The film has again generated calls for a boycott after drawing criticism for shooting in the same province where China has forced millions of Uighur Muslims into internment camps. In the lead up to its release, Disney's live-action Mulan has generated a surprising amount of political controversy.
The issue was that Mulan was partially filmed in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, in close proximity to detention camps for Uighur Muslims, and Disney gave credit to “publicity department of CPC Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomy Region Committee” among other entities.
Instead, we have Mulan's sister, which is more in line with the original takes on the Chinese ballad. Her sister is more in line with the traditional view of a female, creating a contrast to Mulan. The live-action movie added a sister to give Mulan another reason to sign up.
The boycott centers on two Chinese issues: The treatment of Uyghur Muslims in China's Xinjiang region -- where some of the film was shot -- and China's crackdown of freedoms in Hong Kong.
Even though Disney spent a lot of effort to fit the Chinese market, the reason why Mulan failed in the Chinese market is due to the stereotype and misunderstanding of the traditional Chinese culture, make-up, costumes and sceneries, and characteristics, which ultimately caused the movie to become nondescript.
Mulan is the Worst Disney Live-Action Remake So Far
Why did Chinese people not like Mulan?
Like other global audiences, mainlanders also felt frustrated with plot holes and missing character motivations, calling much of the storyline “simply inexplicable.”
Unfortunately for fans of this princess, Mulan II did terribly. Critics regarded the film as a huge disrespect to the original Mulan. This discouraged Disney from pursuing her story any further, so Mulan III was shelved and Ana Ming never made it anywhere.
Though the director shared that Mushu was removed to allow Mulan to better enhance her relationships with her fellow soldiers, his absence may have also been more about not offending viewers, who found Mushu to be insensitive in the 1998 animated feature.
Chinese critics, both at home and abroad, said they were disappointed with the film's inaccurate and stereotypical portrayals of Chinese history and the main character, infused with nationalist tropes. Others were not as bothered.
There isn't a hair-slicing or makeup-removing scene
As Caro explains it, the original Mulan understood that it was her dolled-up reflection that didn't fit her identity. In the 2020 version, Mulan comes to ultimately realize that her masculine, armored exterior doesn't match her inner self.
Now, when you watch #Mulan, not only are you turning a blind eye to police brutality and racial injustice (due to what the lead actors stand for), you're also potentially complicit in the mass incarceration of Muslim Uyghurs. #BoycottMulan,” prominent Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong tweeted, per IndieWire.
While the basic premise of the animated version is the same, Disney updated many important details that make the live-action more historically accurate and true to the original Ballad of Mulan.
While the social and cultural milieu of the Northern Wei dynasty provided the context for the tale's origins, there's no corroborative evidence to confirm that Mulan was ever a real person. Over time, the story and character's nomadic and tribal origins have significantly changed from the original.
Alice didn't play in China, so it earned $1.025 billion without the rapidly expanding marketplace. Of the Disney remakes/revamps that played in China, Mulan is among the worst-performing of the bunch. The top-grossing of these movies are both courtesy of Jon Favreau.
Mushu, the wise-cracking sidekick dragon voiced by Eddie Murphy, and Li Shang, the captain of the Imperial Army and Mulan's mentor, voiced by B.D. Wong. Among those who love the original, there are sure to be some questions as to why these seemingly pivotal characters were removed.
The talking guardian dragon Mushu isn't in the Disney Mulan remake but there's a few good reasons. When fans heard that Mushu wouldn't be a part of the Disney Mulan remake there were cries of “dishonour on you, dishonour on your cow!”.
Mulan is a fictional folk heroine from the Northern and Southern dynasties era (4th to 6th century AD) of Chinese history. According to the legend, Mulan takes her aged father's place in the conscription for the army by disguising herself as a man.
Ramirez, director of the Dreamworks' film Joseph: King of Dreams. It was scheduled to be released in 2001 but was delayed for many years until production was cancelled by John Lasseter after he was named CEO of Walt Disney Animation Studios in early 2006.
The biggest issue is this film features way less action than it's predecessor and way less Mulan (she practically disappears in the middle of the film). Mulan's bickering with Shang is also very badly written. Yet, minor complaints. Overall a decent film.
Every Chinese girl will still end up having a soft spot for Mulan thanks to its brilliant final touch: the emperor gifting Mulan a new sword, on which “Devotion to Family” (孝) is added alongside “Loyal, Brave, True”.
According to the novel, Mulan's feet were bound when she was very young because men considered small feet to be a sign of beauty. (By the way, this was an inaccuracy in the novel—the Chinese didn't start binding girls' feet until after Mulan's time.)
Twitter user Xiran pointed out the remarkable similarity of the slogan to the FBI's motto: “Fidelity, Bravery, Integrity.” While the imperial army chants these three virtues, Mulan falters at “true,” knowing that she is lying about being a man.
The most striking deviation from the original poem is present in both Disney adaptations. The original Mulan isn't aided by a talking dragon and a lucky cricket as in the animated film. The film also contains sequences of the ancestor ghosts who seem to have magical powers.
For instance, a specific discrepancy in the original film is regarding Mulan's family name. It was changed from what it is commonly known as “Hua” in Chinese households to “Fa” in the film to create a character more comfortable for American audiences.
Joan of Arc seems outwardly similar to Fa Mulan, as they both donned male guise to assist them in joining/serving in their respective royal armies at times when their homelands were threatened, however, the latter preceded the former by nearly a thousand years (albeit only as an epic poem) and thus shares no direct ...
