Out of all the Disney live-action movies to date, Mulan certainly made the most changes from the original animation. There were certainly many additions, alterations, and slight tweaks within the live-action, some which were only small, and others which were major changes.
While the changes weren't to everyone's taste, they certainly were to others. The live-action had a much more serious tone, with a better representation of Asian culture and heritage across the board, which made the movie very exciting to watch. However, there were certain moments from the original animation that we wish hadn't changed and had remained part of the live-action movie.
9 Mulan Was Less Trained
In the original movie, it is the training scenes that allow Mulan to develop and become one of the top warriors in China. However, that wasn't the case in the live-action, as she was already highly skilled and talented heading into the training scenes.
Throughout the movie, Mulan hid her talent and skill, eventually showing her true ability when she showcased that she was a woman. However, the original idea that she wasn't a trained warrior worked a little better, as it made the training scenes far more impactful.
8 Li Shang
Li Shang was the original love interest for Mulan in the animated movie, initially being her captain, and eventually being someone that fell for Mulan. However, in the live-action version, he was totally cut out for some reason, which was a shame.
He was a brilliant character and someone that really worked within the movie. Instead, the captain of the live-action was merely a supporting role, which took away from the story element that was such a key part of the original.
7 Training Fight Scene
The live-action version gave a small glimpse of this scene, but nowhere near enough. The clumsy fight that ends up taking place when the characters first arrive to start training is something that really helps to develop the personalities of the main supporting characters within the army.
While there was a little tease of it happening in the live-action, the captain quickly steps in and puts a stop to it. This was a shame because the scene was brilliant and very funny, and it certainly felt like it worked within this movie.
6 Family Changes
The live-action version of Mulan decided to remove Grandmother Fa from the story, but instead, it did add a sister to her story. It was an interesting decision to make, and one that didn't necessarily work. While having a sister was a beneficial change, removing Grandmother Fa wasn't.
She's a wise character who helps Mulan out a lot in the original, being one of the only family members who firmly believes in her, actually pushing Mulan to be herself, rather than what she is expected to be by others.
5 Stopping Her Being Executed
Throughout the movie, it is made clear that lying in the army will not result in death, instead, it will result in bringing dishonor to the family. Because of that, when it is revealed that she is a woman, Mulan is simply told to leave, which isn't the case when it comes to the animated movie.
Initially, in the animated movie, Mulan is set to be executed because of her lie, and Shang Li goes against it because he has feelings for her. That moment is much more impactful and full of heart, which is something that the live-action movie would have benefited from having.
4 Shan-Yu
Shan-Yu is one of the most legitimately intimidating villains in Disney history, with his size and creepy presence being something that a lot of people found very scary. Certain elements were kept, with the witch often transforming into a bird, which Shan-Yu often had on his shoulder.
However, the main villain, Bori Khan was just nowhere near as scary or as interesting as Shan-Yu was. This was one change that wasn't really needed, and keeping him in his original format would have been fine.
3 Lucky Cricket
The lucky cricket in the animated version of Mulan, known as Cri-Kee is a fun supporting character that helps Mulan out at various points. He's not a massive character and does bring some nice elements of comedy into the movie and that's something that the live-action would have benefited from at points.
Because he's only a very small character, it wouldn't have made a big impact on the movie overall. Therefore this would have been a nice nod to the original movie, without having too much of a change on the story that was told.
2 The Pole Climb
During the training segment of the live-action, Mulan and the rest of the army were made to carry buckets of water up a large hill, which was clearly a nod to the pole climb from the animated movie. But, why couldn't that have original scene have just remained in the first place?
The pole climb was the moment Mulan really proved herself. There's no real reason that this one couldn't have worked as a scene in the live-action, as it would have made perfect sense and been very fitting of the training regime.
1 The Music
While not every element of Mulan's soundtrack would have worked in this movie, the two most iconic songs, "I'll Make A Man Out Of You," and "Reflection" could easily have been put into it. Obviously, having the characters burst out into song wouldn't have fit the tone here, but that doesn't mean they couldn't have been put in.
There's a small instrumental section of "Reflection" when Mulan decides to reveal her true identity, but why couldn't there have been some singing over the top? This is one of Disney's most iconic songs, and it would have worked perfectly well in the live-action.
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