An unfortunate disappointment

Rating: 4/10 (28 June 1999)

With all the wealth of Chinese art and history to draw upon, Mulan, in its visual style, looks like 1950s Disney: bland, slick, and bright. Only the opening title gives any hint of rich beauty of Asian art. Closer attention to traditional silk painting, scrolls, screens, etc. might have helped lift this one a notch.
As it is, its manner of storytelling is only a b-level imitation of other Disney flicks of the late '80s and 'early '90s. Standard stuff, though Eddie Murphy provides a little (very little) relief.
Still, Asian-American kids might (MIGHT) get a kick out of seeing one of their most revered cultural legends come to life onscreen. For the rest of us, it's slow going, though at least the heroine is not some airhead princess.