Film of the Week: Mulan

I have a confession to make, and it's one many would consider controversial. I hadn't seen the original animated version of Mulan before seeing this live-action remake. I knew of the story, and the message it was portraying; I believed I knew enough of the film that I felt like I had watched it via proxy. I know this will come across as a shock to many - it is a classic Disney animation, and I take full responsibility for letting that down by not watching it properly, and then going ahead with the live-action remake first. I have grown up with the original, so it's no excuse that I haven't taken the opportunity to take the time to enjoy it, and so I take full responsibility for offending that film by acknowledging I had the time but chose to watch the live-action remake instead.

There are two answers to the question: Why is Disney remaking their catalogue of animated films into live-action versions? Those answers are: Money; and to update and allow a new generation be entertained by Disney's properties. The counterarguments are: Disney doesn't need any more money as they have massive franchises such as Marvel and Star Wars which are making literally billions at the box office per movie; and the best way to introduce a new generation to Disney's catalogue is to let them watch the original animated versions, otherwise those will soon be lost in time.

Disney's decision to remake their animated films into live-action versions have been met with nearly universal confusion, mainly because the ones they have released haven't exactly lifted the bar any higher. Animation allows for wilder scenes and impossible moments whereas live-action has to adhere to physics. Although, CGI have come along way that with the amount of money Disney has in their back account, it does seem strange that they're not spending the necessary money to recreate those moments. I touched upon it in a previous article, about the live-action Dumbo's pink elephants scene. That scene in the animated film stuck with me and many more. It was scary and spooky that we knew we should hide behind the sofa, but it was colourful and the music was bouncy that we were drawn to watching it. We were both scared and curious at the same time, and the live-action version failed to grasp even 10% of that madness.

What I'm trying to say is, in my defense for not watching the animated version of Mulan before the live-action version, it did give me the chance to see the film from the perspective of a new generation. Although, admittedly, not entirely from that perspective, because to truly experience that side of the film, I'd need to have zero knowledge of the film beforehand, whereas I knew what I was going to watch before the Disney logo appeared on my screen. Watching the story unfold properly for the first time gave me an insight to what Disney is trying to do with the remakes, but speaking with experience, if I were to watch Dumbo's live action version before the animated one, I'd be missing out on the fantastic pink elephants scene. What have I missed in the original Mulan that wasn't either accurately portrayed or not even included?

I did enjoy the live-action Mulan - everyone played their parts exceptionally well, especially Yifei Liu who played the titular character, Mulan, but I now feel obligated to watch the animated version even more now to catch up on what I missed. 

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)