WARNING: This Review May Contain Spoilers
Now, we all know that Disney aren’t ones for original stories, however I didn’t realise that these films were based on old Chinese folk tale about Hua Mulan who took her father’s place in battle for 12 years! For me, forget Cinderella and Snow White, these are female characters I understand girls looking up to!
Frame for Frame
For once, this is not something I can criticise the remake of, considering the fact that they add backstory for Mulan – showing her affinity for fighting from a young age – means this is not trying to be the original film. Instead, it is trying to stand on its own two feet as a film of its own and potentially a closer representation of the folk tale of Hua Mulan, leaning further into the traditional Chinese values and the difference between how men and women bring honour to their families. There is one scene however I wish they had not changed – there something slightly more powerful to me, even though it is an animation, about the way Mulan takes her father’s place in the army as there is no discussion with her father and no “Loyal, Brave, True” prior to her leaving. The scene is simple incidental music as she takes her father’s sword and armour before riding off to the camp.
Comedic Relief
Having never seen this before, I had always understood that the comedy came specifically from Mushu the dragon, however the comedy happens from the very beginning with Grandmother Fa and the cricket. This also becomes a brilliant double act between Mushu and the cricket, reminiscent of Timon and Pumba but with less speech – particularly as cricket doesn’t use words just sounds. Weirdly, there’s something about the way Eddie Murphy voices him that reminds me a little of Robin Williams voicing Batty in Fern Gully: The Last Rainforest.
I wonder if it was part of the attempt to make the film more traditional, that these characters, Mushu and the cricket, are removed from the live action remake. I guess this also helps it to appeal to an older audience.
Character Development
Some may see it as questionable why Mulan chooses to join the army in her father’s place in the original film when she has no fighting ability to begin with however I feel this plays into the idea of honour. She feels she cannot bring that to her family in the traditional sense so to protect her aging father and bring this back to them she chooses to join the army to do so. In the remake however, adding the fact that she ‘fights’ already, loses that character development brought on by the montage to I’ll Make a Man Out of You because there is no need to “make a man” out of her when the ability is already there. I wonder if this was Disney’s attempt to stick closer to the folk tale. It feels like we lose the crisis of self by doing this also.
The Reveal
Unlike the real Mulan, who revealed herself after many years in the army, this story shows her being revealed due to an injury – saving her captain from the Huns – causing her to be kicked out of the army. In the remake however, Mulan chooses to reveal herself, returning to the battle as a woman. With that, neither film sticks true to the Ballad of Mulan where, as mentioned before, Hua Mulan revealed herself after 12 years fighting alongside her brothers in arms. I guess the point in the remake is that she is diminishing her skills by pretending to be someone she’s not.
Benefit of Animation
The one thing Disney have always done well is to be able to make their villains look less than human, and the original film is no different. There is something almost vampiric about the way Shan Yu, the leader of the Huns, looks and I wonder if that is supposed to be a homage to Attila the Hun who is believed to have been an inspiration for Bram Stoker’s character Dracula. Unfortunately, with a live action remake, this is something that would not be possible as it could be deemed as offensive. Instead, they need to use colour to differentiate between the Chinese and the Rouran Army as well as the use of magic.
A Story of Honour
What I loved about the original film is that isn’t simply about Mulan trying to honour her family in battle and protect her father. It also includes Shang trying to honour his own father, the general of the Chinese army, and Mushu trying to restore his own honour amongst the ancestors of the Fa family. With the exclusion of Mushu, this tale of honour is also removed from the remake. We also have an older commander in place of Shang Li from the original film who is clearly an older man so there is no requirement for him to prove himself to anyone as he is clearly a seasoned warrior. This means that the story is now solely focused on Mulan’s journey.
The Love Story
Considering this is a Disney film, I had believed that there was more of a love story between Mulan and Shang Li that took more of the story than it actually does. I have to admit that it would be pretty weird if they had made more of it than just a final implied scene considering he believed her to be a man for as long as he did. This would have been weirder still if introduced into the remake considering there is a chance Commander Tung is potentially old enough to be her father. However, it seems that a romantic relationship between Mulan and Chen, another recruit in Tung’s army, develops early into the film with her beginning to have an attraction to him rather quickly. Having said that, much like the original there is little focus on this attraction until 20 minutes from the end when Chen tries to stop her leaving the Imperial City.
The Use of Music
I love the fact that for the entirety of the original film, there are only 4 songs, meaning that the viewer is able to focus on the plot of the film and the strength of our main character. Interestingly, unlike other live action Disney remakes, the songs are completed removed from the 2020 film, even though it does feel like there is a hint of the original soundtrack in some of the instrumental music and some lyrics are used as dialogue.
In Conclusion
Normally, as the avid readers of these articles will be aware, this is point where I typically say that I prefer the original film. However, where I had the benefit of never having seen the original prior to writing this article, I can see this – the child in me enjoyed the original for its humour whereas the adult I am enjoys the remake more for the traditional feel of the way the story is represented.
