Mulan Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all.
This time, the princess saves the prince.
Mulan is a girl, the only child of her honored family. When the Huns invade China, one man from every family is called to arms. Mulan's father, who has an old wound and cannot walk properly, decides to fight for his country and the honor of his family though it is clear that he will not survive an enemy encounter. Mulan, who just got rejected by the matchmaker because she had set her on fire, decides to prove that she is worth something and steals away to fit her father's place in the Chinese army. She prays to her family's ancestors for protection and luck before leaving as a man in her father's armor with her family's horse. The ancestors awake and decide to send Mushu, a little dishonored dragon to aid Mulan in her quest. Weeks later, Mulan and the other troopers have survived the training camp and are on the way north to stop the huns. After being spotted and pursued by the enemies, an impass situation in the mountains forces Mulan to come up with an idea. But then, her real gender will no longer be a secret. She decides to risk everything in order to save China.
| Miguel Ferrer | Shan-Yu |
| Harvey Fierstein | Yao |
| Freda Foh Shen | Fa Li |
| Marni Nixon | Grandmother Fa |
| James Hong | Chi Fu |
| Miriam Margolyes | Matchmaker |
| Pat Morita | The Emperor of China |
| Eddie Murphy | Mushu |
| Soon-Tek Oh | Fa Zhou (voice) |
| Donny Osmond | Shang |
| Lea Salonga | Mulan |
| James Shigeta | General Li |
| George Takei | First Ancestor |
| Jerry Tondo | Chien-Po |
| Tony Bancroft |
| Barry Cook |
7.20 out of 10 (12943 votes)
Visitor Reviews
No "Lion King",but not "Hercules"
posted on 24 Mar 2009Starting in the late eighties, Walt Disney studios produced some entertaining animated pictures. By the mid-nineties, their films had become an assembly line product. "Mulan" steers this course, as a young innocent gains an important life lesson within a ninety minute package. Menacing villains, trendy colloquial language, and computer
generated animation pervades throughout. There is a cute dragon creature, voiced by Eddie Murphy, traveling with Mulan that provides aid and comic relief. Murphy could have played this role like Robin Williams' genie in "Aladdin", but opts for a more humble approach. I admired a battle sequence on a snow covered mountain range and a minimal use of bland, forgettable songs. 2.5 out of 4 stars.
Opinion, a dish better served coldly.
posted on 22 Feb 2009I think that Mulan was excellent. For once, characters could roam around without frickin breaking out into song every five minutes. The one thing I hated about all the old Disney movies is that they were practically musicals. This movie probably had fewer songs than any other Disney flick at its time. And also, the songs were cute n' catchy, instead of overwhelmingly cute and sickening. I could actually watch this movie without the urge of just taking out the tape and loading it on a skeet shooter. Hahhahaha. I left this movie saying wow, I actually wouldn't mind watching it again. I recommend this movie for all to see!
A Disney apple never falls far from the tree. (Good apple!)
posted on 16 Feb 2009I found this the most pleasing animation from Disney for a while. The signature child/parent separation pain was there as expected. The commentary on the role of women was refreshing and needed. I was particularly pleased that it did not end with a wedding scene.
Classic musical genre
posted on 13 Feb 2009It seems that only Walt Disney has the ability to revive the movie musical. They follow a very basic track of movie plot, but that is expected when dealing with a musical. Great introductions of the characters, conflicts, and resolutions. It also joins the ranks of one of the few Walt Disney films where the main character's parents are both alive.
A True Masterpiece
posted on 01 Feb 2009Every Disney movie is always advertised as "a masterpiece", but Mulan is one of the few that REALLY fit the bill. The animation itself is simple and flowing, reminiscent of ancient Chinese art. But the animation for this is really something else. In fact, this is the best thing since The Lion King.Mulan is a young girl who does her best to bring honor to her family. Then, when the Hun army invades China, one man from every household must serve in the Imperial Army. Since Mulan has no older brothers, her crippled father must serve. And it's obvious, early on in the movie, that it's impossible for him to fight with a crippled leg. There's a great likelihood that this man is going to die in battle.So, out of the sheer love for her father, Mulan disguises herself in his armor and takes his place in the army.This movie isn't about some gal going off to war to prove herself, or break free from the caste system, like so many other Disney heroines. And it isn't about "finding your prince and living happily ever after". Mulan goes for the simple love of her father and because of the her dedication to her family. She risks losing everything to SAVE everything.Mulan is a wonderful movie because the main character is realistic. She's not perfect, she has her faults, and we all identify with her because we all try out best to please our fathers. This is one of the few movies I watched with my dad that he really liked, and he isn't that fond of animated stuff. It's a great film.And that's what makes a true masterpiece.
Mulan
posted on 05 Jan 2009To be honest, I would probably need to see this again to write a better review, and see why the critics give it four out of five stars, but from the bits I can remember, it is a good film. Based on an old Chinese folktale, this film sees young Chinese maiden Mulan (Ming-Na) having a normal life, until her father is taken away to fight in the army against the invading Huns. Knowing his weak state, she decides to disguise herself as a man and get into the army. Unknown to her, her ancestors know what she's going to do, and send a tiny disgraced dragon, Mushu (Eddie Murphy) to prevent it, he agrees to this, but he eventually decides to help her instead. There are some interesting moments of bonding with fellow fighters, with humorous near-miss situations, but everyone eventually finds out. For a while you see no end to the war, but Mulan becomes the hero eventually when she saves the life of the Emperor (Pat Morita). Also starring Lea Salonga as Mulan's singing voice, B.D. Wong as Shang, Donny Osmond as Shang's singing voice, Miguel Ferrer as Shan-Yu, Mrs. Doubtfire's Harvey Fierstein as Yao, Miriam Margolyes as Matchmaker and George Takei as First ancestor. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Music for Matthew Wilder (music), David Zippel (lyrics) and Jerry Goldsmith (orchestral score), and it was nominated the Golden Globes for Best Original Score and Best Original Song for "Reflection". Worth watching, as far as I can remember!
I really liked this Disney flick that seemed to slip between the cracks
posted on 30 Dec 2008In the 1990s, I felt that Disney made quite a few undistinguished cartoons following Aladdin. Unlike most of the world, I wasn't all that enamored with THE LION KING and subsequent offerings such as the wretched HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME and POCAHONTAS were huge disappointments. Sure, POCAHONTAS is a lovely film to watch, but it's so wrong historically and it's so politically correct and hokey. And as for HUNCHBACK, the story was so dark and unappealing, I have no idea WHO the intended audience was. So it was in this context that I expected to hate or at least be underwhelmed by MULAN. Instead, it seemed fresh, well-made, humorous and fun--something distinctly missing from these other films. While the anachronistic aspect of having a lady warrior is problematic, for once Disney had another strong and likable female lead following Belle in BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. This was a definite home-run for Disney and well worth your time whether you are a child or an adult.
Mulan
posted on 27 Dec 2008Chinese design elements and storytelling make this one of the better latter-day Disney animated features. Humor, action, romance, social commentary, and even the required musical interludes are balanced quite perfectly in this medieval tale of an awkward young woman who disguises herself as a man to take her aged warrior father's place in battle. More than any previous Disney cartoon, this plays like a well-crafted, straight-forward adventure film that just happens to be animated. Eddie Murphy is a scream as the voice of Mulan's bumbling protector, a puny dragon. Personally, I love the music, and Murphy is really funny as the puny dragon. This is really a great movie which your children will love!! Buy the soundtrack also to this movie because its really good.
A great story of Mulan
posted on 24 Dec 2008The legend of Mulan, girl who went to battle with men and showed that only one person can do much.I saw this movie some years ago, but it's still fresh in my memory. It's a piece of great animation, with music, humour, wonderful characters and great story. Maybe it's little bit frightening to family's young ones for scary "bad guy"..But I really liked this animation and want you to see it, too!
Who is it really for?
posted on 27 Nov 2008I just caught Mulan at the cinema on its re-release( I assume to back Tarzan up). I watched it with my 4 year old daughter who loved every second of course (she knows all the songs, names of the characters etc)But then again so do I. I am a Disney fan. No doubt about it. Ever since I was a kid, (I'm a big one now at 27)I've pretty much caught all of the Disney movies and as you get older they obviously change. Not the movies themselves, but your perception of what you are watching. As a movie fan I can appreciate all of Disneys recent movies as an adult( the direction, artwork, character selection and most importantly story selection). I like them all in different ways, Aladdin for X, Notre Dame for Y and it goes on. The point I am making is this: Does it really matter what I think? My daughter loved it. Its for her. Its for all the kids to enjoy the world over. I try not to be critical of Imbd reviews but I think people maybe aren't watching a movie like this in the right frame of mind if they are not at least entertained by its simple (ok predictable) story and the easy to listen to musical score etc. As an Eddie murphy fan I loved mushu, but I can appreciate someone not acquainted with his comedy finding him miscast in this film. But again, so what? Do the kids care? No. As adults we criticize the selection of the comedy relief and we wonder who the comedy relief will be in the next film. I'm not saying you have to have children to enjoy a Disney movie nor am I saying any person young or old, male or female, chinese or arabic etc isn't entitled to an opinion on said movie, but hey lighten up folks. I think Mulan is another solid performance from Disney and look forward to Tarzan.
I loved it...
posted on 31 Oct 2008Ok... I've read through most of the posted comments posted before this about this movie; I find that some people love the music, but think the characters are thin; some hate Eddie Murphy's presence, and think the love story is stupid. Well, your experience with a film is individual, I guess.That said, I'll follow the trail and state why I loved watching this movie not once, but several times:First of all, I'm far from being a fan of animated Disney classics. I'm in that age between child and adult(currently 23), where everything is a rebelry. Most of my viewing pleasures is action or its like.My original incentive for seeing this movie was to please a friend of mine, who has a long-life fascination for oriental culture (read: karate films!). When Mulan was released in Denmark, a single copy with the original voices track (usually all animated Disneys are dubbed into danish with good result) was shown in a local theater. Asking a couple of girls out, we went and saw it. Ok, I was blown away. Before I had left the cinema that day, I too was captured by chinese history and culture. The singing and music I was prepared for; I knew The Jungle Book and Aristocats from childhood. The songs didn't mean anything to me, other than that they were few - good for me. (Some of them do kling to the ear - irritating for me!) I quickly realised Eddie Murphy was on the voices cast. I started liking the movie right then. Some find him malplaced in a Disney epic, but fact is that the business of animating classics is profiting well these years in bringing in already established names to the animations; Tom Hanks in the Toy Stories, Mel Gibson in Pocahontas, Robin Williams in Aladdin, and who else I don't know of. These names sell the film before the film have a chance to sell itself. (The danish producers, by the way, have stolen this idea when dubbing the films, using local media stars for the voice cast.) Well...it did work for me. Eddie Murphy is not as funny in this production as he is in others, but what the heck...he can't exactly use too much harsh language, it IS a children's flick. But with the room he got, his speedy tongue made me laugh again and again. I have later seen Aladdin, and find Eddie Murphy's achievement as funny as Robin Williams'. That Eddie Murphy chose this project was an interesting and probably very clever career move. Later, when I studied the rest of the cast list, I noticed a lot of chinese names. That very much pleased me. Who other than Chinese people to tell a Chinese tale to Westerners? I found some old friends, Soon-Tek Oh and James Hong, people who had worked with Chick Norris in the 80's. Pat Morita as the emperor made me smile. B.D.Wong I remembered from Jurrasic Park, but Ming-Na was new to me (had to look her up in IMDB, was stunned not to have known her before (Ok, I went wow!)). Harvey Fierstein as a ploppy little soldier and Miguel Ferrer as the Hun leader I found the perfect voice-choice for their characters...other names rang also. Anyway, a lot of the above have only value after you've seen the film. When you are an Atlantic ocean from most of the sales pitch, the film had to sell itself. It did - for me, anyway. Before then, I knew little about China and her history apart from things here and there (read: karate films!). Meeting angient China like this totally threw me away. Wership of the ancestors, the power and position of the emperor, I found myself lost in the dream of a world long gone; I loved the image of a China with different traditions but still found myself attracted to the pro-Disney story about a girl standing up to a culture's sexist prejudice. (I do find the plot a bit silly, actually, but I let myself be taken away...it's just a Disney.) Agree, the characters lack a little bit, the love story of Mulan and Shang should perhaps have had a few more frames to play with. The project was a little bit tuned down from the Disney board of directors, but honor to all who worked with it: You people did a good job! The computer animation used for the Great Wall and the attack of the Huns startles me again and again; Not many live movies can do the job as good.So that's what Mulan is for me...The dream of ancient China and Eddie Murphy's speedy tongue. I accept the term classic. I have the damn thing on video now (English language) and must prevent myself from seeing it too often, in fright of one day getting tired of it.
Great Movie!
posted on 01 Sep 2008MULAN is a great movie which has many memorable characters and impressive scenes. The main character of this movie is an ancient Chinese girl who fights for her company instead of her old father, but it also has many interesting supportive characters. In particular, I like Mushu, a tiny dragon who travels with Mulan. He and two other animal characters---a cricket and a horse---make this serious story funny and enjoyable. their humor helps Mulan a lot to encounter a lot of difficulties and get over them. Mulan's brave behaviors encouraged me a lot. At the same time, Mushu's funny jokes entertained me a lot. I was moved many times and I also laughed over and over again when I saw this movie. Its music is also wonderful. In this movie, I enjoyed many grand, gentle, beautiful and pleasant scores. As a music-major student, I highly evaluate these scores. I love this movie and recommend it for many persons!
One of Disney's finest stories
posted on 01 Sep 2008I saw this for the first time two nights ago, 5 years after its release in theaters. It had my heart strings being tugged, had me giggling, and, most importantly, it moved me. The music was beautiful, particularly the lyrics and music to the song that Mulan sings to herself ("Who Is This Girl I See"?). The lyrics are just as awesome an accomplishment as the melody of the song. The animation on Mulan and the Captain of the Imperial army was very lifelike. I could actually picture what the people might look like in real life. That's a first for me with a Disney animated feature. I was very impressed.The only possible flaw I saw in this movie, not being an expert in East Asian culture, but knowing a little, is the way Mulan's family behaved when she returned from running away, even though they knew where she'd gone and what she'd done. I think, realistically, an East Asian family, particularly from that era, would not have behaved that way. I could be wrong.
Very good... maybe the Disney boost?
posted on 30 Jun 2008This is one of the best Disney pictures from "The Little Mermaid". It seems that they have realised that their public is not only còmposed by children and that the animation genre does not necessarily be musical to death. With only four songs -rather good, but not as breathtaking as before- and a BEAUTIFUL score from Jerry Goldsmith, it has some important differences from the former Disney structure. There is no love story, but some real social revindication -the girl is not looking forward to finding a man to marry to and have children. The plot is well balanced showing both crude real-life scenes and good gags.Maybe the Disney boost? Since "The Lion King", nothing really remarkable was made... Pocahontas's plot was awful, The Hunchback just killed the original story by Victor Hugo and Hercules was a bit too childish. I guess they have been seriously encouraged by their competitors 20th, Warner and Dreamworks.
Definitely a Disney classic!
posted on 22 May 2008I love this movie, and so does my sister. I loved the fact, they based it in China, and they got the cultural aspects of Chinese life right. Bravo, Disney! The animation, especially during the avalanche scene, was spotless, and the music(songs and incidental) by Jerry Goldsmith was lovely too, the best being "Reflection" and the one in the end credits. I strongly recommend Vanessa Mae's rendition of "Reflection", which is extraordinary. The singing voices, from Lea Salonga and Donny Osmond, did match the voice actors, unlike Quest for Camelot. The characters are also very memorable; Ming Na's feisty Mulan, George Takei's brooding ancestor, Eddie Murphy's hilarious Mushu, BD Wong's handsome Shang, Miguel Ferrer's mysterious and often frightening Shan Yu and of course Pat Morita's wise Emperor. Some aspects of the well-told story might fly over children's heads, but this is enthralling entertainment, that deserves a much higher rating. 9/10 Bethany Cox
excellent movie
posted on 25 Apr 2008I first saw this movie as a little kid, but I still enjoy it now that i'm 15. I consider this to be one of the first GOOD movies to come out of that greedy capitalist hellhole called Disney in years. Some of the arguments against it have been ridiculous."It's racist!" Oh come on people, it's supposed to be and adventure/war movie, not a remake of Ghandi! The Huns are bad, the Chinese are good because that's how it was in the ancient legend. A movie like this is not supposed to put political correctness before entertainment."It's discriminating against men!" Lighten up, please. I'm a guy and I wasn't offended by this. It's from Mulan's perspective, and I think it's safe to say she was somewhat prejudiced. Besides, Shang was cool. There was nothing wrong with him."It's too violent!" I hate to break it to you, but war happens. Yes, there are fields of bodies. Yes, the bad guys kill people. Yes, it might scare little kids. But seriously, the evening news is way more violent. These things happen, and if your kids never know about it then they're going to be pretty freaked out when they first encounter the real world.In short, Mulan is a great movie for anybody who doesn't want they're kids to live in a bubble. It's got action, romance, friendship, the whole works, and would have been great even if it wasn't animated.
Surprise animated movie of the year!
posted on 19 Apr 2008To pass time the week this opened, I decided to go see it. It was a really big surprise! Very well done. This is one of Disney's best animated films. Eddie Murphy did an awesome job voicing Mushu. Disney should start making more of this type of film.
Dramatic core undermined by comic sidekicks
posted on 16 Apr 2008Like "Pocahontas" before it, "Mulan" is a sumptuously animated adventure made wobbly by its heavy-handed message against sex role stereotyping. Yes, we learn, women can stretch beyond their social roles, even fight in combat. Yet, the men are depicted either as noble egotists or dolts. Worse, Eddie Murphy's comic sidekick dragon is an annoyance, no doubt written because every Disney animated feature must now have a recognizable cut-up to aid their heroines. Still, the Disney storytelling strength is there.
Truly great except for ONE thing ...
posted on 27 Aug 2009The depth of talent at Disney is frightening. It's interesting the character animation here with that in "The Prince of Egypt" - no contest at all. Every character in "Mulan" is well, brilliantly, perfectly animated, and many great animators at Disney didn't even touch the project. A writer here who said that the animation "lacks detail" merely betrays his (her?) ignorance. One must distinguish between character design and animation: the former is what a still drawing of a character displays, the latter is the art of moving a character around. The animation was full of detail. I felt that every one of the 24-per-second frames conveyed something of value. The character design, on the other hand, *was* deliberately simplified, but I don't see how anyone could deny that this approach was both beautiful and fitting; and since everything (backgrounds and effects animation) had the same stylistic simplicity, the characters were more solidly in place than they usually are in animation.(The effects animation was creative and also streets ahead of "The Prince of Egypt". As was the use of computers. Watch the Great Wall scene closely: you might be able to *deduce* that computers were involved, but you certainly won't feel that they were. Computer imagery has been misused with ghastly results in everything from "Aladdin" to "The Phantom Menace". Finally someone has it right.)I won't comment on the story - I'm still moved by it, but then I'm a sucker for that kind of thing. I'll get to my one complaint. It's not the music. Yes, the music was ultra-1980s with the odd pentatonic scale; but that's not intrinsically worse than being ultra-1990s with the odd pentatonic scale, and it has the advantage that we know immediately the worst about how dated it will sound (less dated than you'd expect). No: my problem is Eddie Murphy. He is painfully unfunny and his introduction made me sigh wearily. He doesn't belong here. I don't have anything against comic relief, but Disney should have trusted their animators to provide it. When Mushu is funny, it's the animators' doing - and on those occasions the humour is not at odds with the story.That one criticism pains me to make. Swallowing "Mulan" whole, Eddie Murphy and all, it's still a fine movie and a reason for optimism about the future of hand-drawn animation.