Mulan (Niki Caro, July 24, 2020) Movie • Page 11

This. The pacing was so weird. It was like it was edited like an animated movie.

 

I think that the bright colors were really so people knew what was going on in fights. The contrast was awesome when the military came to the town because it highlights the bright celebration of color among the common folks vs the drabness of the military. The good guys were either wearing red or blue to distinguish mulans crew from the big army. Everything else was just kinda darker than it needed to be because the bad guys outnumbered them. It all kinda washes out when the fights are happening. It's not transformers bad, but frustrating.

 

The problem with Mulan: why the live-action remake is a lightning rod for controversy

 

I have to read about this controversy all over Reddit.

It’s getting pretty tiring. I am a Hong Kong activist and have supported HK since the protests started including making it aware on my campus and interviewing both Hong Kongers and mainlanders so I could write a research article about it and promote the protests, but I still watched the movie because it’s not all about Yifei. One of the actors (Tzi Na), who plays Mulan’s father, is a Hong Konger and supports Hong Kong. There are also many Asian actors who are finally getting their big break, including Doua Moua, an actor of Hmong decent, which is a very under-represented group. People who are simply not supporting those actors because of a police post by Yifei are very odd individuals who most likely won’t even care about Hong Kong once this film isn’t news and who probably wouldn’t support any of these actors who are not for the CCP.

Not watching a movie isn’t political activism. If this movie wasn’t made would a lot of the people even care about taking a stance with Hong Kong? Is not watching the movie the only thing they’ve done regarding Hong Kong? How many of these people will continue watching films produced by the Chinese company Tencent? This entire thing seems very shallow and “in the moment” activism.

 

The news today is definitely bizarre and Disney has no excuse for filming in Xinjiang and thanking the eight government entities in Xinjiang, including the public security bureau in the city of Turpan, where China is housing Muslims in "re-education camps."

There's no reason Disney couldn't have known about this. Do they just want to commit public suicide with this film?

 

This film made about $33.5 million for the weekend according to reports and that only takes in Smart TVs in the United States. Roku, Apple TV, computers, etc. with Disney+ were not counted in the report.

This is almost double Tenet's opening weekend, and Mulan was only expecting $80 for the opening weekend before Covid, so Black Widow (a film with a similar budget and higher interest) may be put on Premier Access. It definitely can't be ruled out due to these numbers and Disney getting 100% of the revenue.

 

Yeah so Tenet should have gone VOD.

 

This movie is DEAD. Goodbye thicc China revenue.

Exclusive: China bars media coverage of Disney's 'Mulan' after Xinjiang backlash - sources

 

Finally saw this last night with a couple friends whose relative had rented it. I enjoyed it well enough for what it was & wouldn't be mad at watching it again, but I think it was the final nail in the coffin of me giving any of Disney's remakes a shot. They just fundamentally aren't for me.

(You know what is for me, though? A needlessly long post overthinking a Disney blockbuster! Maybe I just need to make a dang blog or something, lol.)

I think the most frustrating thing about it to me is how blatantly it was written with a checklist from a committee. Which, like... yeah, I know. It's Disney. Even their best franchise projects tend to have at least some element of that, lol. But, some of the clunkiness here really made that obvious. Some puzzling choices that, with some massaging, could've worked so much better.

Related to the checklist, it was so weird how much from the animated "original" was shoehorned into this without really working. Especially since there were actually elements that differed, for the worse. Like, what was up with the sudden jump to an armored Mulan? Obviously not expecting that very 90s animated sequence, but could've used some kinda meaningful sequence in line with this film's tone. Also, why did they make expulsion the punishment for deception instead of death? And, why was the city under siege in the third act conspicuously empty? Yet, somehow, they still threw in awkward lyrics-as-dialogue moments, & a version of a bug messing with the match making, & a character named "Cricket" who is apparently lucky, & that avalanche on the battlefield? Why have Mulan randomly struggle for like ten seconds on her way to the army, just so the phoenix from the ancestors could happen when Mushu happens in the 90s film?

Some puzzling choices separate from those comparisons, too. Like, why have Mulan randomly reference the end of the original "Ballad of Mulan" (the bit about, when two rabbits run together, you can't tell the male from the female) at the beginning, as some deep cut Easter egg most people will miss? If you're gonna reference that, it makes a lot more sense to do it much later, when she's returning to the army after being expelled. I also don't get the decision to have the bird lady die by flying in front of an arrow... the exact kinda weapon Mulan's very good at kicking, lol. Love that arc for the character, but maybe have her save Mulan from the nearly dead villain instead of the emperor? Stuff like that make this feel like an obligation more than a story. (Also found the corporate "feminism" clumbsy, but that's kinda Disney's thing, so whatever, lol.)

I did genuinely dig some aspects of this, though. While Mulan choosing to let down her hair on the battlefield was awkward, as were other details in how it played out, a lot of her finding a place for herself & proving bird lady wrong was really compelling to me. Loved the lines (which were placed together in a trailer): "You will die pretending to be something you're not." "Yet here I stand, proof that there's a place for people like us." While this wasn't even close to the animated film's accidental queerness, that thread was very good. Also, Mulan's return to & reconciliation with her father was wonderful. The scene where she lost his sword in the lava wasn't great, lol, but it did add a nice little bit to that reunion.

I cannot decide how I feel about the whole chi thing. When I think about it, I find a lot more to dislike about it than to like, but I think aspects of it were fun? I dunno. Probably would've been a much better movie without it, but at least Mulan kicking sharp objects at people kept looking cool.

 

Idk. I haven’t seen this yet, but I enjoy a majority of the Disney remakes(Pete’s Dragon, Jungle Book, and Christopher Robin).

 

Disney can't just let a woman be powerful and strong. It's gotta be explained. ("You don't just have power, you have his power.") It's getting so exhausting.

 

It's almost like they think their audience can't believe it or something.

 

According to exclusive figures provided by analytics research firm 7Park Data, nearly 29% of U.S. households that subscribe to Disney+ purchased the $30 “Mulan” film through September 12th — far surpassing other popular (and free) titles on the platform.

During the company’s last earnings report, Disney said that the streaming platform has amassed over 60 million global subscribers. Assuming that U.S. households make up 50% of that total base (Disney has not yet broken out the exact number of U.S-based subscribers), 7Park’s data suggests that roughly 9 million users purchased the “Mulan” film for $30 a pop (29% of our estimated 30 million users.)

Under that scenario, net profits would pile up to $261 million for U.S. markets alone — and that’s on the conservative side.


Data: Disney+ scored big financial windfall with 'Mulan' streaming release

 

Black Widow would at least double that. Just put it on Premier Access.

 

This was pretty bad. I agree with what Flayed said. As soon as they explained her abilities away with the chi, I was immediately off-put. Why couldn’t she just be a badass warrior in her own right?

Music was good and it was a pretty movie, but the story flow was odd, I didn’t really care much about what happened to her unit at all. Just felt lifeless and dull for the most part. The only acting I liked was the dad, her unit (which we didn’t see much of) and Mulan in a few spots. Bummer.

 

I liked it. Honestly, I think this was the best live action Disney movie.