Doesn't feel like Mulan , just feels like warrior girl does stuff. No Eddie Murphy and no "I'll make a man out of you" what the hell is the point
To be fair, Mushu isn't the only thing that's been changed/removed (I'm not familiar with the original ballad so feel free to correct if these changes are more accurate)
Yeah this will do well in China. Disney would have to really fuck it up for it not to.
People mad this ain't sticking to the "original" can go watch the "original", which uh, didn't stick to this either.
if they do a 1:1 everyone is like "so why do we need this?" if they change something everyone is like "A X MOVIE WITHOUT X??? HOW COULD THEY".
who cares either way.
Apparently it had songs in it, and a talking dragon.
I don't know where people got that from that people in China didn't like Mulan because of that, rather than just China having a non-existent box office back them, and most Western animated films tending to do poorly there even now. If anybody would kindly point me to the source, that'd be greatly appreciated.
Hercules is my favourite 2d movie ever, and i wouldnt mind if the actually did all the original songs. But Disney seems to hate hercules for some kind of strange reason so theres probably going to be a tarzan movie before that. Maybe Hunchback?After Mulan and the Little Mermaid, it's gonna be strange to see live-action Hercules and Tarzan movies in the next 5 years. And then Lilo and Stitch...
I mean..... yes? Folks were probably gonna do that anyway.People mad this ain't sticking to the "original" can go watch the "original", which uh, didn't stick to this either.
...Cause let's be real: these remakes are soulless cash grabs built almost entirely on the premise of "Here's the same movie you saw 20 years ago but real." They've literally trained the audience to expect as few changes as possible....
....People are probably not gonna be into that.
True, after the trailer it felt kind of weird that it's called "Disney's Mulan" when it just looks so normal.Doesn't feel like Mulan , just feels like warrior girl does stuff. No Eddie Murphy and no "I'll make a man out of you" what the hell is the point
I'll give you that, but I do think that despite complaints, people have come to expect these films to be as close to the 90s films as possible. Especially when "Member Lion King?" is still the only hook these things have.I don't know, man. We're like 7 of these movies in, and literally every one gets complained about regarding it's lack of adherence to the original. [Edit: everything I wrote after this redacted. I went too hard in the paint]
Yeah, I agree with you. There are some people in here saying the exact opposite when it comes to the original Disney Mulan though and I'm curious where they're getting their info from.Western animated movies can do really well in China, Zootopia And Coco in particular were massive there even when compared with their US box-office. The Reflections song is quite well known in China. What tend to do less well are movies relying on nostalgia or are sequels to movies no one there has seen. I don't know about how this will do, since it is a bit generic when in a crowd of wuxia movies, having songs may be what makes it stand out. Then again, we don't really have outstanding wuxia movies coming out now compared with the 2000s. And the actress is known, but not universally loved, so not sure how much of a draw she is.
Well, I tend to dislike the live action remakes but this looks quite different than the original material, so why not
I have nothing against remakes in general. Hollywood been doing it for decades. But this current Disney crop just feels so...underwhelming. Especially when you think about all the things they could be doing.
Yeah, I should say the first Disney iteration, my bad :)Are you calling the Disney movie the "original material"? I can't tell anymore.
Here's some articles on the subject and excerpts.Apparently it had songs in it, and a talking dragon.
I don't know where people got that from that people in China didn't like Mulan because of that, rather than just China having a non-existent box office back them, and most Western animated films tending to do poorly there even now. If anybody would kindly point me to the source, that'd be greatly appreciated.
From what I can remember, the movie was received horribly. People criticized how the movies confused China with Japan (which is a big deal for us), and how they confused Chinese tradition of family clan with Native American (mostly because use of the word "ancestors" in the movie). And people aren't happy about how the emperor bows to Mulan at the end of the movie, which is ridiculous in Chinese culture, and everyone hated Mushu the dragon the same way people hated Jar Jar Binks a year later.
They didn't like the love interest between General Lee and Mulan (which was never in the original Mulan legend). They didn't like the jokes, the songs ... how Shan Yu attacked the capital city with a small team...
Overall, we just didn't like it.
But I think it's not so much that the movie is bad; I personally like the movie a lot. It's more about culture differences. After all, Mulan wasn't even trying to preserve Chinese culture. It is a straight out American movie decorated with Chinese accessories to make it interesting and exotic. Kung Fu Panda did a much better job.
The article also mentions Mulan wanting to shirk her responsibilities to her family as being out of character for, well, the character. But I'm not sure how much that carries water, as I've also anectodally seen people say that while the movie has a lot of problems, looking back, a number of Chinese women do like Mulan's portrayal herself.Mulan isn't the only character in the film who doesn't espouse traditional Chinese values. Not surprisingly, some complain that Mushu, a jive-talking dragon whose voice is provided by Eddie Murphy in the film's English-language version, is just too American.
For instance, when Mushu accidentally smashes a sculpture that holds a much more powerful dragon who can help Mulan, he tries to cover it up. Hiding behind some bushes, Mushu dons the stone head of the dragon and pretends to be the great dragon himself.
A Chinese dragon, however, would never do such a thing, says Lisa Niu, a 28-year-old who works for a foreign-owned telecommunications company. Having lost considerable face, he would be obliged to slink off in embarrassment.
"This is not a Chinese dragon," says Niu, while acknowledging that a dragon brazenly trying to duck responsibility is much funnier than one which is merely embarrassed. "I can tell the people who designed the dragon are from America."
Let's get down to business: "Mulan," at its core, is about a strong, independent woman who goes out there and gets what she wants with her courage, strength, and intelligence. However, while I distinctly remember dragging my mom to see this movie, I left the theater crestfallen. I was excited to see a big blockbuster movie about one of China's most beloved mythical heroes, a legend I knew like the back of my hand. But as I watched, I kept trying to find visual elements I could glom onto in a way that my white peers could with Disney princesses. Instead, I found a mishmash of different-era touch points from China and even references to Japan, an entirely different country. The first time I saw Mulan on screen, with a white-painted face and an outfit I could not remotely recognize, I knew what I was truly watching: a costume that could easily be consumed by white people.
I was asked to audition for the role of Mulan in the early days of the casting process for the live-action film, even though I am not an actress. The audition, which involved me preparing a speech in Mandarin Chinese, helped me fulfill a childhood dream: to see someone like me on the big screen, and to know that young women like me finally "fit the part" of a leading role. Young women like me, born in China and raised in the United States, relate to Disney's "Mulan" because she is someone, according to the storyline, who struggles with honoring her family and maintaining filial piety while staying true to herself and creating her own destiny. I just came back from visiting my family in China, and what has resonated with me is how important the family unit is in Chinese culture. I don't see honoring my family as a burden; I see it as one of the most beautiful aspects of my roots, and I am hopeful that the live-action version of Disney's "Mulan," especially since it stars Chinese actress Liu Yifei, will respect the dual identities of young Chinese women around the world, rooted in both modernity and tradition.
For so many, this film is more important for what it represents—an Asian woman in the Disney canon—than its execution. The more I read personal accounts from other Asian American women, the more I realize just how alienating the film has been for viewers who wanted and needed to see a Chinese woman on screen, but instead found the Americanized version of our culture. As a beneficiary of colorism, I don't know what it feels like to be treated as a perpetual foreigner in the most brutal sense, though I do get hit with a broad array of racial epithets. Mulan is still my first memory of anyone on screen whose experience approximated mine, as it is for many others. The lack of representation on screen meant the best we could do was love her despite these flaws.
Yep. And what do you know, Cinderella was my favorite one of these! :Pso from what I can tell, this isn't really a remake per se of the 1998 film, more a new adaptation of the same source material that borrows a few elements here and there from the animated film (I think the 2015 Cinderella took more or less the same approach)
You really can't renew copyrights though. 100 years in the future you'll be able to use all the elements from the cartoon Mulan not protected by trademark. The only thing protected for another 20 years will be the original things in this versionNo one:
Disney: Hey let's make live action movies out of the most classic era of our movies, which everyone loves and just wants to remember as they were!
They're only doing this to renew the copyrights on these properties.
This is a good point. I never had an issue connecting with my heritage through media while growing up in America cause I had access to a lot of Hong Kong and Chinese movies and TV show. I was and still however happy that an American company like Disney took some interests in Chinese stories and attempted to adapt it into a cartoon. Mulan maybe problematic, but it's like still one few of the shining stars of Western media portraying Chinese people without me rolling my eyes.I will say, with all of this in mind, I am unsure how Chinese people and Asian Americans will take the apparent "Black Panther" approach I've heard may be what Disney's going for. With Black Panther, a new, fictional culture in Wakanda was created based on the idea of a quasi-utopia hidden in Africa. China, on the other hand, is real and exists. So, keeping in mind I'm not Asian, I think it could go either way, as long as they keep to Chinese culture, and don't randomly throw in Korean, Japanese, or other Asian culture.
You should stop giving a shit about people's personal taste and opinions on stuff like movies.me after watching the trailer: YES I AM 100% IN :D
me after reading this thread: :(
It'd be really something if this film were to try to bring in some historic authenticity. If Mulan was a historic figure, she would have been fighting for Northern Wei. I've recently read a novel about this historical Mulan and oh boy, is Northern Wei different from how most people think of Imperial China. For starters, this kingdom isn't ruled by the Han Chinese. It's a multi-ethnic kingdom ruled by the Xianbei, a tribe of horse nomads more akin to the Mongols or the Huns than to regular Chinese dynasties. Northern Wei was also the superpower of its era; it ended up conquering all of Northern China and would have had a shot of conquering the south if it wasn't divided by internal conflicts.There's also general criticism in how Mulan was handled after the movie as a marketing tool- she hated the "geisha" getup (yes, Disney still calls it that, why, I don't know), yet that's what she's seen in in all the Disney Princess materials minus the white makeup, and when presented at the Disney parks. She's rarely, if ever, in her armor or in her outfit from the end of the movie.
Basically, Mulan is.... pretty problematic. That's not to say one cannot enjoy it. Many Asian Americans certainly do. But it has its issues among Chinese people and Asian Americans. This remake seems to at the very least be addressing Asian Americans' problems with it, if not Chinese nationals' as well with how Mushu seems to have been replaced.
I will say, with all of this in mind, I am unsure how Chinese people and Asian Americans will take the apparent "Black Panther" approach I've heard may be what Disney's going for. With Black Panther, a new, fictional culture in Wakanda was created based on the idea of a quasi-utopia hidden in Africa. China, on the other hand, is real and exists. So, keeping in mind I'm not Asian, I think it could go either way, as long as they keep to Chinese culture, and don't randomly throw in Korean, Japanese, or other Asian culture.
The original Aladdin wasn't Chinese - he was an Arab and the land that he travelled to, and the princess he married was Chinese. Or actually, not-Chinese. The original storytellers just used China as the setting because it was the most distant and exotic place they could think of. The place was still stylistically Arabian.I have to say, I'm a little disappointed that there's no Li Shang or Mushu, but as I understand these characters don't exist in the original story.
My only question now is: if they're concerned about making movies faithful to the original material, why wasn't Aladdin Chinese?
Geez, tough crowd. Sounds like they need to lighten up or something. :|
me after watching the trailer: YES I AM 100% IN :D
me after reading this thread: :(
This is a remake of Disney's Mulan, not the original story. Most Disney adaptations don't follow the original source that closely.People mad this ain't sticking to the "original" can go watch the "original", which uh, didn't stick to this either.
Liu Yifei does sing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRPGDcIenZs
What gave you the idea that this was supposed to be a remake of the 1997 film? From the get go, it was pretty obvious that this film was going to go in a different direction. It's very much a retelling of the original ballad because Disney is aiming it at an audience that may not have any interest in the 1997 film.This is a remake of Disney's Mulan, not the original story. Most Disney adaptations don't follow the original source that closely.
Yeah, gives it the potential to be something other than a mediocre rehash.I'm interested since it seems like it isn't a shot-for-shot remake like some of the others have been.
Have you seen Shadow by Zhang yimou? It's actually a great movie with good modernize presentation.