STORY STUDY - MEDIUM: FILM “Mulan”

How far are you willing to go to protect your family?

Directed by Barry Cook and Tony Bancroft, screenplay by Rita Hsiao, Christopher Sanders, Philip LaZebnik, Raymond Singer & Eugenia Bostwick-Singer, based on a story by Robert D. San Souci, and inspired by the Ballad of Mulan, Mulan is the story of the title character who secretly takes her father’s place in the army to combat the oncoming invasion of the Huns.

If she’s found out that she’s a woman, the punishment is death.

Personally, the film’s importance seemed to have grown as times changed. When the film came out, it was cool to see a female animated character doing something that was more for males: going to war. Now, Mulan herself seems to be considered an inspiration for everyone. It isn’t just seeing a woman choosing to go to war, but she’s doing it to protect her father, seemingly the only one in her family who understands, or at least sympathize with her.

Mulan isn’t considered a proper woman, nor fit to be a bride, especially not during ancient China. Is it because she’s too much of a tomboy? Actually, no. She’s just super awkward and basically can't live up to tradition. In the opening song, she’s proven that she’s tardy, she has a cheat sheet (ink on her arm to recite), she good at playing… um… shogi? (I really can’t tell what game those two old guys are playing where she helps one of them win), she even twirls a strand of hair to make herself stand out, even though it’ll probably be looked down upon (she’s never told not to do that in the film). It’s not a matter of “I’m not like A, I’m more comfortable like B.” It’s more like “I can be like A if I can stop making mistakes.”

Based on how she is portrayed in the film, she doesn’t want to go to war because she wants to prove she can be a soldier or play with the boys. She never wanted to go to war; she’s only doing it to protect her father. Death, either from war or from being exposed, is barely a concern for her. Granted, she admits to herself that maybe that’s not the true reason, but we’ll leave that up to interpretation.

So let’s talk about my favorite scene. In production, it was called Sequence Six; as a music track, it’s called Mulan’s Decision. It was also the first scene to be animated. It’s the scene that starts off when Mulan storms out crying when she is told to learn her place. There is no dialogue; all told through silence and through an amazing score by Jerry Goldsmith. Most of the iconic shots are from this sequence alone, such as Mulan’s reflection in the sword and her cutting off her hair. You understand what’s happening, what’s going through her head, and it gets you pumped, but there is also an air of tragedy because there’s a chance she’s throwing her life away. The drums, the synthesizer score, and the pan flute all make this scene one of the two iconic moments in the film.

What’s the other? That’ll have to be the “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” scene. Mulan was meant to reach a young audience, mainly girls, but I would argue this would be the first film to feature a female protagonist with a song that boys could proudly sing. And not just one boy, a group of boys. It is possibly the song that the film is known for.

As a kid, I was aware of the film much like how every other kid new about it. Disney was everywhere, and you couldn’t miss the trailer or promotions for it on the Disney Channel or wherever. As an adult, I still love it, and it’s amazing how much it holds up and still continues to inspire people.

Mulan is a film that sadly got lost in the shuffle of a bunch of Disney animated films. Why’s that? Well, do you ever see a Mulan ride in Disneyland? Do you see a Mulan or Mushu character in Disneyland outside of Lunar New Year? Is it a race thing? Ehh… we won’t get into it here. I’m just happy that she’s still remembered after all this time.