I got a great deal of enjoyment from Walt Disney’s DVD release “Mulan Special Edition.”
I think what I liked best about the extra features — and there was a goodly amount of those — was the “Ballad of Hua Mulan.”
That ballad was the inspiration for the Mulan story created by the script writers and cartoonists. The ballad is actually a poem, and it gives a barebones description of one daughter who takes the place of her father in the imperial army unbeknownst to the soldiers and commanders.
Hearing the translated ballad and seeing the finished cartoon, this viewer was amazed at the creativeness of the writers and artists. The story was still, basically, the same, there were more little details added that made the story juicier, the adventure livelier and the ending more enjoyable.
With “Mulan,” Disney takes a Eastern legend and makes it fit into a Western fairy tale formula, with success. Though not as quick-witted or dramatically affecting as some of the other films Disney released in the surrounding years, “Mulan” is a film that wins you over on its own merits.
Even though “Mulan” is one of the weaker efforts of Disney from the 90s, there is still much to admire. The least of which is surrounding the viewer in the Chinese culture with little apparent effort.
Mulan looks at Mushu, the dragon her ancestors sent to help her
For one thing, there is the strong female protagonist. Though she's depicted as much as a ordinary, down-to-earth girl as she is a warrior heroine, Mulan distinguishes herself as a kind of antithesis to the princess passivity so common in most animated classics.
Mulan is a well-defined character who evokes the viewer's care, but it's because she's likable and not desperately crying out for sympathy that she wins the viewers’ hearts.
The film's music merits praise as well. There are just four songs plus "True To Your Heart", the catchy but out-of-left-field end credits tune. Each of the four holds its weight within the film, displaying a unique and compelling style, and always serving to advance the story, rather than act as musical detour or illogical pace-changer.
Those songs are: "Honor To Us All", "Reflection", "I'll Make a Man Out of You" and "A Girl Worth Fighting For."
My personal favorite was “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” sung during Mulan’s and the other recruits’ training to prepare for battle.
The new recruits, Mulan included, train for combat before going into battle
The flashiest role, the comic sidekick more or less, belongs to Mushu, a small — very small — dragon voiced by Eddie Murphy. He does a good job of balancing the darker material with the light banter so that the younger viewers — and more importantly the parents of those younger viewers — will embrace the story.
Remember, this was animated in the 1990s. The computer generated battle scene in the snow, especially the avalanche sequence, was seamlessly blended with the rest of the animation.
The special features included with this edition makes the disk, in my opinion, worth twice the cost. The special features here shine above most DVDs.
"Mulan" is even more interesting when you examine what's going on under the surface and with the special features you can do just that.
The only thing I would have done differently is brought out “Mulan Special Edition” before the “Aladdin Platinum Edition.” “Aladdin” is a feature that takes place in a town amazingly similar to small towns in America, except for some of the laws and “Mulan” steeps the audience in a culture which is not as familiar to most.
Mulan prepares to mount up and leave to fulfill her father's military duty
I think kids will have a ball at Disney's "Mulan." Packed with action and humor, the film is imaginative, fun and fast-paced, presenting a strong tale of female empowerment while imparting a positive message about the importance of being true to yourself.
Voice Cast: Ming-Na Wen (Mulan), B.D. Wong (Shang), Eddie Murphy (Mushu), Miguel Ferrer (Shan-Yu), Harvey Fierstein (Yao), Jerry S. Tondo (Chien-Po), Gedde Watanabe (Ling), Soon-Tek Oh (Fa Zhou), Pat Morita (The Emperor), June Foray (Grandmother Fa), Frank Welker (Khan), James Shigeta (General Li), James Hong (Chi Fu), Freda Foh Shen (Fa Li), Miriam Margoyles (The Matchmaker), George Takei (First Ancestor)
Mulan Special Edition
Rated (*** 1/2 out of *****)
Mulan figures out a way to hit the apple every time until she's discovered.
Synopsis: (Courtesy of Buena Vista Home Entertainment) “Mulan,” one of Disney’s greatest family films returns on Oct. 26 in a new 2-disc special edition DVD. Families can now experience the fun and adventure of this animated classic like never before with an all-new digital transfer of the film.
This magnificent Special Edition is jam-packed with exclusive bonus materials, and features Disney’s EasyFind menus for quick navigation. Included are never-before-seen deleted scenes and alternate openings; the never-before-heard song “Keep ‘Em Guessing;” all-new games and activities; the new “I’ll Make A Man Out Of You” video with the world-famous Jackie Chan; and lots, lots more. A film to be treasured, the new “Mulan Special Edition” DVD comes in a vibrant, collectible slipsleeve package.
Based on a famous Chinese legend, “Mulan” chronicles the daring adventures of a young Chinese woman whose irrepressible spirit clashes with her tradition-bound society. Although her family wants her to marry, Mulan is comically out-of-place when it comes to matchmaking, and she makes a hilarious mess out of her family’s plans.
The Three fight among themselves frequently
When her country is forced into war by the invading Hun army, Mulan (Ming-Na Wen) takes her ailing father’s place in the Chinese army in order to save his life.
With the hysterical support of Mushu (Eddie Murphy), her feisty, fire-breathing, wanna-be guardian dragon, Mulan disguises herself as a man and trains to become a brave and disciplined warrior. With bold and selfless acts of courage, she brings victory to her country and honor to her family.
DVD extras
DVD menu
• Disney’s EASYFIND menus
• Dolby® Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
• THX Certified
• Family Friendly Widescreen (1.66:1) Enhanced for 16x9 televisions
• Spanish, French and Mandarin Language Tracks
DISC ONE
• Feature presentation – New Digital Transfer
• Deleted scenes
• Alternate openings
• Music and more
• Music videos
√ “I’ll Make A Man Out Of You” — All-New Music Video Featuring Jackie Chan
√ “True To Your Heart” — New Music Video with Raven
√ “Reflection” — with Christina Aguilera
√ “True To Your Heart” Music Video — performed by 98º and Stevie Wonder
• Backstage Disney
• Disney Peda: Mulan’s world — Explore the fascinating world of ancient China with your comical host, Mushu.
• Mulan fun facts — Enjoy fun-filled trivia about the making of Mulan.
• Audio commentaries with: Pam Coats, producer; Tony Bancroft, director; Barry Cook, director
DISC TWO
• The journey bigins
√ Discovering Mulan — Embark on a behind-the scenes adventure with the filmmakers.
√ The Ballad of Hua Mulan — A narration of the Mulan legend, accompanied by breathtaking, full-color painted production artwork from Disney’s animation artists.
√ Early presentation reels — A presentation of early Mulan images, in both storyboard form and in stunning full-color visual designs from Disney’s animation artists.
• Story artists journey
√ Finding Mulan — Discover early designs and storylines for the Mulan character. See the fascinating evolution from the early “Mulan” to the heroine of the finished film.
√ Storyboard to film comparisons — Includes filmmaker introduction, with storyboard and final film versions.
• Design
√ Art designs — See how the Mulan team approached the production design of the film. This featurette is lavishly accompanied by Mulan’s stunning production design artwork.
√ Ballad of color — Discover the way color is used in the making of Mulan.
√ Character design galleries —Meet the film’s character designers and see how they created the look of Mulan and theother memorable characters in the film.
• Production
√ Production demonstrations: “Mushu Awakens” and “Matchmaker Meets Mulan” — Follow these two scenes from story sketch through rough animation, clean-up animation, effects, and to final color.
√ Digital production: “The Hun Charge” and “Digital Dim Sum” — See how the film’s exciting Hun Charge scene and Mulan’s large crowds scenes were handled through CGI digital artistry.
• Music
√ Songs of Mulan — Find out how music and song was integrated in the film.
√ “Reflection” Music Video in Spanish
• International Mulan
√ Mulan’s International Journey
√ Multi-language Reel
√ Publicity Art Gallery
