FEATURE
PRINCESS POWER Mulan gets the historical epic treatment. Boldly taking her story in a new direction, with stunning locations and breathtaking battles this is no mere shot-for-shot remake. WORDS CHRIS WASEY RELEASE DATE 27 MARCH / Director Niki Caro / Starring Yifei Liu, Donnie Yen, Jason Scott Lee / Genre Action, Adventure, Fantasy
I
n 1998, Disney took a gamble making Mulan. She didn’t fit the fairytale princess mould, cinema audiences had never heard of her, and it skirted as close to feminism as mainstream animation dared to get. Knowing her ageing father would not survive conscription, Mulan steals his armour and sword and joins the army in his place. Disguised as a man, she must survive perilous challenges
MULAN
16 March / April 2020
and face the barbaric Bori Khan and ruthless sorceress Xian Lang in battle to save her homeland. While the story may not have changed much, Disney are taking risks again; for the first time letting a live-action remake take its own direction. This Mulan is bigger, bolder, and much more dangerous - there are no songs, ghostly ancestors, or cartoon spirit dragons here. Featuring an all-Asian cast, Mulan introduces Chinese star Yifei Liu in the title role. While the star who fronts fantasy epics in China will be a new
name to most, her supporting ensemble including martial arts legends Donnie Yen, Jet Li, and Jason Scott Lee will be well known to western audiences. Described by director Niki Caro as “a big, girly martial arts epic”, the scale is just phenomenal and with an enormous budget (the most afforded to any Disney release not called Avengers), Mulan will prove she’s tough enough to rival any Marvel blockbuster.
OLD TALES
Mulan is a The ballad of Hua se fable. Aside 1500-year-old Chine e (the ballad takes from the timefram rs) and training yea ny ma r place ove lan is already Mu , tale (in the written l arts and archery rtia ma in d ine tra ll we yed army) - Disney sta before joining the story. the of rit spi the fairly close to sions do reflect But while some ver e of Disney’s ton y air and t ligh the a much darker re’s the n, tio 1998 anima g Romance. Tan Sui alternative: the ed Mulan’s capture lud inc n sio ver is Th h the enemy, before and friendship wit a brutal victory d lea going on to imately sees Mulan ult but m, the t ins aga after refusing the life n ow her taking to return to the nd ma emperor’s com concubine. his e palace and becom
