Mulan
Short description
Mulan is a 2020 live-action adaptation of the Chinese legend of Hua Mulan, directed by Niki Caro. When the Emperor of China decrees that each family must send one man to serve in the imperial army against northern invaders, Mulan, the eldest daughter of a respected but now ailing warrior, takes her father's place. Disguising herself as a man named Hua Jun, she joins the ranks and must prove herself through rigorous training while drawing on her own hidden strength.
The film stars Liu Yifei in the title role, alongside Donnie Yen as Commander Tung, Gong Li as Xian Niang, Jet Li as the Emperor, Jason Scott Lee as Böri Khan and Yoson An as Chen Honghui. It was written by Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver and Lauren Hynek, and produced by Chris Bender, J.C. Spink and Jake Weiner for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the fifth film Caro directed, following Whale Rider, North Country, McFarland, USA and The Zookeeper's Wife.
Produced on a budget of around 200 million US dollars, the film returned roughly 70 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds a rating of 5.8 from about 167,000 votes, while on TMDB its rating is 6.8 from just over 7,000 votes. A critics' rating of 6.7 from 325 reviews places it closer to the audience score on TMDB than to the lower IMDb average, indicating a mixed reception overall.
What's left behind the scenes
- Liu Yifei performed almost all the stunts herself (this included horseback riding, sword fighting, martial arts elements, etc.).
- According to the rules, the name of the main character should be transliterated into Russian as "Mulan".
- Filming took place at 20 locations in China, including Hubei Province in central China, the so-called Ming Shashan ringing sand mountain in Gansu Province, and the Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park in northwestern China, the Flaming Mountains of the Taklamakan Desert, Mazhar Village, and Dunhuang and Jiuquan counties in Gansu Province, as well as studio pavilions in Zhejiang Province in eastern China.
- Filming began in August 2018 in Auckland, New Zealand.
- In search of an actress for the role of Mulan, the director's assistants visited five countries and met with nearly 1,000 candidates. The requirements for candidates were as follows: proficiency in martial arts, knowledge of English, and at least relative fame.
- Liu Yifei arrived for her screen test the very next day after a 14-hour flight from Beijing to Los Angeles. During the test, she performed four scenes, one of which was quite long, and immediately after the two-hour audition, she went to a ninety-minute strength training session.
Similar movies
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
