Mulan (2020)

REVIEW BY: ROBERT CHANDLER

Disney’s new MULAN is ravishing to look at, but is machine-tooled and pre-vis’d to within an inch of its life. There’s no sign of any humanity. It’s been directed by executives. 

I could see the flurry of studio notes behind every scene. Putting Niki Caro’s name down as director was more of a contractual obligation than a sign of the film having something to say, or having an actual author behind it. The film lists four screenwriters but I imagine there were many more... and then I picture all the notes, all the politic decisions eventually wearing everybody down until they surrendered.

What remains is an artefact. A glorious coffee table book that people look at but nobody actually bothers to read.

Worse, there are a couple of moments that try to emulate the humour of the animated feature and they fall ridiculously flat, reminding the viewer that live-action and animation are two very different modes of story-telling.

(I wanted Mulan to team up with the magic shape-shifting bird-witch and take down the Emperor and his whole rotten patriarchy.)