Mulan (Live-Action)

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D82
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Re: Disney Announces Live-Action Mulan Remake

Post by D82 »

I'm glad they have cast a Chinese actress. According to Wikipedia, she's also a singer, so maybe that means the film is going to have songs after all. I saw her in The Forbidden Kingdom (which, by the way, was directed by Rob Minkoff, director of The Lion King), but I don't remember her character there much. I'm a bit surprised they have chosen a 30-year-old for the role when Mulan is only 18 or so in the animated film, though I guess this actress could probably pass for someone younger than her age.
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Re: Disney Announces Live-Action Mulan Remake

Post by thedisneyspirit »

D82 wrote:I'm glad they have cast a Chinese actress.
Well it's the only thing. Disney nowadays wouldn't do whitewashing, they know better than that. And also, while Americans/ Europeans wouldn't have given two shits if they had cast a Japanese or Korean actress, in Asia they would. In Asia there's this whole subdivision amidst the different countries and the Chinese don't like being mixed up with the Japanese, etc etc. It could've caused a huge uproar in Asia if they didn't took care of her nationality.
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Re: Disney Announces Live-Action Mulan Remake

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thedisneyspirit wrote:In Asia there's this whole subdivision amidst the different countries and the Chinese don't like being mixed up with the Japanese, etc etc. It could've caused a huge uproar in Asia if they didn't took care of her nationality.
You're right. But I think that not only happens in Asia. For example, I remember some years ago a Spanish actor was cast to perform the famous Mexican comedian Cantinflas and that was quite controversial in Mexico.
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Re: Disney Announces Live-Action Mulan Remake

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D82 wrote:
thedisneyspirit wrote:In Asia there's this whole subdivision amidst the different countries and the Chinese don't like being mixed up with the Japanese, etc etc. It could've caused a huge uproar in Asia if they didn't took care of her nationality.
You're right. But I think that not only happens in Asia. For example, I remember some years ago a Spanish actor was cast to perform the famous Mexican comedian Cantinflas and that was quite controversial in Mexico.
You can also expect that the SJWs would loose it if this happened, like with Jasmine's casting.
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Re: Disney Announces Live-Action Mulan Remake

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The project actually came in as a spec written by Lauren Hynek and Elizabeth Martin and then Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver (Jurassic World, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and the upcoming Avatar sequel) came aboard. The film is being produced by Jason Reed, Chris Bender and Jake Weiner.
Source: http://deadline.com/2018/03/times-up-di ... 202303892/
First up is Niki Caro‘s Mulan, which has added Narcos’ costume designer Bina Daigeler, visual effects supervisor Sean Andrew Faden (Power Rangers), and stunt coordinator Allan Poppleton (The Wolverine, Hercules, Rampage). It stars Yifei Liu and filming is expected to begin sometime this month in Wellington, New Zealand, and China.
Source: http://omegaunderground.com/2018/01/02/ ... wl-noelle/
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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Disney Pushes Live-Action ‘Mulan’ By Two Years To 2020
http://deadline.com/2018/03/disney-live ... 202307448/
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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I thought Mulan had already been pushed back from a 2018 release date a while ago.
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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^Yes, it was off the schedule for a while now. They've finally given it a new release date.
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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I bet they’re stuck trying to figure out how to please both the Chinese audience, who will have very specific demands and expectations, as well as the western fans, who have their nostalgic demands to include the original songs and score.

I don’t think there’s a way to do this right, to be honest...
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

Post by JeanGreyForever »

PatrickvD wrote:I bet they’re stuck trying to figure out how to please both the Chinese audience, who will have very specific demands and expectations, as well as the western fans, who have their nostalgic demands to include the original songs and score.

I don’t think there’s a way to do this right, to be honest...
Agreed. The tastes don't converge and I'm sure Disney is trying even harder to please the Chinese market now that Star Wars has flopped over and over there. But there's a reason that the Disneyfied animated Mulan got a very lackluster response in China, and going too far in the opposite direction will likely turn away American audiences, as evident already by the lack of Shang and songs.

I'm not really looking forward to this movie, but it'll be interesting to see which route they go.
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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JeanGreyForever wrote:But there's a reason that the Disneyfied animated Mulan got a very lackluster response in China, and going too far in the opposite direction will likely turn away American audiences, as evident already by the lack of Shang and songs.
Maybe when it premiered but over time I think it has become a cult classic there. Have you not seen this video? :P
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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I’m just afraid they half ass it, by not including the songs in all their glory. They animated feature already omitted some great music. The full version of Reflection is magnificent. It needs to be done justice.

Oh and that video of the Chinese kids is hilarious hahaha. Maybe it’s more beloved than i know. I always assumed it was heavily criticized.
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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Sotiris wrote:
JeanGreyForever wrote:But there's a reason that the Disneyfied animated Mulan got a very lackluster response in China, and going too far in the opposite direction will likely turn away American audiences, as evident already by the lack of Shang and songs.
Maybe when it premiered but over time I think it has become a cult classic there. Have you not seen this video? :P
One production doesn't mean the whole country overall favors Disney's Mulan, especially considering that China is the most populated country. Regions like Hong Kong were more exposed to western elements so the movie may be more favorable over there. It's like how Star Wars is still popular in some of those regions, but in the overall country, it's a massive flop. I agree that over time, sensibilities may have changed, especially with increasing westernization. One of the main criticisms with Mulan was that her character was too western for Chinese tastes, so less rigidity may have opened up some people to the film and the character more.

But overall, the Chinese don't care much for Disney's take on Mulan. It's like if China made a film on George Washington with Chinese sensibilities and expected Americans to like their take and consider it the definitive take. It may be the Chinese definitive take, but it won't be the American one, and most Chinese people will still regard their version of the folk tale (especially since every generation had their own version so even in China there have been multiple iterations) as the true one. The Chinese laugh at how Americans think they understand their culture. For them, Disney's Mulan is as authentically Chinese as P.F. Chang's. Even Mulan's appearance is derided and used as an insult if you see the link below.
https://thenanfang.com/american-chinese ... -netizens/

So I wasn't surprised that the actress chosen to play Mulan for the live-action film looks like nothing like her animated counterpart but exactly like what China's standard of beauty is.
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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PatrickvD wrote:I’m just afraid they half ass it, by not including the songs in all their glory. They animated feature already omitted some great music. The full version of Reflection is magnificent. It needs to be done justice.
I fully agree about the songs. I would be ecstatic if they included the extended version of Reflection, Honor to Us All, I'll Make a Man Out of You, and Written in Stone.
JeanGreyForever wrote:So I wasn't surprised that the actress chosen to play Mulan for the live-action film looks like nothing like her animated counterpart but exactly like what China's standard of beauty is.
I think she does look like her. I'd say even moreso than the other female protagonists from the remakes did.

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Regardless, similarity to the animated character is not something I care a lot about when it comes to casting. What's worrisome about her casting is the possibility of her being a poor actress. I've never seen her in a movie so I can't judge but there have been reports that she isn't any good.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/robcain/20 ... s-baffled/

https://theplaylist.net/liu-yifei-mulan ... -20180328/

http://mulanxiaojie.tumblr.com/post/168 ... ng-to-play
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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Sotiris wrote:I think she does look like her. I'd say even moreso than the other female protagonists from the remakes did. Regardless, similarity to the animated character is not something I care a lot about when it comes to casting. What's worrisome about her casting is the possibility of her being a poor actress. I've never seen her in a movie so I can't judge but there have been reports that she isn't any good.
Really? I don't seen any resemblance. Her skin tone, facial shape, body type, and eyes all look very different to me. She represents more of a classical Chinese beauty, while Mulan looks more like what western audiences would find beautiful, as said in the comments in the link I posted above. I'd say that the beauty pageant winner in that link has a very strong resemblance to Mulan, especially in some shots, unlike this actress.

I've heard similar reports of her acting ability, but also that she mainly does physical roles which I imagine will suit her for this film.
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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Donnie Yen has been cast as Commander Tung. Is this new character based on General Li?
International action star Donnie Yen has been set to star in the live action Mulan based on Disney’s classic animated film and the legendary ballad. Yen will play Commander Tung, a mentor and teacher to Mulan.

The Chinese actress Liu Yifei had previously been set to play the title role. The film will be directed by Niki Caro, who helmed Whale Rider, McFarland, USA and The Zookeeper’s Wife. She became the second female director hired by Disney to direct a film with a budget higher than $100 million, following A Wrinkle In Time‘s Ava DuVernay. The film will be exec produced by Bill Kong, one of the most influential producers in China whose films include Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hero, and Monster Hunt.

This will be Yen’s second big-budget Disney outing after he co-starred in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Disney is casting up the Chinese film now and has set a release date for March 27, 2020. Script is by Lauren Hynek, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver and Elizabeth Martin. Chris Bender, Jason Reed and Jake Weiner are producing.
Source: http://deadline.com/2018/04/donnie-yen- ... 202362542/
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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From the description of the character as Mulan's "teacher," I'm guessing they decided to split the teaching part of Shang's role (if Shang is even in this) into a separate character.
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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I liked him in Rogue One a lot, so that's a plus even if I'm not particularly interested in this film.
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

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More casting news. Jet Li has been cast as the emperor, Xana Tang as Mulan's sister, and Gong Li as a powerful witch. She'll be the villain of the movie replacing Shan Yu. Shooting begins in August in China and New Zealand.

Disney's Live-Action 'Mulan' Lands Gong Li, Jet Li (Exclusive)
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat- ... li-1101994
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Re: Mulan (Live-Action)

Post by JeanGreyForever »

It's clear that this movie will have very little in common with Disney's Mulan. However, I'm not even sure it will resemble any of the different variations of the Mulan folktale that are out there. Some versions give her a little brother (hence Little Brother, the dog, in the Disney movie) but never a sister. I've also never heard of a witch in any of the stories. The stories never have magical villains. I'm not happy with these additions at all but I love Gong Li, especially when she plays crafty villainesses, so that probably excites me the most about this film now.
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