Let's get down to business, to defeat the Huns!

Rating: 8/10 (23 October 2015)

This is one of the excellent animations from the Disney Renaissance that mixes Chinese legend with the typical Hollywood elements, but unlike many animations it weaves them together well. You never really see Mushu as anyone other than the wisecracking Eddie Murphy (just as evident as in Shrek, although it is a little more appropriate there) but he manages to create humour and show that he cares for Mulan in little moments such as the assistance in the training montage. The three stooges in Yao, Ling and Chien-Po provide the other comic relief, and they do it well. How lovable and gentle is the giant Chien-Po? (Beef! Pork! Chicken! Mhmm!) Then there are the elements of Chinese culture that do not overburden the narrative but provide a strong basis for the conflict within Fa Mulan. The idea of saving face means her father is too proud to let a woman take her place in the army, and that same sentiment is seen throughout the society.
The soundtrack is as good as any from the Renaissance. We first get an inkling of how out of place Mulan is in the opening number Honour to Us All, which is a playful percussive piece that uses Asian influenced guzheng and flute to match the physical comedy of Mulan's incompetence in the female domain. That is later backed up by the heartfelt Reflection by Lea Salonga. In Blossoms, it starts off slow and meditative, before the orchestration and fanfare create a powerful moment in the storm where Mulan takes off with armour and sword, aided by the slow but tense beats of the bass. The centrepiece however is the rousing I'll Make a Man Out of You, everyone's favourite Disney song that gets you out of your seat. It is simply impossible to not feel pumped up by this montage; the beat is infectious, the lyrics are ridiculous, the sing-along potential unlimited.
The animation style is simple enough and the art design elegantly creates the Han period. There is a stunning wide shot within the battle scene where Shan Yu charges as a single solitary figure behind the rest of the army amongst the snow, before Mulan creates an avalanche and the scene becomes a literal ocean of flowing snow. I am reminded of the chaotic wildebeest stampede in Lion King only a few years back, and here as well 2D animation becomes 3D, and the scale and theatrics of the entire action piece are spectacular. It is here that Mulan shows her heroics despite her gender, and that also being the cause for her exile. It becomes easy to recognise the bravery and courage of Mulan in such a male dominated society. And just beneath that, there is the little domestic conflict of her parents wanting her to marry off to a suitable match. This was an entirely different era; without Mulan there would be no Merida, no Rapunzel, no Elsa and Anna.
Mulan follows the same sorts of formulas that many kids animation films still follow today, but despite some rather pained humour in some parts (the entire character of Chi-Fu, especially with the accent, is rather embarrassing, and Mushu gets a little weary at times - although the grandma is just absolutely precious), underneath there's a genuine narrative with some pretty important themes going on. And there's always something for the kids to sing along to.