Mulan (Disney+) Movie Review & Comments

As a family we still prefer the animated version, but this was definitely the best take on a remake so far. We'd probably go 7/10.
Better than Jungle Book? IMO Not even close.
 
Better than Jungle Book? IMO Not even close.

The Jungle Book remake was watched once and has never been seen again. It's half way house between the original and true recreation fell flat for us. Kaa and Louie were low points in particular, being too scary for our littlest and too ridiculous for our eldest.
 
Have to say the only outstanding remake for me has been Maleficent. The rest I could have happily lived without (although happily enjoyed too - I'm not saying they're unpleasant, just unnecessary), as they all just retold the same identical story with CG instead of animation.

Mulan's basic story (the one in the books and in the animation) is pretty limited, so the extra beats here were very welcome; IMO Maleficent-like additions (Gong Li, I'm still looking at you) which none of the other remakes bothered with.

I guess I'd probably pop Aladdin third. That was a pleasantly good turn from Will Smith.
 
I personally really enjoyed the Jungle Book redo. I thought it respected the original, and they both have their space.
AND the cowbell was in the new version. That in itself deserves respect!
 
I'll be waiting until it's either free with my Disney+ or if it was done in 3D and a 3D disc is released I'll get that in a 2 for £18. I have a real issue paying full price for stuff that comes down after 3 months! Don't even get me started on PPV or extra fees to be first to watch when I already pay a monthly subscription, it's a reason I don't have sky! Plus I have enough to keep me going till its out for me in 6 months.

Enjoyed reading the review though 😀
 
Mulan's basic story (the one in the books and in the animation) is pretty limited, so the extra beats here were very welcome; IMO Maleficent-like additions (Gong Li, I'm still looking at you) which none of the other remakes bothered with.
This is interesting because others have argued that key parts of the animation has been lost. That the drama has been stripped away. Take for example her transformation into a soldier.

I've never watched Mulan so this is new to me but I get the criticism. They took the actual Mulan transformation directly from the animation, but some how left the emotion behind.
IMO Maleficent-like additions (Gong Li, I'm still looking at you) which none of the other remakes bothered with.
100%. Gong Li is the best part of the film. Maleficent vs Xian Lang ?
 
I think you forgot about what will be the most important thing of all - cost. How much would this little soiree set you back? And for a family of 4 say? New technologies don't come cheap.

I don't dispute that's what the future may indeed look like, but I think we're a little premature still for VR cinema. I'm not sure Covid is going to speed things up too much either, other than this flirtation with going straight to VOD.

On a side note I also seem to remember being told once that if I was serious about watching films in future I'd need to be ready to invest in a suped up 3D setup! :eek:
We were all set for this the other night and then found we can get it for free from Dec 10th. under a standard subscription. We will wait. And again, we never embraced 3D either.
 
We were all set for this the other night and then found we can get it for free from Dec 10th. under a standard subscription. We will wait. And again, we never embraced 3D either.
I missed 3D when it effectively went away, and I'm so glad I found another way without having to buy a projector or an old TV. What's weird is that the post production techniques have become so good that we now have some of the best 3D discs ever made. But only a few of us will ever see them. HDR is a special technology that makes many 4k films look a lot better. But the quality of Blu Ray discs is so high that watching movies in 3D on a large screen is usually a much more immersive viewing experience.
 
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I have a central serous retinopathy in my left eye:
1599518391228.png
which means 3D TV was left behind years ago. :(
 
I have a central serous retinopathy in my left eye:
View attachment 1362200 which means 3D TV was left behind years ago. :(
I have a parent with a deteriorating eye condition. The specialist said that there is nothing they can do except stabilise it to try and stop it from deteriorating any further.
 
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More controversy for Disney’s live-action remake of Mulan.
In the final credits Disney offers “special thanks” to eight government entities in Xinjiang, including the public security bureau in Turpan, a city in eastern Xinjiang where several re-education camps have been documented.
 
More controversy for Disney’s live-action remake of Mulan.

I really think this is a lose/lose for Disney. This film was made specifically to please the Chinese market. But what little chance they had of succeeding has evaporated with Covid. Then the obvious pandering to that market is causing negative political pushback. Not helped by the lead actress voicing public support for the Hong Kong authorities suppression of demonstrations, and now this.
 
I didn't enjoy this movie. Bland, humourless, poor acting, predictable, sleep inducing. But great New Zealand back drops. 5/10.
 
Utter twaddle. Let's be clear about this, cinemas need NO help with their own suicide right now. That's coming from someone who's had a Cineworld Unlimited pass for the last four years and regularly spent an entire day cycling through three or four films while risking forty days and nights of stomach trouble by indulging in a hot dog. They're expensive and are increasingly falling back on gimmicks like 4DX, D-Box and Screen-X to get people into the building. Meanwhile there seems to be zero investment in basics like aligning projectors with the screen, making sure focus pulls properly in the shift from ads to movie, working air conditioning etc. All that came before Covid-19 and should have been addressed *years* ago.

If cinemas are to survive it ain't gonna be films being available day and date for home rentals that kill 'em. It'll be a fundamental failure to adapt and offer something *better* than sitting at home in front of a big HDR-capable TV and decent sound system. A few have started (mainly by copying what places like the Electric Cinema have offered for years, namely big comfy seats, proper food, at-seat service etc) and those changes shift it back into a proper 'event' that the home experience struggles to match. Offer something that makes people want to go there not just for the film but everything that goes around it. But if the only 'solution' offered is to point at home rentals as the tool of the devil... well, how did that work out for video rental shops when digital services came along?

While I really hope they figure this out and the big screen experience stays around this is *very* much a case of customer tastes changing and for the big cinema chains with huge buildings, equally huge rent bills and the cunning survival plan of charging £5+ for a sausage inna bun it's simple: Adapt or die.
Dolby Cinema is worth going to watch a movie :D
 
Dolby Cinema is worth going to watch a movie :D
Which one? I hear good things about the Dolby cinemas in the regions. The London cinema has nice seats and the picture quality is decent. But the screen is not the biggest and the audio is average at best. I hear that the building is historically difficult but if Dolby can't get it right in their own cinema then who can?
 
How did this get an 8/10?
I thought it was awful, not a patch on the original.
 
I didn't enjoy this movie. Bland, humourless, poor acting, predictable, sleep inducing. But great New Zealand back drops. 5/10.

Agree, wasn't impressed by the acting of the female witch and predictable through.

The Animation is a lot better which I saw last month again as my wife had never seen it before. Although I'm sure this film would be a lot more appreciated in China.

Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and Jungle Book are on a completely different level IMO.
 
The Odeon Leicester Sq was never a fantastic sounding cinema - Have seen many films there over the years, the cost of travelling up to the West End along with higher prices meant that savings had to be made elsewhere and then Unlimited came out which helped save a lot of money going to the cinema.

I've not been to the Odeon LSQ since the change to Dolby Cinema, but having experienced Dolby Cinema elsewhere, it was a fantastic experience. I doubt the Odeon LSQ will compete with an Imax in scale and sound, but I would be happy to be proved wrong.

I much preferred the Odeon West End (sadly now closed) for AV quality.
 
The Odeon Leicester Sq was never a fantastic sounding cinema ...
That's what I've heard.
I've not been to the Odeon LSQ since the change to Dolby Cinema, but having experienced Dolby Cinema elsewhere, it was a fantastic experience. I doubt the Odeon LSQ will compete with an Imax in scale and sound, but I would be happy to be proved wrong.
It can't compete period. Which is a pity because the staff really treated me well on my first visit. The recliner seats are a nice luxury and the LFE literally shakes your feet. But the rest of the audio is local cinema quality.

The best cinema experience I've had is Cineworld IMAX and Superscreens, followed by BFI IMAX. The BFI has a bigger screen but as was pointed out to me here on the forums, the films usually have black bars. So you're not missing much with the slightly smaller screen in Cineworld which (if I remember correctly) has no black bars for IMAX presentations.
 
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Odeon Leics Square (OLS) is a poor Dolby Cinema, it’s still a nice place to see a film, overpriced but Dolby is nothing special.
I’ve been to 2 other Dolby screens in Denver and LA and the sound there was spectacular.
The best former screens in London were Odeon Marble Arch, Empire 1 and Dominion Tottenham Court Road.
 
Which one? I hear good things about the Dolby cinemas in the regions. The London cinema has nice seats and the picture quality is decent. But the screen is not the biggest and the audio is average at best. I hear that the building is historically difficult but if Dolby can't get it right in their own cinema then who can?
We went to the Leeds Dolby Cinema located at Thorpe Park (Just off the A1) which is apparently one of the better ones, your right regarding the London location, the building design / protected building status prevented Dolby making it like a true Dolby Cinema setup, so they were restricted with what they could do.
 
Good to see a positive review. I agree completely. Watched it the other night as a family of three with a 9yr old daughter and we all loved it. Visually beautiful, great characters and story, and quite emotional at times, but without laying it on thick. One of the best family films we've watched recently.

I've seen the criticism of this movie online and think some if it unfair:
1. Actress views on HK and Beijing. I am no apologist for China (quite the opposite) and was actually in HK last year during riots, including walking through one. Got lots of sympathy with the HK people and dislike her views, but what's to be gained by taking it out on Disney or the rest of the people involved in the film?

2. People calling it "woke" (whatever that means this week!). Disagree with this as well. Sure it's a tale about a strong female character fighting for acceptance in a male-dominated world, but at no point in the film did it feel to me (as a male) like it was taking cheap shots at men. There was no men bad, women good narrative that I picked up on, unlike a certain other recent Disney film involving a guy called Ralph :laugh:.

If you're on the fence, I'd recommend giving it a go, but can appreciate the cost being an issue especially when it's not included in the subscription.
 
I've seen the criticism of this movie online and think some if it unfair:
1. Actress views on HK and Beijing. I am no apologist for China (quite the opposite) and was actually in HK last year during riots, including walking through one. Got lots of sympathy with the HK people and dislike her views, but what's to be gained by taking it out on Disney or the rest of the people involved in the film?
Her views on HK by itself wouldn't mean much. But the film itself was created specifically for the Chinese audience with the script apparently being approved by the CCP. On top of that they filmed in the same region as their concentration camps and and in the end credits they spedifically thank the security force that is used to secure the camps and/or enforce the rules. They tried to obfuscate it a little but too many people knew about the region they were talking about for them to get away with it.

2. People calling it "woke" (whatever that means this week!). Disagree with this as well. Sure it's a tale about a strong female character fighting for acceptance in a male-dominated world, but at no point in the film did it feel to me (as a male) like it was taking cheap shots at men.
Totally agree.
Both Captain Marvel and Mulan as told have agendas which end up being to the detriment of their respective character arcs. But there's no deliberate demeaning of men. Mulan has just as much respect for her male counterparts as they will eventually have for her. Just a story of a hero, her journey and the people she meets along the way.
 
 

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