Mulan (1998)

The critic calls the 1998 Disney film immensely entertaining and a cracker, praising its vibrant, richly hued angular animation, tight script full of gags, and standout action and comedy sequences including the Huns' mountain charge and Eddie Murphy's dragon sidekick. The songs are described as merely endurable.

Jettisoning the saccharine cutesiness of recent Disney outings, Mulan serves up stunning animation, sharply defined characters and catchy tunes woven into a simple, powerfully told yarn. Ancient China is beautifully evoked with compelling dramatic beats and an unadulterated treat emerges thanks to a strong heroine and scariest villain in years.

The critic finds the 1998 animated film an entertaining but historically inaccurate take on the Mulan legend, assigning it a solid entertainment grade while criticizing its liberties with Chinese history.

The film charts a new direction for Disney animation with a more adventuresome story based on a Chinese folk tale, and Ebert enjoyed it as story and animated art. The songs are pleasant but not memorable enough to make it a four-star film.

Disney's anachronistic take on Chinese history and culture nevertheless turns out to be one of its better animated offerings in recent years. The story concerns a feisty girl who dresses as a man and joins the army to save her father's life.

Mulan is one of Disney's most adventurous and serious animated features, a female empowerment story that should appeal to adults as well as kids. It is lightly stained by strained comedy, rigorous political correctness, and some adherence to formula.

The review praises Mulan as a strong female lead with purpose who blends masculine and feminine traits and challenges gender roles, crediting her victories to her own qualities, but criticizes elements like the song 'A Girl Worth Fighting For' and the ending that reinforce traditional expectations without broader societal change.

Mulan has its accomplishments as a spunky heroine story but comes off as more manufactured than magical, relying on standard hip patter, tepid songs, and familiar animation cliches. The formula is showing despite the new cultural flavor.

Disney takes a sledgehammer to gender stereotyping but produces the most inert and formulaic of its recent animated films, with familiar sidekicks and production numbers. It ratchets up the violence level for children's animation without advancing the studio's renaissance.

The critic finds the 1998 film's cultural depiction soulless and stereotypical despite research, with ridiculous songs and mismatched characterizations, but praises the impressive animation, striking backdrops, adorable animals, and bravura action sequences like the Hun charge.

The critic finds the film isn't daring enough and sticks too closely to Disney traditions like songs and an Americanized heroine. They single out the positive energy of Ming-Na Wen's voice performance as an asset by the end, while noting the animation and humor fall short of prior Disney peaks.