A remake that is devoid of humor and liveliness

★ 1/2 out of ★★★★

Mulan (2020)

Runtime: 115 minutes 

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for sequences of violence

Have the filmmakers forgotten to put human emotion, comedic side characters and respect to the Chinese culture in their newest live-adaption Mulan? Mulan is, at best, wooden, but part of me insists that it wasn't a terribly bad film. It's something that looks visually stunning, has great messages but is overall unappealing and odd.

Mulan's story follows more or less of the original animated version's - A young Chinese maiden is informed that a war will be starting soon and each family has to send a male to join the battle. However, seeing her ailing father, Mulan decides to inherit his sword and disguise herself as a boy with the name Hua Jun, to be drafted into the war and save her father.

One of the main problems about Mulan is that it lacks human emotion and a character arc. There is no psychological or emotional torture to the character, and there is nothing challenging the character faces. Actress Liu Yifei only does as much as fight people or speak to people in a very robotic way. In the animated version, in which Mulan joined the army just to save her father; the live action remake already declares from the beginning that Mulan possesses superhuman strength and will be the savior of the army, all without hardships.

Many main and supporting characters suffer too. The characters Commander Tung (Donnie Yen) or Honghui (Yoson An) could have been so much more. I expected at least some character development or some sensible dialogues with Mulan, but it turned out to be awkward encounters as if they and Mulan were acquaintances. To make matters worse, the vibrancy of the film is sucked the living hell out of. The decision to exclude Mushu the dragon or any interesting sidekicks disrupted the whole mood of the film.

Not only that, Mulan is historically and culturally inaccurate. The prospect of Chinese people in a Chinese setting with Chinese words and engravings but conversing in English feels strange. Imagine yourself in a British town like London, seeing British people and English words around retail shops or banners, but the people talk in Arabic instead. One example I can think of to pinpoint the inaccuracy of this film is one scene where we see a Southern Chinese tulou. However, history states that Mulan lived in an era called the Northern and Southern Dynasties, which meant China was split in two then. The emperor of a northern dynasty wouldn’t decide to travel to the southern dynasty to conscript troops for war.

However, a part of me can't deny that Mulan was a stunning sight. For some parts of the film, I relaxed a little and sat back to marvel at the beautifully animated phoenix, impressive special effects, well-designed cities and some tolerable action sequences. There is one where Director Niki Caro tries to imitate the Matrix, where Mulan and her friends fight a group of bandits in a confined space. Although I acknowledge the director's effort, it feels rather parodic. I also understood the film had some good intentions, like conveying significant messages to the audience to be loyal, brave and true. Nevertheless, this good premise and concept was watered down by poor execution and poor writing.

In conclusion, Mulan is in urgent need of some seasoning - bring in some salt, pepper, oregano, thyme leaves, parsley and some basil - we're going to need it for this bland dish.