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Film: Mulan
Release date: 21st June 2010
Certificate: 15
Running time: 107 mins
Director: Wei Dong
Starring: Wei Zhao, Jaycee Chan, Rongguang Yu, Xu Jiao, Vicki Zhao
Genre: Action/Adventure/Drama/Romance
Studio: Cine Asia/Showbox
Format: DVD & Blu-ray
Country: China
Not to be confused with Disney’s 1998 animated blockbuster Mulan, director Jingle Ma’s 2009 epic offers a more sophisticated and nuanced retelling of the story based on a sixth century Chinese poem. Mulan: Legendary Warrior charts the early life and rise to power of Hua Mulan, a fearless heroine who disguises herself as a man and goes to war in place of her ailing father.
We first meet Mulan (Zhao Wei, perhaps best best known in the West for her role in Shaolin Soccer) as a young girl who causes her father a great deal of consternation by fighting with boys and generally refusing to behave as he believes a daughter should. It is clear from an early age that Mulan will not conform to what is expected of her, and when she reaches adulthood, and her ailing father is summoned to join the war against invading Rouran tribes, she takes his sword and armour and sneaks off to join the Wei army in his place.
At this point, you have to ignore the fact that Zhao Wei is one of China’s most strikingly beautiful actresses, and simply accept Mulan’s not particularly convincing attempt to disguise herself as a man. There are strict rules about no women being allowed in the army, and Mulan cannot let her guard down for a second. When she is recognised by childhood friend and fellow soldier Tiger (Jaycee Chan, son of Jackie), she has to convince him to keep her secret, but very soon she faces a far more serious threat to her true identity being revealed.
After admitting to the theft of another soldier’s pendant in order to avoid a strip search, Mulan is scheduled for execution, but when Rouran fighters launch a surprise attack, she is released by a young officer, Wentai (Chen Kun), and proves herself in battle by killing the Rouran general. Mulan and Wentai both rise quickly through the ranks of the army, and develop a special bond that is central to the latter half of the film.
As generals, Mulan and Wentai enjoy great success, but when a new, more ruthlessly ambitious Rouran leader emerges, they are tested in ways that neither could have foreseen…
On the surface, Mulan: Legendary Warrior is an epic war film, full of impressively choreographed battle scenes and military strategising, but, at its heart, it is also a well written drama in which the central characters, rather than the action sequences, are the film’s driving force. In lesser hands, the burgeoning romantic bond between Mulan and Wentai could have been overplayed, but it is to Jingle Ma and writer Zhang Ting’s credit that this is not the case in Mulan: Legendary Warrior.
There are moments when Mulan and Wentai appear to be reaching breaking point, and you half expect them to give in to their feelings and fall into each other’s arms as a soaring string section breaks out on the soundtrack, but what little physical contact there is between the two is sparingly shown and relatively understated. Even here, the idea of putting their country and their army before their own desires could have come across as bombastic, but Jingle Ma adeptly balances Mulan and Wentei’s commitment to duty with their mutual frustrations and human yearnings.
Zhao Wei is superb as Mulan, shifting convincingly from full-blooded fervour to anguished vulnerability, steely determination to forlorn resignation, making it easy to forget that she is only slightly more convincing as a man than Russell Crowe would be as Anne Frank. As Wentai, Chen Kun is inevitably overshadowed by Wei, though he more than succeeds in conveying his character’s conflicted interests, and the simmering chemistry between himself and Wei is vital to the film’s overall tone.
The relationship between Mulan and Wei may give Mulan: Legendary Warrior its backbone, but it’s a relationship that could not exist without the war between the Wei dynasty and nomadic Rouran tribes, and Ma Jingle goes to great lengths to ensure the battle scenes and the background against which the war takes place are as believable as possible. Where some directors would offer a cursory explanation for the conflict and then dive head first into a CGI-aided orgy of violence, Ma Jingle reaps the rewards of excellent cinematography that makes the most of some stunning locations and a consistently engaging narrative.
Mulan: Legendary Warrior isn’t exactly innovative, and it doesn’t really add anything new to a story that has been told many times, but it’s an expertly crafted film that fuses war and romance genres in a highly absorbing way. JG
Film: 14 Blades
Release date: 16th August 2010
Certificate: 15
Running time: 114 mins
Director: Daniel Lee
Starring: Donnie Yen, Wei Zhao, Damian Lau, Ma Wu, Sammo Hung, Kate Tsui
Genre: Action/Martial Arts
Studio: Icon
Format: DVD & Blu-ray
Country: Hong Kong/China
14 Blades is an epic martial arts drama set against a back drop of love, honour and betrayal. The fate of the Chinese empire rests in the hands of one man, who may have to sacrifice everything in order to defeat a rebellion.
During the Ming Dynasty, the Emperor of China’s rule is enforced by his Imperial Guards, the Jenyiwei. Taken as orphans and trained from childhood, the Jenyiwei were masters of the 14 Blades, eight blades for torture, five for killing, and the last blade for suicide when a mission failed. The Jenyiwei answered only to the Emperor himself and operated above the law.
When the Emperor is usurped by the evil eunuch Jia, fellow Jenyiwei Green Dragon and Xuanwu are assigned to steal a list identifying those still loyal to the Emperor. However, the Imperial Guards have fallen under the control of Jia, and, during the mission, Green Dragon is betrayed by Xuanwu and barely escapes with his life.
Green Dragon must now fight the assembled forces of the remaining Jenyiwei, as well as a deadly veiled assassin, and gather support from those still loyal to the Emperor in order to save the Empire…
Right from the word go it is hard not to be impressed with how 14 Blades has been put together. Writer/director Daniel Lee has crafted a gloriously, off-beat take on the historical martial arts drama, and the mythical ’14 Blades’ manifest themselves in the form of a rather splendid weapon, which is dispatched in a variety of ways as situations arise. This clever Maguffin helps give the story a rather exotic flavour, and is utilised to great effect during some outlandish set pieces; the final battle between Green Dragon and the magnificent Tuo Tuo is especially brutal fun. Tuo Tuo’s strange whip/blade weapon is also a fantastic creation, and taken along with the 14 Blades and Judge Of The Desert’s weird ‘boomerang’ sword, we are treated to some fairly memorable, and well above average set pieces. The opening titles are also gorgeous and hint at what is to come by showcasing the delicious mix of grand, large scale set ups and computer rendered action. Although the CGI isn’t completely successful all of the time, it is certainly ambitious, and, for the most part, tastefully done.
The cinematography matches the ambition of the special effects, and whether in the searing desert, or in a dust filled temple, 14 Blades is shot with a wonderful depth of colour and warmth. Carrying on with the exotic theme, the music from Henry Lai is a creative blend of styles. Classical, sweeping strings dovetail majestically with a variety of percussion instruments to cross genres and successfully bridge musical borders, as Arabic and Western elements are fused with traditional Chinese melodies.
The script takes fewer risks than the action, and there is some fairly standard plotting for this type of genre movie. There are no great twists or surprises, but this doesn’t prevent the story from moving along at a decent pace. There is a lyrical, almost poetic beauty to some of the dialogue, particularly when Qiao Hua (Wei Zhao) describes her loveless relationship as Green Dragon relates the honour of the Jenyiwei. These are two lost souls who have found each other but seem destined to remain apart. However, the dialogue is inconsistent and veers into more mundane, plodding territory at times.
For those familiar with Donnie Yen’s work in Ip Man, it’s great to see him back in full flight with a script and a role which stretches him. Despite the fact his long hair and facial growth makes Yen resemble Wes Studi in Last Of The Mohicans, Green Dragon is a great character, full of repressed emotion and untapped anger. Yen pitches his performance perfectly, and is even afforded the opportunity to cut loose with the best use of chicken bones you are ever likely to see in a movie. No matter how good Yen is, he is completely overshadowed by Wei Zhao, who follows up her fantastic performance in Mulan with another incredible turn as the sorrowful Qiao Hua. Despite being burdened by the worst of the dialogue, Zhao gives a beautifully understated performance. She is clearly a skilful actress and gives her character multiple layers; complicated and believable, it is impossible not to empathise with her aspirations for something more in her life, and this is entirely down to Zhao’s performance.
The remainder of the cast offer excellent support, and it’s especially good to see elder statesman Sammo Hung being cast against type as the bitter, vengeful Prince Quin. My only grumble is that he seems woefully underused, but the run time of 114 minutes is just about perfect.
14 Blades is a very good film. Imaginatively made and skilfully performed. Be prepared for an entertaining Eastern thrill ride with an emotional heart and fabulous performances to drive the story through. If a little more care had been made with the script, this could have been incredible, but it still comes highly recommended. SM
Film: Mulan
Release date: 21st June 2010
Certificate: 15
Running time: 107 mins
Director: Wei Dong
Starring: Wei Zhao, Jaycee Chan, Rongguang Yu, Xu Jiao, Vicki Zhao
Genre: Action/Adventure/Drama/Romance
Studio: Cine Asia/Showbox
Format: DVD & Blu-ray
Country: China
Mulan is based on the famous fable of Hua Mulan, a general who led the Wei dynasty army to victory over raiding northern forces sometime around the 4th century. Director Jingle Ma has tackled this kind of historical story before, most recently in The Assassins Blade, which was also inspired by a legend from Chinese history.
The story will be instantly familiar, both for those who have watched The Assassins Blade, as well as the countless other films and cartoons, and read novels inspired by the Hua Mulan story.
Mulan’s sick father is conscripted to fight the increasingly aggressive Rouran northern army. Mulan takes the place of her father knowing he is too ill to fight, keeping her true identity hidden while at the same time proving her worth on the battlefield.
As the years go by, and the body count continues to rise, Hua Mulan works her way through the ranks to become a powerful General, but she is forced to examine what is truly important to her, while at the same time trying to defend her homeland and make it home to her sick father…
The actual story of Mulan hails from an ancient poem, so there is a fair bit of leeway afforded to the scriptwriters - in this case, the film benefits from centring on the relationships between the main characters and, in particular, the relationship between Hua Mulan and her superior officer Wentai.
With The Assassins Blade, Jingle Ma approached the tale with a light touch, but this caused problems, as the film failed to build any genuine tension towards its supposedly dramatic climax. Lessons have most definitely been learned, and Mulan is a far earthier and grittier proposition.
Casting lessons have also been learned since The Assassins Blade, which was necessary, as both films share a similar plot device, with the female lead playing a character hiding her true identity from those around her. Unlike The Assassins Blade, Jingle Ma creates a believable scenario in Mulan by choosing an actress who carries the part well. There is no doubting Wei Zhao is a beautiful woman, but she is also a good actress, benefitting from good makeup, and a film which is extremely well lit throughout. The Hua Mulan character visibly ages through the twelve year timeline of the story arc, and, as war rages on, becomes evidently more battle weary. This realism makes it easy to buy into the difficult premise, something which The Assassins Blade failed to achieve.
As Hua Mulan’s relationship with Wentai progresses, the film exposes the myths of battle and the flaws inherent within human nature; every set piece and death is played out over a background of political intrigue, betrayal and the love for family, friends and the country, which the soldiers serve and the Rourans covet. The way in which the Wei Army and the Rourans treat their fathers acts as a brilliant wider metaphor for how they also see the land they are fighting for; one side shows no respect while the other must serve to bring honour.
Visually, Mulan is quite ridiculously beautiful, but the China we see on screen is a harsh place. The fear evident in the soldier’s actions is reflected by the harsh realities of the surrounding landscapes, in which browns and greys are mixed to provide ominous and unsettling vistas. This is in stark contrast to the village scene at the beginning of the film, and highlights the pointlessness of the ongoing war, as the opposing armies fight over a land which is completely unforgiving. The desert scenes near the end of the film are particularly cruel, and every parched lip and flaked piece of skin can be felt.
There is a brilliantly ‘old-school’ feel to the battle scenes were everything is shot realistically using plenty of stunts and some incredible horse riding. The scenes are fast paced and brief but well positioned throughout the film. CGI is kept to a bare minimum, and this all adds to the look and feel - Mulan has far more in common with the work of David Lean or Kurosawa than Yimou Zhang. The score from Li Si Song is perfectly balanced with the onscreen action and is never obtrusive.
Mulan is an exhaustive, detailed take on a classic tale. It is beautifully crafted and carries a high emotional impact. SM
