Close to a year ago, Disney began
their filming for the live-action remake of their 1998 animated classic “Mulan,”
after a development phase that started as far back as 2015. Chinese-American
actress Liu Yifei (“The Forbidden Kingdom” in 2008) would be cast as the
titular Hua Mulan in 2017, to be accompanied by an all-star Asian and
Asian-American cast. Following a brief look at the film set last August, there
has not been much word on the development of the “Mulan” adaptation, barring
occasional cast announcements. But finally, some eight months before its
expected premiere, the movie was previewed by Disney in its first trailer.
Vanity Fair reports that the initial teaser for the live-action “Mulan”
remake was shown at the start of this week. The trailer aired during halftime
for the Finals of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup this July 7. On its first few
scenes, fans of the original 1998 might feel a tad short-changed, because the
remake so far comes across as another conventional Chinese wuxia film, without
the musical and the fantastical elements that are easily remembered from over
two decades ago. What it does show however is the acting chops of star Liu
Yifei.
The trailer shows Hua Mulan (Liu) living in a rural Chinese village of indeterminate time period, freely riding the plains and living a peaceful life with a certain liberty, until her father Hua Zhou (Tzi Ma) announces that she is being set up by the village matchmaker for a marriage prospect. A voiceover of the matchmaker lists the qualities of a good wife, in alternating shots of Mulan being dressed up for her marriage meeting, and her training alone in martial arts, then as a soldier in the Emperor’s army, and finally fighting a Hun raiding party. The gist is that, womanly wife or action-oriented fighter, Mulan actually fits for all the qualities just mentioned.
Starring alongside Liu Yifei are
her “Forbidden Kingdom” costar Jet Li as the Emperor of China, Donnie Yen (“Rogue
One”) as Mulan’s army superior Commander Tung, Jason Scott Lee as the Hun leader
Böri
Khan, Gong Li as the Khan’s witch ally Xianniang, and Yosong An as Cheng Honghui,
Mulan’s rival recruit and possible love interest. Despite the absence in the
trailer of animated Mulan’s dragon guardian Mushu, he is assured by Disney to
still be part of the story.
The original release date for the
“Mulan” remake had been for November 2, 2018 but was delayed over a year to
make way for “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms.” It is now expected to
premiere on March 27, 2020.
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