DisneyToons review: Mulan 2

DisneyToon`s 28th film.

I accidentally published the wrong movie earlier. Mental note; make sure to click the “Save Draft” button instead of the “Publish” button.

http://putlocker.is/watch-mulan-2-online-free-putlocker.html

My opinion right after watching the film

My opinion right after watching the film is that it is too corny to deal with. Mulan took itself seriously, and while it had strong messages and nice moments, it had light moments and subtlety to balance off of it. This film removes all of that, and completely contradicts the first in almost every aspect.

Production

There is no information on the production of the film.

Story

The film takes place a month after the events of the first film, and Mushu (Mark Moseley) is being treated like a savior and a god in the ancestor`s residence. Everyone in China are excited about the progress of Mulan (Ming-Na Wen) and Shang (BD Wong)`s relationship. Mulan is doing a bunch of her routines while handling the grain, and a bunch of little girls watch and observe her, where they eventually join her. I already have an issue with this film.

The only thing that this scene is giving me is that they want to rub in Mulan`s “kickassness”, and playing off the perception people had of the first film, and to integrate only that into the second film. It is overly cheesy how they are having her be so tough, and have to show that off, when in the first film, she did not need to show off, but just did. I feel like the entire film is about showing off, and exggerating what was a bit of the previous film.

Shang soon shows up, and they make it back to her house, where it is known that they are going to get engaged. When he finally proposes, she accepts and Grandma Fa (June Foray) invites the entire community over. Mulan tells Mushu about her engagement, and he makes it all about how HE hooked them up, and makes it into a selfish moment for him. He then returns to the ancestors, and they are thrilled because it means his power will be revoked because they will then be added to the Li family ancestry, meaning the Fa ancestry in name will end.

Mulan`s parents Fa Zhou (Soon Tek-Oh) and Fa Li (Freda Foh Shen) give the young couple their generational Ying-Yang necklaces, and tells them that they need to work out in order to work, since they are so different. The emperor of China (Pat Morita) recruits Shang and Mulan for a mission to send his three daughters to the kingdom of Qui Gong to marry their three sons for an alliance to protect China from the Mongols. The three men Yao (Harvey Fierstein), Chien-Po (Jerry Tondo) and Ling (Gete Watanabe) are going with them, and it is obvious what is going to happen.

While they are carrying the princesses to their destination, Shang can tell Mulan is off, and the issue is that….. she feels in her heart that arranged marriages are wrong. Wait, hold on, didn`t she WILLINGLY enter the matchmaker ot get into an arranged marriage? She literally had no hesitaiton about this, and was honestly excited to go to the matchmakers. Might as well continue this film to get it over with.

During the travel, the princesses start falling for Ling, Yao, and Chien-Po. The ones with the matching colors ends up being a couple. Mushu decides to come up with many attempts to sabotage Shang and Mulan`s relationship, but it usually ends up making the couple laugh and bring them closer together. They get into the crash, and end up falling in the river as a result of Mushu`s failed attempt.

After they set up a campsite, Shang and Mulan get into an argument because the wet map ripped, and Mulan does not see the big deal, and says they can always ask for help, but he wants to follow the map. Ting-Ting (Sandra Oh) is the most hesitant about her feeling for Ling, and reminds her sisters Mei (Lucy Liu) and Su (Lauren Tom) that they need to remember where their duties lie. They are all really sad, and end up singing a song about wanting to be like other women after Mei writes a letter to her father.

Mulan ends up helping the princesses and the trio of men escape to the town, where they all fall in love, and enjoy the festivities. When they return to the tent, Shang is extremely pissed, as he sees Mei’s letter. He ends up being more mad at Mulan, since it is like she coached Mei to write the letter, saying ho w many people’s lives are in stake, and she has been irresponsible. Mulan tells him that they need to follow their heart, and questions their entire relationship. I see where Mulan is coming from, but Shang is right when it comes to the fact that the lives of a country is at risk.
I forgot to mention earlier that Mushu ended up whispering to a sleeping Shang of Mulan talking crap about him, which causes Shang to wake up, and confront Mulan at her guard post. There was also a statue that was created. Does this shit really happen when people are asleep?

The next morning, everyone is sad and pissed off at one another, with the exception of Mushu. He sees Mulan upset, and asks her to talk to him. After finally feeling some guilt, he confesses everything to her, and she is furious. Mulan then realizes that things between her and Shang are artificial, and they are soulmates. Right when she is about to reunite with him, they are attacked.

This somehow ends up with Shang and Mulan hanging from a breaking bridge, and he lets go, so she will have a chance to live. We are supposed to believe that he died in the river, but it is clear that is not what ends up happening. Mulan decides to enter the arranged marriage with one of the sons instead of the princesses marrying them. The suspense of Shang dying literally does not last 5 minutes, since his house instantly pulls him out of the water. Shang crashes the wedding, marries Mulan instead in his raggedy clothing, and goes to Mulan’s spirit of ancestors to change the law, so Mushu can be the advisor to his chain. Mulan told Shang everything, and he is not mad. The film ends with Mushuu bossing around the other ancestors.

It is funny how a bit over a decade ago, I was obsessed with this film after watching it with my family when I was a child. Now, all I see is a bunch of flanderization, and a serious film that is taken as a joke due to the silliness and the over-the-top attempts to change the theme in this film. The story just does not continue the franchise that well. The story is more than a bit cliche and tiring, but that is not the biggest issue I have with the film.

Characters

The characters are my main issue with the film, especially the main ones. Flanderization is all over these characters, which made almost all of them unlikable, whether it was intended to be that way or not.

Horrible. She had no issue with an arranged marriage in the first tilm, but all of a sudden loathes it. I swore I heard Pocahontas and Jasmine come out of her mouth a few times, which would be fine… if she had their personality or situation. Forcing her opinions on following your hearts to the princesses was unintentionally selfish, completely ignoring the bigger picture of the safety of China at hand. I hated it how they had to rub in how badass she is, and it was a clear attempt to bait the audience even more. She was grating in this film, with her badassness and impulsiveness being exaggerated.

Shang is not much better as well. While he was kind of a stick in the mud during the film, he was not so obnoxious about it. He also did not have severe anger issues and rages in the original film, and the control he did have completely went away. He was just too over-the-top with everything in the film, and many of his good qualities were removed.

Mushu was not that much to brag about, but in this film, all he cares about is himself. He is destroying Mulan’s engagement to Shang’s relationship, so he can keep his job. Mushu was not funny, I found his ramblings to be painful, and did not enjoy him at all. His remorse did seem insincere as well.

I did not really have an issue with them in this film, but they were only there to fall in love with the princesses. Nothing was really learned about them. They were still fine though, but it is not enough.

The princesses are decent enough, but there is not much known about them, and are used as plot devices to shove down Mulan’s message for the film.

Animation

While the animation is not as riding, rough, and amateurish as the older films of the canon looked, you can still tell that the animation is closer to TV animation than theater film animation. Some of the characters are inconsistently animated, and the movement is kind of weird on the characters, but it is still decent to look at.

Music

There is still kind of a Chinese theme to the music, but the lyrics are overly corny that it takes me out of the mood. Most of the songs are just overly cheesy and corny.

Reception at Release

When the film was released on November 3rd, 2004, the film was panned by critics and audiences for the same reason everyone else dislikes it for. Many say that this is one of the worst films in the canon.

Reception Today

When it comes to the reception today, it is not really different. If anything, people dislike it more now than they did when it was released.

Final Score

Story: 5.5/10

Characters: 4/10

Animation 6.5/10

Music: 5.5/10

21.5/40 = 54%

Next time…

Review: February 7th, 2016.

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