Recycling continues apace
at Walt Disney, where nary an animated feature --
classic or contemporary -- is too sacrosanct to be
reconstituted as a direct-to-vid sequel. Some of
these toon retreads have been instantly forgettable,
and a few have been memorable for all the wrong
reasons. But "Mulan II," now playing at a videostore
near you, earns high marks as one of the more
satisfying small-screen spin-offs. Expect brisk
sales, extended shelf-life -- and, down the road,
maybe additional installments.
In the original
"Mulan"
(1998), the title character donned a male disguise
to prove her mettle as a world-class warrior while
saving ancient China from hordes of Huns. There's no
similar gender-bending in the sequel, which
reintroduces Mulan (again voiced by Ming-Na) as
she's preparing to marry the heroic and hunky Shang
(B.D. Wong), her very own Prince Charming. But Mulan
still manages to strike another blow for women's
equality when she and Shang are ordered to escort
three daughters of the Emperor (Pat Morita) to a
neighboring province.
The young women (Lucy
Liu, Lauren Tom and
Sandra Oh) are supposed to marry three
sons of the province's ruler, thereby solidifying a
strategic military alliance. Once they're on the
road, however, the girls just want to have fun. More
important, they also want to hook up with three
rough-and-tumble comrades -- Yao (Harvey Fierstein),
Chien-Po (Jerry Tondo) and Ling (Gedde Watanabe) --
who have rejoined forces with Mulan and Shang.
Not surprisingly, Shang strongly disapproves of
fraternizing between his raucous soldiers and the
royal sisters. But Mulan encourages the girls to
disregard their father's plans for arranged
marriages and be loyal to their hearts instead.
Capably co-directed by Lynne Southerland and
Darrell Rooney, "Mulan II" boasts a consistent level
of eye-pleasing animation that, while certainly not
up to
theatrical
standards, isn't obviously ( or distractingly)
pinch-penny, either. The storytelling is engaging
and sporadically exciting, the original songs are
pleasant without being treacly, and the sequel as a
whole is sufficiently amusing to entertain audiences
of all ages.
One caveat: Eddie Murphy -- who voiced Mushu, the
heroine's pint-sized, wisecracking dragon companion,
in original "Mulan" -- is conspicuously absent.
(Mark Moseley substitutes as the jivey
fire-breather's voice, and he's quite funny.) But
most other vocal talents from the earlier film,
including Lea Salonga as Mulan's singing voice, are
on hand for repeat performances, and the newcomers
-- including Liu, Tom and Oh -- are welcome
additions to what promises to be an ongoing vidpic
franchise.
