Reviews for Mulan

There are so many reasons that this film is in my "best animated films" list, I don't know where to start. Based on an ancient Chinese poem, Mulan tells the story of a girl who pretends to be a man and goes off to war in order to save her father's life, and the message of self-sacrifice, courage, honor, and love of family are what raises this film into the 5-star category. It's an entertaining film, very funny and occasionally scary and tense. The usual Disney stuff - silly sidekicks, anachronisms - are seasoned with some very serious issues, such as the destruction of an entire village. The pacing is excellent, and so is the music.

The plot ~ The Huns cross the Great Wall and invade China, and the Emperor calls up one man from every family to bolster the numbers of his defending army. One of these called is Fa Zhou, whose daughter, Mulan, has just completely failed to uphold the family honor with a matchmaker. Certain that her father - who is elderly and lame - will die if he goes to war again, Mulan dresses as a boy and takes his place. Somehow she makes it through a brutal (and often hilarious) training camp and goes to war, where her intelligence and quick thinking save her country.

The characters ~ Mulan herself, despite her actions and her courage, never loses her femininity, and she is an excellent heroine in every respect. There are a lot of sidekicks - Mushu, Cri-Kee, Ling, Yao, and Chien-Po - and all are individual and amusing. Mushu edges toward being "too much", but he's so funny you forgive that. The hero (Li Shang) and villain (Shan Yu) are both short-changed - neither gets much screen time, and no background or motivation is supplied for either of them - but they manage to make quite an impact nevertheless.

The bad news ~ Shan Yu, a ruthless villain who advances into the story with the force of a natural disaster, is given no real reason for his invasion. Some of the plot (such as the law decreeing death for a woman who disguises herself as a man) is incomprehensible if you don't understand the concept of a rigid system of honor, as is some of the motivations of the characters, especially Mulan and Fa Zhou.

The good news ~ The artwork is beautiful ~ it's a Disneyfied China, but unique. Mulan herself is likeable, so you don't mind spending a lot of time with her. The humor is good, and the music is terrific. I'm not going to comment on how good I think the villain is (although I prefer to call him the antagonist), because I'm prejudiced, but he is effective as a scary force. The film is often charming, and the affection between the characters is more real than usual in animated films.

Possibly the second best post-Mermaid and pre-Groove movie Disney had ever made, with the best being Beauty and the Beast. To me, Mulan stands above the rest of Disney's modern movies by being one of the few movies where Disney actually tried to do something different and break away from the stale patterns that they had been following. They didn't succeed completely, as Mulan still has a few annoying Disney conventions, but at the time, Mulan was the most refreshing Disney movie since Aladdin. Mulan is also one of Disney's least overblown and least pretentious movies, giving it stronger staying power than most of Disney's 90s movies.

The animation in Mulan is Disney at their finest. It's a slick blend of traditional animation and dazzling effects but without the computer generated images that seem out of place or the bombastic "look at me" type of animation that typified many of Disney's post-Lion King movies. The traditional animation in Mulan is polished and refined and is given an almost water color painting look to it. But Mulan also has its fair share of effects like smoke and mirrors and rain falling and some incredible fire and shadow sequences. The avalanche is one of Disney's more breathtaking sequences.

At the heart of the movie is one of Disney's strongest and most complex heroes ever. Mulan has a firm yet loving father, and she is placed in a difficult situation. She wants to save her father's life, but she also wants to discover her true self. Doing both, however, could cost her her life. Unlike many of Disney's heroes, Mulan's not in the movie to find love or sing sappy songs. Very few of Disney's heroes have to face such complex situations in their movies as what Mulan had to endure. She is, in my opinion, a true Disney hero.

Unlike the overrated Lion King, Mulan actually earns every bit of its praise. It takes us on a ride of fun, laughter, and emotion. It has a smart script and wonderful characters, and it doesn't insult anybody's intelligence. Much like The Emperor's New Groove, it's easy to dismiss Mulan because of the popularity of the more flowery animated movies like The Lion King and Tarzan. But in my opinion, Mulan is one of the most handsomely animated movies ever made.

Nice animation, good quotes, semi-good music, bad story, even worse movie.

It's a shame--this movie had so much potential, but NO, Disney had to go and screw the whole thing up! Anyone who's familiar with the story of Mulan knows she joins the Chinese army disguised as a man. And yes, that is the plot of the movie.