Sean Akizuki's East Asian Drama and Movie Blog

  It's really easy to bash Mulan (2020) a lot and maybe bring up Mulan (2009) which was obviously NOT made for children. Watching Mulan (2009) alongside Mulan (1998) by Disney will make you realize Jingle Ma produced an adult version of Disney's Mulan. Sure, the movie Huadu Chronicles was advertised as not suitable for children but the movie itself felt more like a PG-13 flick. Mulan (2009) which came out nine years after the Disney adaptation really had a lot of blood in battle or some scenes deemed inappropriate for children. It's not just meant to be realistic Mulan - no wirework, no magic spells, no Mushu (and yes, that's a GOOD THING), and no spirits of ancestors guiding Mulan. Though I think the 2009 movie could've utilized some supernatural elements to further communicate that Mulan is just a folk legend and not a real person. How is the 2009 movie really an adult version of the 1998 Disney movie? Well, you need to check for some Disney tropes before 2009 and...

  It's no surprise that Mulan (2020) by Disney really had it coming. Crystal Liu's big mouth along with Disney's support for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) really brought it down with #BoycottMulan . Now, it's time to re-review the film that truly brought honor to us all called Mulan (2009 ) by Jingle Ma . It has a DVD re-release which I think would get a lot of sales to protest against Disney's Mulan. I also think that both Angry Joe and Nostalgia Critic may want to watch this film. I mean, this film was a lot of well-timed WTF moments that Nostalgia Critic could make fun of (such as the bathing scene or the Rouran princess's desire to be a queen in Wei) without derailing it. The 2009 film is obviously not for children - it doesn't do violence for the sake of it. I don't think it'd get a PG-13 rating either since it's got blood.  Now, a look back at how the movie did bring "Honor to Us All". The movie itself actually knows when to b...

I did enjoy the brutal choreography (which was close to Arnold Schwarzenegger's version of Conan the Barbarian) of Jingle Ma's Hua Mulan with one character dying after the other. Heck, I even thought the death of Jaycee Chan's character as a human version of Mushu was something satisfying to watch. Now, I thought that the ending was a cliffhanger and I hated that, "Why must Weitai marry that Rouran princess to secure a treaty? It's just not FREAKING FAIR after all they have gone through!"Some may argue that he can take Mulan as a second wife but WTF - it's just not fair for any woman to be forced into that position! Then I remembered Disney's Mulan had a sequel. Well, there's no Mushu-type character to ruin it so that means don't expect Jaycee to return. What's my possible plot? Wentai doesn't love the Rouran princess and he still loves Mulan. Mulan makes that sacrifice for the good of the nation until she sees that she still loves W...

After hearing of the Mulan 2018 remake, I thought about how Liu Yi Fei's already "too old" to play a very young character. Liu Yi Fei was 22 years old while Vicki Zhao was 33 years old back last 2009. Yi Fei is entering 31 next year.  So why did I wish Yi Fei took the role of Mulan over Vicki? I thought a much younger Yi Fei could have handled the role of Hua Mulan better and the age would be a bit near. Mulan was probably 15-16 years old when the story took place. Vicki is already twice her age for the role of Mulan! Back in 2013, we have a 19-year-old Suzy Bae who PULLED OFF the role of Dam Yeo Wool or how Yi Fei was only 19 during Return of Condor Heroes. So why did they get a much older Vicki to play Mulan when Yi Fei was very much young and available to play a character who's in her late teens? In Suzy's case, her character of Yeo Wool was probably 18 years old - which was a marriageable age during those times.  Jerry Yan could play as Gener...

There was the TV drama series called "Hua Mulan" which starred Anita Yuen and earlier, Marianne Chan.  My late paternal grandmother watched the one by Anita Yuen as Hua Mulan.  I think Mulan's story is best covered not by a one shot movie but a SERIES knowing she had a long battle before she fought for her true love Shang.

If there was any scene in the live Mulan movie that got me to go "huh" was to why they had to make Mulan's discovery to be a woman to Wen Tai to be that suggestive. If you can remember clearly, Mulan was bathing in the hot spring and apparently, Wen Tai saw her body. But at least it was less humiliating than in the Disney for her though since it was in a closed area. But still, Wei Tai got all red from the scene.  I just wonder what came into the heads of the writers?

Zhao Wei was really able to execute Mulan rather well. Compared to Disney, the legend is well-told especially with how she was based on a legendary female strategist named Fu Hao. Okay so I thought that things get rather realistic to how Mulan was gone longer than you've expected and that she's actually a skilled martial artist, so we don't see any of that ridiculous stuff of Mulan being a wimp.  Actually I would have voted for Esther Liu or Crystal Liu but she did her part well.  But for a series, I'd vote for Esther Liu as Mulan.  Her beauty however wasn't very ancient of a China girl, she in fact looks kinda blended for the role but she does have her alluring figure here.  I think she played her part well. Not surprising if you've seen previous movies of hers involving ancient China attires and her fighting prowess is well shown. In fact, I liked how she was able to display her martial arts skills against a bully in the military camp. The part was also offe...