, and realistic adventure in the vein of the ancient Chinese folk story “The Ballad of Mulan.”
The new live-action Mulan , directed by Niki Caro ( Whale Rider , The Zookeeper’s Wife ), is reminiscent of two things.
Director Niki Caro, who proved adept at inspirational tales with "Whale Rider," "North Country" and "McFarland, USA," has a pulse on the heart of the feminist fable, about a woman who masquerades as a man to protect her family and homeland.
Caro revisits the promise and themes of her breakout film, 2002’s Whale Rider , with this tale of a young woman fighting against sexist expectations and traditions.
Directed by New Zealander Niki Caro (“Whale Rider”) from a script by Lauren Hynek, Rick Jaffa, Elizabeth Martin and Armanda Silver, “Mulan” carries the torch of feminism proudly though in a decidedly non-threatening way.
Characters run sideways along walls, flip head-over-heals on horseback, and dodge arrows à la “The Matrix,” with all the dramatic, slow-motion shots you’d expect from a classic martial arts movie.
And in these scenes Mulan borrows a bit from films like The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon .
A band of misogynistic but redeemable comrades pile over themselves to devour the showdown, much like during Neo and Morpheus’ first fight in The Matrix .
Storyboarded to within an inch of its life, then translated to screen with stunning energy and attention to detail, the film represents Hollywood’s most enthusiastic embrace of blockbuster Asian cinema tropes since “The Matrix” trilogy.
The work of Japanese director Akira Kurosawa ("Seven Samurai") along with 2002's "Hero" (also featuring Donnie Yen and Jet Li) inspired the massive battle sequences in the film.
The 2020 version of “Mulan” should be commended for not doing an exact story replica of the original movie, which was the biggest criticism of Disney’s 2019 remake of “The Lion King” that basically did a more technologically updated animated copy of the 1994 classic “Lion King.”
Advertisement
Heck, at least some of the appeal of Michael Bay’s Transformers movies lay in how comparatively goofy and over-the-top weird they were compared to other blockbuster franchises at the time.
Disney’s beloved Princess tales are no stranger to classic mythology, and everything from “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” to “The Princess and the Frog” have pulled liberally from existing material to craft family-friendly animated outings centered on inspirational women.
I’m almost certain one of Mulan’s fellow recruits—the doughy, comical Cricket—shares some strands of DNA with Dopey from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs .