Mulan

In the rush to contrast the early-nineties Disney golden historic period (Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King) with the current craw of underperformers (Treasure Planet, Brother Bear, Home on the Range) that ingest resulted in Disney�s heady decision to jettison hand-drawn animation, some pretty adequate films have been missed in the shuffle. Disney�s Mulan, for example, is a beautifully drawn and exciting fiddling adventure picture show from 1998 (when it was a decent-sized strike, too). It�s no kind of classic, but world Health Organization says Disney Animation can�t put kO'd something minor now and again?


In their own slipway, the late-nineties Disney cartoons (which include the likewise mythical Hercules and Tarzan) take risks in stylization and topic matter. The semi-experiment here is to craft a story around a strong female protagonist who is not, on any level, a princess (even reasoning and bookish Belle in Beauty and the Beast is defined by a love story with a prince, handsome or not). The title character (voiced by Ming-Na (now sans the Wen)) masquerades as a man in order to take her aging father�s place in the Chinese army; it won�t cross your enjoyment to make out that she isn�t instantly killed and forgotten.


Nor does the motion picture break from formula in many other notable shipway; there�s quiet a politic, princely honey interest and a team of smooth, enthusiastic beast sidekicks � Mulan�s defender mini-dragon Mushu for one; her faithful steed for another; and her darling cricket for one likewise many. The action sequences, like a massive battleground avalanche, are so well that the patented Disney story beat generation � the protagonist�s declaration of precariousness; accusations of deception and/or betrayal; a cheery finale � feel like filler, not keystone. What could be a touching, personal story buckles under the weight of Disney�s patented team writing policy � good for gag-based films, but maybe not for a warrior�s tale.


This is most seeming when the characters from time to time sing: The death ring for the automatic musicalization of Disney films is sounded via four tremendous, half-hearted songs that have no place in a grand adventure. Still, the music is mostly out of the picture by the halfway mark, and Mulan return as a female-driven action movie � a relatively rare live for kids and regular their more seasoned moviegoing parents.


You can also credit Disney for getting to the Eddie Murphy Cartoon Sidekick well first � DreamWorks may have strike paydirt with his work as Donkey in the Shrek films, but Murphy practiced this routine in Mulan as the diminutive Mushu. His comic riffs are more than out of place here than in an rank comedy like Shrek, just on its own, Murphy�s part is a pointless but funny bit of comic relief.


So Mulan clay squarely in the kingdom of family unit entertainment, simply it�s exuberant and efficient as such (if a little more violent than usual). The animated plant design of Chinese palaces and landscapes is eye-catching, and the villain Shan-Yu (Miguel Ferrer) cuts a menacing figure. I�ll choose this swordplay and fireworks over Cinderella any day.


The new DVD release includes a deleted song and scenes, plus the usual kids' games and behind-the-scenes peeks.


The unexampled box set includes the Special Edition DVD and a transcript of Mulan II.