Mulan 2020 Review - The Mythology Guy

#mythology #mulan #disney #mulan2020 #china #movie #review #remake #comedy

There are several reasons why this movie doesn't work. So let's go over them in my first ever movie review.

[jeffreyfiegen]

Mulan from the original: busts her ass to overcome training, uses her brain to out-think her opponents, is outed as female by accident due to sustaining injury, works to regain her comrades trust
Mulan in the new one: has magic powers because... uh, uses her magic to win everything, only receives opposition from people explicitly framed as bad and/or wrong, outs herself on purpose because... be-because, is gifted a higher position because (What was the reason again? What do mean there was no reason given?)
Original = compelling female badass
New = Mary Sue

[deathtoraiden]

"one was a male and one was a female. But you know, you can't really tell when they are running that fast"
*She says after having identified them as male and female while they were running that fast*

[axis]

To add on for the training thing compared to the animation, the animation also had a case where, while Mulan was the weakest link, the other guys were actually pretty bad themselves. They all struggled to keep up with the training and did poorly. It was only when Mulan pushed herself to prove that she is worthy that the other guys followed her and also began to improve. They were inspired because she was the weakest link that got better, inspiring them to also improve. Beyond gender equality, it was about self-improvement. Where even the men realized that they could be better.

[TheMythologyGuy]

When I uploaded this video, it was immediately copyright claimed and blocked, which I had to dispute. I’m happy to see that YouTube has corrected that mistake.

[gatorshark]

It's probably a good thing Mushu's not in this movie, they'd probably mess him up too.

[Speculativedude]

I REALLY hate the, "I'd rather be executed." line, because in this situation death would have been a less humiliating result because being expelled means you have to live with the shame. Mulan asking to be executed would have been seen as very selfish and probably would have been met with imprisonment and torture/ public humiliation.

[hinglemcringleberry]

Remember ladies according to this movie all you need to do to be better than a man is just have super powers

[DragonFae]

If they didn't want to make Li Shang her commanding officer, why not make him the same rank as her? Or someone who starts with a higher rank initially who she equals in rank before they get together. Either of those dynamics would have been so interesting to watch, which is probably why we didn't get them.

[pineappleal]

Disney: “Ok so we’re going to get rid of Mushu because he does not line up with Chinese myth”
Fans: “ok I guess if it’s culturally appropriate it’s fine”
Disney: “Ok Now Let’s Trow In A Witch And A Form Of Chakra That Makes no Sense

[OphiuchusTheBeheaded]

*Gives the main protagonist superpowers, giving off the message that women cannot be as powerful as men without some sort of boosting*
"HeR lOvE iNtErEsT cAnT bE iN pOwEr"

[CJDM]

The metoo argument is complete B.S. Shang never even attempted to make moves on Mulan while she was a soldier. The only time was after Mulan had already left the army and returned home. And get this, if anything she had a higher power dynamic by this point since she was honored by the emperor personally.

[lilman]

"How the heck is he doing that? Does he have Chi powers?!"
No, that's just Jet Li doing Jet Li things.

[lessismore]

I agree about Mulans character development! Its so satisfying to see a protagonist go from rock bottom to the very top!! Why didn't 2020 do that?

[DanielRodriguez-dtrt]

“Alright so we wont bring Mushu because it’s not culturally accurate”
“Oh ok that makes sense”
“So let’s throw in a witch that turns into an eagle and a flame phoenix that does nothing the entire movie”

[brightappiah]

One thing about woman empowerment movies is that they sometimes go out of their way just to make the men look bad and to show how the entire society was against women

[Nifirin]

I am by no means an expert or even that knowledgeable but I have read some Chinese cultivation stories. If she is born with strong Qi that makes her athletic, strong, and a natural warrior, then she most likely has a special physique. Probably the Body of Extreme Yang. This would actually make her highly prized with nobles, clans, sects, etc. all be trying to recruit her. The villagers shouldn't look down on her as the nature of her existence would make her their inherent better. The whole "do not use qi for destruction" thing would not be a universal rule. Qi cultivators usually don't attack towns and civilians for the simple reason that mortals are beneath them. Some may follow the no destruction thing but they wouldn't be surprised when others didn't.

With a Body of Extreme Yang, Mulan's athleticism and fighting would be seen as more of a symptom and thus more acceptable. She would still need to adhere to woman's rules of decorum but given the necessary freedom to support a healthy mind. The bigger issue would be the amount of men that just want to use her for children, but I won't go any further on that plotline.

However, NONE OF THIS BELONGS IN THE STORY OF MULAN!!!

Once again, not an expert. I probably messed something up in that.

[flyingteacup]

The Phoenix is the one part of the movie that makes the little sense to me. It literally just shows up and then disappears. You could honestly edit out every scene that has the Phoenix in it, and it wouldn't change anything. It's just such a strange creative choice to me.

[lauramartin]

There was already a great Mulan live adaptation. Mulan: Rise of a warrior (2009). Chinese made, lots of battles, good love interest, and actually fits into the ballad showing the wear of 12 years at war.

If you don't hate subtitles it's a definite must watch. Hopefully still available on Youtube too.

[silverthewitchdoctor]

What's so funny is that Pokemon manages to represent the Chinese Phoenix (Through Ho-oh) in both appearances and meaning better than the movie that was set in CHINA could.

[OnurTheXbot]

Gotta give props to Disney for “If it ain’t broke, then break it” strategy, round of applause for Disney