'Mulan' Misses The Humor of the Original, But Still Puts Up a Good Fight

While less musical and humorous in comparison to its 1998 counterpart, the 2020 'Mulan' was worthy to watch. It gave a predominantly-Asian cast a chance to shine, paid more respect to the legend of warrior Hua Mulan, and had great scoring by Harry Gregson-Williams. Even though the story is mostly similar, Yifei Liu put up a good fight as the Chinese war hero.

Yifei Liu as Hua Mulan, ready to fight Böri Khan and bring honor to her family. Photo courtesy of Disney.

Set in Imperial China, Rouran warriors led by Böri Khan, played by Jason Scott Lee, plan an attack to kill the Emperor. When the Imperial Army sets out to conscript one man from each family to prepare for war, Hua Mulan takes her disabled war veteran father's, played by Tzi Ma, place. Despite the risks of dishonoring her family and country, Mulan will do everything in her power to bring down her malevolent foes and save the Emperor's life. 

The few moments of humor came from Mulan chasing a chicken early on, the incident at Mulan's matchmaking ceremony, and Yao, Ling and Po's insulting each other. I do miss some songs from the original film, such as "I'll Make a Man Out of You" sung by Donny Osmond. But what it lacks in the former two, it makes up in Mulan's sword and hand-to-hand combat and clever thinking, showing that her actress was well-trained for the role.

Hua Mulan as she charges into war against Böri Khan. Photo courtesy of Disney. 

Harry Gregson-Williams' scoring consisted of keyboards, flutes, and the instrumental version of "Reflection" from the 1998 film. They highlighted the moments of adventure with Mulan riding into battle and the laboriousness of her and the Army's training. And going back to "Reflection", Christina Aguilera sang it beautifully just like she did in the end credits 22 years ago. 

Böri Khan was quite the vengeful antagonist, given his grudge against the Emperor, and he was ruthless in his determination of conquest over China. Xianniang, played by Gong Li, was not a woman to be trifled with given her shapeshifting and possible telekinetic fighting abilities.

Böri Khan, played by Jason Scott Lee, ready to bring China to its knees. Photo courtesy of Disney. 

As I said in the beginning, this 'Mulan' film gave a predominantly-Asian cast a chance to shine. And the majority of the cast portrayed heroic roles instead of the usual gangster or comic relief. This could allow Asian entertainers to get more respect, if they haven't received much lately. The costumes were a good addition, as well, as Mulan looked like both a warrior whether she was in her armor or dressed like a kung fu expert. Also, the outfits for the Imperial Army and the Emperor looked well-designed to fit that era. 

'Mulan' may not have the same amount of humor, slapstick, and songs as its predecessor, but through the training of our heroes and a great soundtrack to back them up, it has a spark that makes it worth the look. If you want to see how Mulan is when she shows her serious side in flesh-and-blood reality, watch the 2020 'Mulan' on Disney+ or in other home media.

"The New Mutants" Was More Dark Than "Dark Phoenix"

With all due respect to the cast and crew, "The New Mutants" was not the film to end the 20-year-old "X-Men" franchise. There were few moments of humor and teamwork, but it was too horrific and more of a drama or psychological thriller than an traditional superhero film. The film had potential, but "X-Men" should've stopped at "Days of Future Past".

Charlie Heaton as Sam Guthrie, Anya Taylor-Joy as Illyana Rasputin, Blu Hunt as Danielle Moonstar, Henry Zaga as Roberto da Costa, and Maisie Williams as Rahne Sinclair in "The New Mutants". Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. 

In "The New Mutants", Danielle Moonstar (played by Blu Hunt) is brought to a hospital housing other mutants- Rahne Sinclair (played by Maisie Williams), Illyana Rasputin (played by Anya Taylor-Joy), Sam Guthrie (played by Charlie Heaton), and Roberto da Costa (played by Henry Zaga)- who, like her, have been victims of a tragedy while their powers have manifested. Dr. Reyes (played by Alice Braga) works to help Danielle discover her new powers, and along the way, each mutant is forced to relive violent images of their past in order to grow stronger for their future. 

The film started off as a drama with Danielle being traumatized after a tornado. Similar to Callie from "The Fosters", she was forced to live with other people who have been abandoned by society and find a new sense of belonging. But as Danielle and the others revisited nightmares of their childhood or being feared by different people, the film shifted to a psychological thriller genre. 

Another way of this not being much of a superhero film is that there weren't enough supervillains like other "X-Men" films. "The New Mutants" had a way of bringing out the more human side of the young mutants, as some of their major enemies were their own fears. Most of them had to deal with losing a loved one while their powers formed, and they became heroes by learning to go beyond those fears and put their demons to rest.

One of the Smiling Men from Illyana's nightmares. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. 

Roberto's mutant form reminded me of the Human Torch from "Fantastic Four".

Roberto da Costa (played by Henry Zaga) embracing his powers as Sunspot. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. 

The film was too horrific because of visuals of demons from each kids' past and all the blood that got shed in the present. I did not like the initial hostility between Danielle and Illyana. Illyana said a lot of hurtful remarks about Danielle's Native American ancestry. However, it was nice to see that Danielle and Rahne became fast friends as they healed from their darknesses. The other light moments were when they rebelled against Dr. Reyes and had a 'Breakfast Club'-like party. And there were red lights that shined like the mutant lights from Cerebro from previous "X-Men" films. 

Despite her initial rebellious and harsh outlook, Illyana showed initiative when she helped stop the Demon Bear and protect Danielle and the other mutants. It was good to watch all the young mutants come together like X-Men, embraced their powers and save the hospital, preparing them for saving the world one day.

The Demon Bear attacking the New Mutants. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. 

Overall, "The New Mutants" was more dark than "Dark Phoenix". It had some good times with the young cast, but it wasn't the right way for 'X-Men' to end. Whatever Disney has planned for the X-Men going forward, I hope they make a fresh new story that's great for superhero film fans. If you interested in seeing the young heroes' capabilities, watch "The New Mutants".

'Jumanji: The Next Level' Has a Familiar Story, but a Great Cast to Tell It

Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, and Karen Gillan can not cease to amaze me. While the plot of the film seems recycled, the cast of 'Jumanji: The Next Level' did a great job in continuing the story with nonstop action and humorous chemistry. I think director Jake Kasdan chose wisely in adding Danny DeVito, Danny Glover, and Awkwafina to the ensemble.

The characters of the 'Jumanji' video game are ready to face danger. Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures.

'The Next Level' continues the story with the young heroes off to college. But Spencer, played by Alex Wolff, repairs the old Jumanji game in secret and gets sucked back into it, and his girlfriend and friends, played by Morgan Turner, Ser'Darius Blain, and Madison Iseman, along with his grandfather, Eddie, played by Danny DeVito, Eddie's former friend, Milo, played by Danny Glover, and former Jumanji captive Alex Vreeke, played by Colin Hanks have to rescue him. Adding to that mission is saving Jumanji from a drought, while also fending off an evil warlord, Jurgen the Brutal, played by Rory McCann, and raging animal troops.
One of the funniest things about 'The Next Level' is the bitter rivalry between DeVito and Glover when they play Johnson and Hart's characters of Dr. Smolder Bravestone and Franklin 'Mouse' Finbar, respectively. Eddie can't believe the strength his avatar of Bravestone has, along with a powerful smolder, and Milo is slow and steady with Mouse's new ability of talking to animals. The funny part is where they try fighting each other to see who's superior, along with how they try to race away from crazy ostriches in the desert. It's better when they eventually reconcile their differences. It's also funny watching DeVito's cranky grandpa voice mix with Johnson's voice.

Eddie Gilpin as Dr. Smoulder Bravestone and Milo Walker as Franklin 'Mouse' Finbar. Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures.

It was good adding Awkwafina as pickpocket Ming Fleetfoot to the mix, as well. It was fun watching her being Spencer's temporary new avatar and try to use her lockpicking skills to get horses to take down the warlord's minions. Being played by Spencer, she came off puzzled being surrounded by all those crooks, but in the end, Ming came through and helped the team save Jumanji. It was also funny with her voice mixing with DeVito's voice.
Aside from the cast, the other great things about 'The Next Level' was the music and exotic locations. Composer Henry Jackman's music highlighted the film's dangerous and exciting moments, from the running from ostriches, mandrills, and evil thugs to overcoming Jurgen's wrath and saving the jungle. Two of the best parts were using 'Welcome to the Jungle' during a second avatar swap, and when Karen Gillan as Ruby Roundhouse did another dance fight to 'Baby, I Love Your Way' by Big Mountain.
The film was shot in places like Calgary, New Mexico, Atlanta, Georgia, and Hawaii. They seemed perfect for scenes featuring the desert chase, jungle bridge attack, or final confrontation against Jurgen in the snowy mountains. The production team did a great job of going around the country to show that there's a different level of adventure around every turn.
The plot seemed a bit recycled with it being about people being accidentally sent into another world (in this case, a video game) and the only way to go home is to save the game zone and not lose all your lives. But, it still proves strong through a whimsical cast to tell that story, along with music to call attention to the action, and impressive filming locations to go with the risky themes. And in a strange way, this video game brought the characters closer as friends and family.
Overall, the cast, music, and locations make 'Jumanji: The Next Level' a very entertaining film to watch. If you want to see a funny way to survive a perilous video game, watch 'Jumanji: The Next Level'.