Fa Mulan Saves China

Disney’s “Mulan” isn’t like some of Disney’s other “Princess movies” where a damsel in distress has to be saved. Fa Mulan is a very different female character compared to all the other Disney Movies. Fa Mulan is a tomboy teenager who has just went to meet her matchmaker and causes total destruction in the process. She even sets the matchmaker’s backside on fire. By the end of Mulan’s meeting with her matchmaker the matchmaker has tea all over her and tells Mulan “YOU WILL NEVER BRING YOUR FAMILY HONOR!”.

Then Fa mulan hits rock bottom and thinks she doesn’t mean anything to her family with her song “Refleciton” that include lyrics like “I will never pass for a perfect bride, or a perfect daughter”. Then suddenly the Huns, and their leader Shan Yu, are going down the Wall of China and the emperor calls for one man of every family to help fight for their country, including Mulan’s father. However Mulan’s father is older and has to use a crutch to get around but still accepts the scroll to go to battle for his family. But during the night Fa Mulan cuts her hair to the length of a man’s, takes her father’s armor, saddles up her horse, asks her ancestors for guidance and goes to battle in her father’s place. The ancestors awaken and send a guardian dragon named Mushu to protect Mulan.

Mulan goes to train to fight the Huns under her man alias name “Ping” here she befriends three other men, Ling, . Mulan goes through battle training un-noticed and faces the Huns on a mountain. However during the battle with the Huns on the mountain Mulan is injured by Shan Yu by a slash to the abdomen. When Mulan is having her wound dresses the nurse discovers that “Ping” is actually a woman. At this moment Mulan is almost killed by her trainer and the man she has fallen in love with, Li Shang. However Shang spares Mulan’s life but leaves her stranded on top of the mountain to die while the rest of the army goes to tell the emperor that they have killed the horrible Shan Yu. Then Mulan sees that the one lone survivor of the battle is Shan Yu and Mulan races back to the Palace to warn Li Shang.

When she arrives Li Shang and her comrades do not believe her and she goes off to warn the emperor but Shan Yu has already arrived and the emperor is being held captive in a palace tightly locked with guards. Then Li Shang agrees to help Mulan break into the palace and rescue the emperor. They break in and Mulan and Shan Yu have an incounter on top of the palace and battle there while Mushu sneaks off to the firework tower and gets ready to shoot Shan Yu while mulan is battleing Shan Yu. Then Mushu fataly shoots Shan Yu. Mulan gets the credit for saving the emperor and ends up “Bringing her family honor” and actually saves China from the Huns and the horrible Shan Yu.

There are multiple aspects of this film that make it worth watching. Among those are amazing music, great story-line, and amazing actors and actresses.

Like every great movie, Mulan has a remarkable soundtrack to go along with the movie, everything from Mulan’s ballad “Reflection” to the awe inspiring “I’ll Make a Man Out of You”.

This is a great story line of how a young woman impersonates a man to go off and fight for her elderly father for her family’s name. During this movie Mulan actually goes off and discover who she really is. In the end Mulan brings not only her family honor but the whole country of China by saving the emperor from the horrible Shan Yu.

Even though this is an animated film and you can’t really see the actors and actresses the chemistry between the characters is very noticeable. The relationship between Mulan, Mushu and the Horse (the movie never gives him/her a name) is very prominent. All three of them really have  a connection like family (they kinda are) and are there for each other all the way through the film.

Disney’s Mulan is overall a very effective film, considering that it is so different compared to all the other “princess movies” by Disney. Mulan is truly about discovering who you are and that if you don’t think you are very special then you are actually quite special indeed. I mean come on Mulan says in the beginning of the film in her song Reflection: “Maybe i’m not ment to play this part” here she is saying that she couldn’t be  the perfect daughter and she would break her family’s heart if she truly acted like herself. She asks herself “Why is my reflection someone I don’t know… when will my reflection show who I am inside”. Then Mulan goes off and saves China.