User reviews

I was moved by this movie. It was a real good watch. Words escape me at the moment, but this review can say it all for me: http://yingweitan.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/movie-review-mulan-2009/ Also, the comment at the bottom of the article is very insightful.

Differing from the usual route of Chinese epic movies, which usually portrays huge battle scenes, extravagant costumes, and such, this movie concentrated more on the character's development and emotions. As such, it is a movie that deserves a closer scrutiny than the passive habit we have of watching movies. I will not give it the 2 points for the 10/10 vote because my overly romantic self was denied something (you'll see). But then that's just me. :) I do not regret that I spent 113 minutes of my time on this. In fact, it made me all the more ready to face my own battle: life.

We all know how the story of Hua Mulan follows that of other legendary folk heroes in China's rich history, and to date there's only a reference poem which accounted her exploits which stem out of filial piety, at a time in the Northern Wei state centuries ago when the Emperor decreed that all families must contribute to the war effort. Being a military family, the Huas have no male heir to represent their family, which automatically meant the aging father has got to volunteer himself. Rather than send her father to instant death in the battlefield, Mulan disguises herself as a male, and takes her father's place. That's basically the gist of the story, where she spends 12 long years at the war-front to the amazement that she was never found out, before returning to the gratitude of family and country.

This also means that storytellers have almost a full reign at what could have transpired during her tour of duty, and suffice to say this will always mean that there will be elements of hardship during training, attempts or situations at putting her true identity at risk, and given the soft hearted nature of an adolescent female, affairs of the heart will come knocking. The same goes for this film, written by Zhang Ting, which adopted the romantic angle rather heavily, exploring the relationship between Mulan, and General Wentai (Chen Kun), in a love that's quite forbidden since firstly a female cannot be serving in the army, and secondly, face it, two male soldiers, and later on, of general rank, can't be seen behaving lovey-dovey in front of their men. Besides, being romantically involved also served to be a roadblock to Mulan's innate war ability, or so Wentai believes that needs some way to be severed so that she can unleash that beast within.

As Wei soldiers, they're tasked to defend their country from the nomadic invading forces which seek to conquer Wei for their iron, in which to make weapons, and then to plunder some more. There's some gigantic contrast between the troops on both sides, one sans heavy armour, while the other gets more beautifully decked out, and in some ways, better equipped. But what the film is rather all about, is its take on leadership. One can have strength in superior numbers, or to have technology on its side, but without an effective, charismatic leader, it's as good as not being able to harness the multiplier effect that comes with the territory. Imagine having morale, trust and belief so high, that troops will rally behind you, trust your vision, and literally to lay their lives down for the cause. I suppose with any effective leader who walks the reasonable talk, should be able to attest to the respect that they command over their followers.

Then there are the battle scenes, because what's a Mulan film without one. Unfortunately though, most of the scenes were featured in some way in the trailer, so they do not come as a surprise. There's no big-bang action sequence as well, choosing instead to opt for a rather more personal, intimate battle rather than one involving the masses, and also wrapping things up a tad too conveniently, although it tried to redeem itself with a pathos filled finale revisiting the romantic angle once again. The war front scenes were like a quick summary of 12 years of iconic battles that Mulan had led, so those looking for fantastically choreographed battles in the mould of Red Cliff, will be sorely disappointed.

Then there are some rather questionable scenes which comes out of the blue, and somehow marred the enjoyment of the film a little because of their convenience, with that little bit of vampirism which I felt was not quite necessary, and a natural phenomenon which just appears and seem to take sides, again for reasons I am not able to fathom, and speculate only for the showcasing of special effects. Disaster movie, this is not.

But thankfully the performances all round provided that lift to the film, and made it bearable. Zhao Wei is no rookie to period war dramas, since she has Red Cliff to thank for in modifying her role there to become a warring princess. There are too many parallels to be drawn between her characters in Shangxiang and Mulan, such as going forth to the forefront of war to the disapproval of family, her desire to defend her country, her disguises and so on, one can still feel her Mulan here to be distinct and if I may say, quite definitive. Chen Kun also held his own against the veteran actress, although one can feel that since this is a Mulan film then he's playing second fiddle. Supporting roles range from Jaycee Chan to Hu Jun, who seem rather functional than to add any emotional depth to the film.

Mulan is just one version from a folklore open to vast interpretations, and you can bet your last dollar that this isn't going to be the last of Mulan related stories that we'll hear of. While it isn't an instant classic, this version can probably still shout out to be the definitive version for now.

I got quite excited when I heard of this re-adaption of the Chinese folk tale Mulan, having always loved Disney's version for unexplainable reasons. (Not being a Disney fan in any sense).

I'm very much left at a crossroads after watching the piece. Well worth giving it a go to draw your own opinions because the film is brilliant yet at the same time flawed throughout.

Having the feel of many recent Romance of the Three Kingdoms historical epics that have been popping up regularly from the fantastic new generation of Chinese cinema, Hua Mulan is fast paced, uplifting and in a narrative sense very well strung together. Unlike many of its' counterparts we don't have the long and often drawn out political segments we found throughout the Red Cliff films (Absolute wonders in their own right).

The evident flaws popping up in the casting of Hua Mulan herself and the balance between the story of a solider and that of romance wasn't really able to find a true sense of equilibrium, I felt slightly discontented by the conclusion but Hua Mulan is not a film to disregard from the above remarks. A film well worth watching, putting a blunt and more practical spin on the story of Mulan; placing the tale within an Era of Chinese antiquity that easily rivals that of King Arthur or Julius Ceaser.

I never knew the Mulan story before Disney's released it's version and it is one of my favorite Disney movies. While I understood this was not going to be the feel good movie that you find with Disney, I did expect it to be just as entertaining. It wasn't epic but I did enjoy the film.

This doesn't focus of the training of a young woman's military skills. It was my perspective that this was much more about how she had to overcome her emotions to break through and become a great general. I felt that they did a good job at portraying her struggle while not allowing her to lose all feeling.

It was well acted even if I didn't particularly care for the choice of Mulan. There was just something off there. The script was decent but the camera work could've been a bit better.

Overall it is not a back live action version of this tale of folklore. I won't have a problem recommending it.

Having just caught it not too long ago, the memories of it is still fresh in my mind. I remembered as the lights to the cinemas brightened as the credits start to roll, it felt breathtaking to had partake in this film as an audience of it.

Do NOT, and i repeat, do NOT, go into this film wanting it to be one of those battle-like army type of films one generally associates with the genre of epic at its core. For if you do, you will be disappointed for this is NOT one of those films that had been over-populated due to other greats like Braveheart, Gladiator etc. Those are epic genre all to their own merits...

...and so is this depiction of the legend of Hua Mulan. I would still classify it as an Epic to some degree, but leaning it more towards the genre of Drama and Romance, more akin to the likes of Tau Ming Chong (aka. Warlords that was released in 2007 starring Jet Li, Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro).

There are battlefield scenes, Yes...but they are of minimal depiction based on the context of this film, that are used to carry the characterization of Hua Mulan that was perfectly casted with Vicki Zhao at the helm.

There is a plot, and that plot is to drive the main theme of this film that is to showcase to us about how she grew into the character in legends. Whereas the subplot to it is that of her feelings. These feelings are then broken down into different categories, showcasing the main obvious emotional parts of her for the affection that she has for another. While concepts based on being a filial daughter to her father, and loyalty to the fellow troops that she commands and finally patriotism that drives her to do what she does for twelve years are all being explored, minimally but it is enough to drive her overall characterization in just under 2 hours (even though it may seemed longer than that).

Having said this, there is no need for me to summarize the film for you readers as that is one of the beauties of storytelling, where it is for the viewers to partake for themselves to let the story be told to you by the story's presentation. And definitely not by me.

Overall, if one is into a movie that is emotional (depending on individual's views upon what is regarded as emotional), and does not showcase violence for violence's sake, then i guess one can do themselves the favor of partaking on this trip of 2 hours into another era.

Again i must stress, do NOT go into this film hoping to see the likes of battlefield scenes.

For me, i would classify this film like the other greats of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; The House of Flying Daggers; Warlords; Musa, and the very recent Red Cliff saga. Jingle Ma's depiction of Mulan has merits all to its own to make it stand among these others.

Hopefully the new Disney film sparks some interest in this one. This isn't the "kids" take on the tale. Theres a pretty cool atmosphere where it feels light and childlike (since the people in war can be quite young in real life, during the time) while still being graphic and brutal.

Its not perfect. You'll be lost a lot in terms of "how much time has passed?" For example. But it is a good watch. Good acting, action and lots of interesting story.

This is a real film, don't think this is a family fun movie, like the Disney Mulan, this is an adult, grown up War Action Romantic Drama, Chinese style, and its very very good. Heavy on the War Action, Heavy on the Romantic Drama, A stunning movie.

It is a very beautiful film, very good photography, good costumes, and it really looks like its ancient time period, the battle scenes are great, the action scenes very good and all the acting is spot on, no slacking here. I am not keen on the romantic angle, but it is very well done in this, no sex scenes either, showing that for true romanticism you don't need to show naked bodies writhing together and that it is better without that sort of thing.

I have watched a good few Chinese films and most are great, they really do know how to make a good realistic film without cutting corners or going cap in hand to the financial sharks.

The nearest western equivalent of this film is probably Spartacus and it is as good as that. Put it on your Bucket List, watch this before you die.

Having Just watched this film, and whilst it is still fresh in my mind I found the movie to be a refreshing change to traditional epics offered by Asian Cinema. House of flying daggers it is not, but as an interpretation of Chinese folklore that was based on a poem, it is a piece of cinematic creativity in it's own right. The casting of Wei Zhao was a smart move. Vicki is a potentially under rated actress who displays a versatility that is often never matched by over paid Western A - listers. For the tone and content of a film that has no provable substance in fact, Vicki does an outstanding job of expressing the bland emotion and lack of compassion that would be synonymous with the era and situation with which the film is set.

At it's heart is a love story that is put aside by the burdens of war. This is so effectively displayed by the acting skill of the lead that it could be mistaken for lacking any substance at all, but with such interpretive subject matter the leads pull you in and make you share in the joy and the hurt that their lives are taking.

This is essentially an amazing piece of cinema, with a talented cast and a talented director. There are many ways to while away an afternoon. Getting lost in the majesty this provides is well worth the time

First, let us dispel some misunderstandings. 'Mulan' is folklore--like Robin Hood, King Arthur--initially popularized as literary fiction, perhaps with some 'historical grounding', but so heavily mythologized that what is 'fact' and what is 'fiction' is virtually indistinguishable (this in turn produces multiple versions of the story, including of course, Disney's campy animated 'revision'). I specifically mention this because as silly as the 'plot twist' near the end of the film may seem to those familiar with the premise of the story, it is not nearly as silly as the rest of the film—-and just as a footnote, this version is campier than Disney's.

Zhao Wei plays Hua Mulan, a young woman who pretends to be a man in order to substitute her ailing father as a conscript in an army raised by the Northern Wei dynasty to fend off incursions by the Rouran Confederacy. Since women are not allowed in the military, she conceals her sex from her comrades while simultaneously demonstrating how much better she is as a warrior than her male colleagues.

Yes, Zhao Wei is a bad choice for this role. Her 'speech scenes' are particularly painful to watch. She seems incapable of shaking her soft-spoken and demure mannerism and it is hard to believe how anything she says can actually mobilize the morale of an entire army before a battle. There was virtually no transformation between her 'rural girl' persona and her 'soldier' persona other than what she was wearing (which made the gap in her acting even more apparent). Her appearance in this film as 'a woman dressed as a man' is no more convincing than her cameo appearance as 'a woman dressed as a man' in John Woo's "Red Cliff II." The difference is that in this film, that is actually central to the plot.

The battles were uninspiring and poorly paced. Fast-motion fight scenes intended to conceal the fact that most of the actors were physically inadequate for their roles, coupled with too many slow-motion sequences of people getting impaled or killed, made for lousy, lousy battles. "300", while not a good film, has at least proved that this could be better done (first by asking the actors to get into shape...). The army field formations were sort of epic but brief, as much of the cameras' attention were focused on individual fighting (meaning that you don't see "big battles", only CG generated/enhanced armies standing around or moving, then small battles with that annoying fast-motion sword swings/spear lounges and slow-motion death scenes...). Lastly, the whole 'band of brotherhood' rhetoric was just entirely over-the-top, more so than even the silly (but at least expected) love story.

Poor choice of actors, poorly written script, mind-numbing dialogue, bad filming techniques, and too big a budget for its own good. If you liked this film, you're letting something get the better of you....like your h***-on for Zhao Wei or a misguided sense of Chinese nationalism....

Forget about the sugar-coated Disney versions and forget about talking animals. This 2009 movie is based on the legend of Mulan, the woman taking the place of her father in order to go to war, and whose accomplishments led her to rise as a general in the Wei army.

While this movie is entertaining in terms of action, drama and warfare, then if you are already familiar with the story of Hua Mulan, then there is very little surprises throughout the course of the movie. Well, aside from the devious Mushu dragon is not here.

"Hua Mulan" does differ from many other movies in the genre, that being big, epic war movies. Sure, there are battlescenes throughout the movie, and they are impressive, but if you are expecting the same grand level of epic warfare as in many other movies of the Chinese warfare genre, then you might find yourself somewhat disappointed. "Hua Mulan" focuses more on drama and character Development, as such it is story- and character-driven, putting the war and action sequences in second line.

I was especially impressed with the costumes and props in "Hua Mulan". There were some many great details to be seen here. The armors, shields and weaponry was really impressive. And for a movie set in this age, then having a believable and realistic presentation is a must. So thumbs up on their achievement here.

The acting in the movie was good, although I think they could have had some more talented people in the roles of Hua Mulan (played by Wei Zhao) and Fei Xiaohu (played by Jaycee Chan). Don't get me wrong, they didn't do poor jobs, I just think that someone more talented could have added more to the movie. Kun Chen (playing Wentai) was really doing a phenomenal job though, and he alone lifted the movie a great deal.

"Hua Mulan" is a good and entertaining movie. But there are far better choices in the Chinese warfare genre, should you be looking for such entertainment. I am rating "Hua Mulan" six out of ten stars.

By all rights, MULAN should be THE definitive retelling of the story about the famous woman warrior: it's a big-budget Chinese historical war film, made with a huge crew and cast, actors who have previously excelled in other movies, and a thoroughly serious look at a woman out of place in a man's world. Yet it turns out to be a total flop.

The blame should be laid at the door of scriptwriter Ting Zhang, whose leaden and obviously obvious attempts at emotion and characterisation drag this one into the mire from the very beginning. Unlike recent, rousing fare from China such as RED CLIFF or THREE KINGDOMS, MULAN is a maudlin and pondering exercise in narrative that doesn't really seem to be about anything. Those hoping for spectacle and battle will be sorely disappointed, as Jingle Ma's appalling direction sees the war scenes glossed over and dealt with in a purely defunct way.

Instead, at least half of the (oh so lengthy) running times chronicles Mulan's descent into an endless depression as she laments a lost love and wishes she were elsewhere. The viewer will sympathise. Zhao Wei's acting can't be faulted, but the attempts at character and personality are so poorly conceived that the audience couldn't care less about any of the characters, from Jaycee Chan's irritating attempts at a buffoon to Kun Chen's bawling crybaby.

Although the cinematography makes this film look good, it's far from entertaining. The dull-as-dishwater storyline means there's no decent action, the choreography is frankly terrible, and aside from a thirty-second segment at the climax, there's no excitement or suspense to speak of. MULAN should be an instant classic; instead it's a crashing bore.

Even thou plot is different from the legend, was a good movie in which soundtrack was a great addition.

The movie may seem kind of dull form time to time, and the dialogue was a bit off in my opinion, but maybe it's because I don't know much of the language. But the action, the acting and the characters make it a good story. The costumes, the scenery, and the tone never seems forced. You can't really predict what it is going to happen next. When it fails, it fails. When it succeeds, it isn't amazing, but it's entertaining. Still, I don't find it a movie to watch over and over, it can get boring like that. Not an incredible movie, but it wouldn't really hurt give it a watch. A good way to spend the time.

I first saw the Disney Mulan and thought that it would be something like that. But I met something completely different in a very positive way. There was also no gi jane trying to show the world something, mulan was just a person who grew with the duty and just did what she had to do.

The film left out all the gender conflicts beside and truly presented us a pure touching story.

Hua Mulan being a great general and warrior is after 12 years again a woman of her time at the end. The end of the love story is also sad but otherwise it wouldn't be such a good film.

Hollywood would surely add a kiss at the end, it was much better that there were just the right words...

excerpt, full review at my location - Not to be confused with Disney's 1998 animated blockbuster Mulan, director Jingle Ma's 2009 epic offers a more sophisticated and nuanced retelling of the story based on a sixth century Chinese poem. Mulan: Legendary Warrior charts the early life and rise to power of Hua Mulan, a fearless heroine who disguises herself as a man and goes to war in place of her ailing father.

Mulan: Legendary Warrior isn't exactly innovative, and it doesn't really add anything new to a story that has been told many times, but it's an expertly crafted film that fuses war and romance genres in a highly absorbing way.

Thanks to Disney basically everyone already knows the story of Mulan. It's actually amazing how much better that movie is still, when compared to this one. It does a superior job at basically every department, most notably with its storytelling.

This movie has absolutely got some of the worst pacing I have ever seen in any type of film. I just couldn't believe how bad it was! The pacing is totally off and there is absolutely no build up to anything! Not to its romance, not to its drama, not to any of characters, not to any of its action. Things just happen and often way too fast of each other. The one moment they are sitting in a tent, 20 seconds later they are training, 10 second later again their bathing and 15 seconds after that they are fighting an epic battle suddenly. And no, I'm not even making this up. How are you ever supposed to feel or care for anything that is happening in this movie, or for any of its characters. To be frank, I liked- and was interested far more in the movie its cartoonish villain.

But you just can't simply blame only the pacing for this movie its failure. Credit for that also needs to go to Jingle Ma & Wei Dong very lifeless and unimaginative directing and the script, written by Ting Zhang. Just when you think that the movie is starting to get interesting and somewhat remotely epic, it has to make room for some soap-opera developments. This becomes especially disturbing at its end, which is just such a big anti-climax and totally not something that you would want and expect from a movie that presents itself as an epic.

But it's already very distracting to begin with how flawed its main premise is. It of course builds on the fact that the main character is a woman, who tries to pass herself off as a man, in order to serve in the Chinese army, instead of her fragile, old father. Problem is that at no time Wei Zhao ever looks or even acts like a guy. She talks, walks and behaves like a woman, as if she isn't even doing an attempt to hide her gender. highly annoying, unlikely and distracting that no one in this movie seems to notice that 'he' is actually a she.

The story has some soap opera type of developments to it but also has the look of it. This movie looks like it was a got made for TV production, while the movie still tries to present itself like its a grand, expensive movie of epic proportions. Granted that some of the battles are pretty good looking but the movie really doesn't put enough focus on them.

Also annoying how patriotic this movie tried to be. It's a Chinse movie about a well known and inspirational Chinese figure, so it's understandable that they are proud of it and want to show this but the script is totally not suitable for a patriotic and nationalistic approach. It just isn't solid enough and has some really poor dialog, which lets the patriotic moments come across as weak, as well as misplaced.

No, this never looked like a solid movie to me but I was at least expecting some entertainment and a good story to follow, since the tale of Hua Mulan in itself is of course a really great and fascinating one. This movie however just never surpasses the level of a straight to DVD or made for TV drama-production, with cardboard characters and bad dialog, disappointing acting and soap like developments with its story.

4/10

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Other Wu Xing movies usually focus around one big battle. This is a lot more biographical, definitely still a war movie, but it's not about a battle. It's also not as flowery as the Disney movie. That said, it's good. Really good. Watch it yourself.

The realistic version of Mulan compared to Disney with Romance element. It focuses more on drama rather than epic battles or fight scenes. Pretty good overall.

This is so epic, I've seen reviews where people said war scenes are not as good as this or that movie, but it still conveys so many emotions and shows how terrifying war is and how precious peace is. I have been trying so many movies and I could not watch most of them until the end. I thought this would disappoint too, but it did not. I watched without even skipping.

Some people did not like fast-pacing scenes. But I think it worked for this movie since it focused more on capturing how strong Mulan is, not her achievements, which is good because Mulan is most likely a fictional character and her history is unknown even if she was real.

Another thing to note is that romantic scenes were moving without obscene acts, kissing, etc. Which I appreciate a lot cause I haven't seen that kind of movie in a while.

It was a good watch, and it made me appreciate my life and see how easy I am having it. I am glad I watched it, it gave me a little but precious strength and confidence when I needed it most. Give it a try; nothing to lose but gain.