MULAN (Walt Disney Pictures - 1998) Voices by Ming-Na Wen, Eddie Murphy, B.D. Wong, Harvey Fierstein Screenplay by Rita Hsiao, Christopher Sanders, Philip Lazebnik, Raymond Singer, Eugenia Bostwick-Singer Produced by Pam Coats Directed by Barry Cook & Tony Bancroft Running time: 88 minutes
***1/2 (out of four stars)
Alternate Rating: A-
Note: Some may consider portions of the following text to be spoilers. Be forewarned.
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East meets West in MULAN, the latest installment in Disney's parade of annual animated feature films. An odd fusion of ancient Asian traditions and disconcerting elements which betray obvious mass-market commercial sensibilities, this confident entry is easily the most engaging and satisfying Hollywood animated feature in years, but falls short of actualizing its potential.
Though not for lack of trying. In many respects, MULAN is among Disney's most mature efforts, skirting the surface of adult themes and daring to sneak glimpses into the messier side of combat. The violence of the battles in the film are admittedly sanitized -- the imagery of a pillaged village, neatly encapsulated in the form of a child's discarded doll, is in itself no more harrowing than Luke discovering his fallen guardians in STAR WARS, and Mulan's later heroics in dispatching of the ruthless invaders is done so in the most tidy, bloodless method imaginable -- yet how often does a Hollywood animated film, long considered as the last safe refuge for the innocent, dare touch upon the consequential horrors of war in such a provocative manner? In an instant, idealistic Mulan's innocence is lost, and her jovial squadron are reminded of what their efforts are spent defending.
The film, based upon an ancient Chinese fable, centers on a spirited young woman who disguises herself as a man in order to serve as her family's obligatory conscript when China finds itself under attack by Huns (cartoonishly depicted by easy demonic overtones, replete with glowing yellow eyes and dagger-edged teeth, although lent a surprisingly genuine sense of menace). Dipping into the mythology of other cultures for the first time after cavorting in animated revisitings of familiar Western / European fables and literature for decades, Disney's new film is boldly set in ancient China rather than relocated elsewhere, story intact, to some neutral territory, and revels in its East Asian roots; aside from a predominantly Asian-American cast providing the film's vocal work, there's liberal usage of Oriental iconography throughout, and the artwork reveal hints of Japanese anime influence. While the film does occasionally reach its limits and starts to tread upon old stereotypes -- invoking pseudo-Asian references to items like beancurd and rice in every third sentence grows rather hoary, and I can't imagine that the regiment for ancient Chinese warriors *really* included karate-chopping blocks of stone in two -- it's rather remarkable that a movie primarily positioned for American and European audiences delves so wholeheartedly into new foreign territory. The film also freely touches upon cultural idiosyncrasies from its outset; although savvy viewers should easily pick up on the intrinsics immediately, it's startlingly assertive in providing as little shorthand as it does to unfamiliar youngsters with regards to the customs and traditions of Mulan's land.
At its core, the film is a tale of heroic adventure, and as such paints its story in bold strokes of honour, perseverance, nobility and courage. As such, animation is the perfect vehicle for this flavour of epic, where stark emotional simplicity is able to effectively work hand-in-hand with visual purity. Scenes which would play out as unbearably hokey in live action, such as Mulan's venerable father pridefully tossing aside his cane when accepting his draft notice, are lent a sense of strength and conveyed with greater emotional clarity in animation. MULAN capitalizes on this during its strongest moments, particularly during our heroine's character-defining opening half-hour.
It's when the film attempts to integrate the traditional mainstays of recent Hollywood animation -- the friendly animal sidekick, the colourful array of supporting characters -- into the mix where it goes slightly awry. Off to battle, Mulan finds herself being trailed by a jive-talking diminutive dragon called Mushu and an agreeable little "lucky" cricket, who ostensibly appear to assist in her subterfuge and realistically serve as audience-friendly comic relief. They're affable presences, and not precisely ineffective -- reasonable amounts of humour are elicited, and Eddie Murphy (who voices Mushu) is amusingly earnest -- but amidst all the high melodrama, the effect is mildly jarring and, from a storytelling perspective, questionable in its necessity. At training camp, Mulan antagonizes and eventually wins over a trio of fumbling recruits (easily characterized simply as the Short Clown, the Skinny Clown, and the Big Clown), who provide more levity into the film with decidedly less effectiveness, and, in a familiar retread of traditional Disney patterns, she grows a certain fondness for a handsome, square-jawed young captain, Shang. Everybody needs love, even ancient Chinese warrior princesses, but not necessarily in *this* film. The romantic angle, which lets the air out of the sails of the story's neo-feminist underpinnings, lacks any genuine spark and plays out like a contractual obligation.
Another staple of recent Disney animated films, a cache of hummable little ditties, has also obligingly been carried over to MULAN but proves to be a decided weakness. Composed by Matthew Wilder, none of the handful of tunes are particularly distinguishing, and one -- "I'll Make A Man Out Of You" (unimaginatively accompanying a tired montage featuring our crew of characters transforming into lean fighting machines) -- becomes so grating and hackneyed that it seems almost interminable. Only "Reflections", an early ballad of lament, proves to be a song of any consequence, serving as an effective showcase for Lea Salonga, one of musical theatre's most wondrously pure voices.
Nonetheless, MULAN is an especially appealing piece of work from the Disney factory, with a strong narrative arc and pleasant artwork; the computer-generated stampede of Hun warriors charging down a snow mountain is wholly impressive. While the blatantly child-friendly elements at times seem incongruous with the remainder of the film, they're not dissuasive and remain fairly enjoyable. Briskly paced with a smart, energetic heroine and filled with high adventure, the film is ultimately most satisfying on the intimate scale of father and daughter.
- Alex Fung
email: aw220@freenet.carleton.ca
web : http://www.ncf.carleton.ca/~aw220/
--
Alex Fung (aw220@freenet.carleton.ca) | http://www.ncf.carleton.ca/~aw220/
"Only a twerp would castigate an audience for its enjoyment of something."
- Pauline Kael
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