Mulan Review: 6 Ups & 4 Downs

Ups...

6. It's Far More Than A Lazy Remake

Given that Disney's recent live-action remakes like Dumbo, Aladdin, and The Lion King have been relatively mixed affairs, you'd be forgiven for approaching Mulan with a healthy measure of trepidation.

Thankfully this doesn't feel cut from the same cynical cloth as those movies, and with its inventive approach to reinterpreting the beloved source material, feels like a solid return to form for Disney.

Though these remakes are basically damned whatever they do, Mulan strikes an impressive balance between paying loving tribute to the animated film and doing something new - it's basically the same but different.

On one hand it's far from the soulless facsimile that was The Lion King, with its more serious-minded tone and focus on wuxia-style martial arts action, but it never strays too far from the heart and soul of the original.

While some might roll their eyes at Mulan effectively being re-imagined here as a chi-powered superhero, director Niki Caro never takes it too far where it feels like Disney is simply cashing in on the prevailing superhero formula.

Above all else, it's clear that this movie was made with care and attention by the cast and crew, and was clearly a passion project for the major players.