Mulan: A Double-Edged Sword?
On Sept. 4, Walt Disney Pictures (Disney) released their new live-action version of the animated film, Mulan. The film was originally scheduled to hit theaters in March, but pandemic-related restrictions changed Disney’s plans to instead release it exclusively on their streaming platform, Disney+, for the price of $29.99. Both the original and the live-action movie follow the journey of a young girl growing up in China who is struggling to find her identity. As a woman living in the 15th century, Mulan struggles to embrace her duties as a woman and a filial daughter. When her father is suddenly drafted into the Chinese military, Mulan makes the bold decision to join the army in her father’s place in an effort to protect him. Posed as a man named Hua Jun, Mulan disguises her feminine features, and the military shapes her through the intense training of her male peers. Throughout the movie, Mulan starts learning to stop denying her female ego and her powers.
Mulan’s portrayed strength and fortitude while completing her training and maintaining her disguise as a man distinguishes her from other traditional Disney princess roles; she had to act like a man in a harsh environment while valuing honor and family. As a resilient female character and the first Asian represented among the Disney princesses, Mulan serves as a positive role model for females across the globe. Senior Rachel Yu felt that the original film was a step for Disney toward female empowerment.
“Mulan defies social constructs by joining the army and becoming the greatest warrior,” Yu said. “[This] brings about the idea that it does not matter what gender [you are] or what background you have and that you can succeed regardless.”
While the themes of the original Mulan received great praise, the live adaption received
a tremendous amount of backlash. From internet critics on review websites such as Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic to the Chinese government, who, according to Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC), banned media coverage of the film, not everyone had positive things to say about this live-action adaptation. CNBC also stated that one reason for this was the filming location of Xinjiang, China where the government has been accused of human rights abuse by forcing millions of Muslim individuals into concentration camps in the past. Given that the production team of Mulan overlooked this undeniably brutal abuse happening minutes away from the filming sites, their backlash is arguably deserved.
Junior Dina Elawil is very passionate about this topic and believes filming in Xinjiang was a horrible decision on Disney’s part.
“It is disgusting that Disney would choose to film there,” Elawil said. “It was wrong that they did that. The location serves as a reminder to the abuse victims, which I believe is very harmful and damaging to them.”
Furthermore, the lack of similarity between the remake and the original plot demonstrated poor decision-making on behalf of the Mulan production crew. This included the removal of iconic characters, such as Mushu and Li Shang. The film’s divergence from its animated counterpart also sparked outrage amongst many Mulan fans, one of which was freshman Trevor Kwak.
“[The Mulan live action movie is] a pathetic remake for a cash grab,” Kwak said. “The fact that the scene where Mulan cuts her hair with her sword was not included in the live action was something I thought was very disappointing.”
Some people had critiques prior to the film’s release due to the additional charge that Disney+ placed on the movie as well. Audiences clearly had split opinions about the film, but that did not take away from its success. As of Sept. 17, the International Business Times estimated that Mulan made $263 million in the United States alone. With a movie budget of $200 million, this is considered an achievement for Disney+, despite the backlash it received. Regardless of the monetary success of the movie, by blurring the original storyline and filming in such a controversial location, Disney smudged the cultural importance and message of equality shared through the story of Mulan. Instead of a message of self-acceptance and female empowerment, the
remake movie shifted the focus significantly in a way that would generate the largest profit at the expense of a quality film. Those thinking about monetarily supporting the movie with their viewing should highly reconsider if they are willing to potentially support a production that destroyed so many of the original plot points and blatantly overlooks human rights violations.
