It's been two decades since Mulan first astonished audiences with her daring ambitions and yet
she's just as impressive today as she was then.
Mulan remains special, in large part because she paved the way for lots more iconic characters.
Here are just a few of the ways Mulan changed Disney forever.
Superficially, Mulan is the stuff of classic Disney fantasy.
A lonely young woman sets out to pursue her dreams, stumbles a bit, achieves greatness,
and meets a promising romantic prospect.
However, Mulan was Disney's first major attempt at crafting one of their classic musicals
from a singular non-Western source.
Aladdin comes close to this feat, but it was already somewhat known in the English-speaking
world as part of Arabian Nights, and is itself a patchwork of retellings from all over the
Middle East.
Mulan, in contrast, is based on a story from a specific time and place.
While much of the world may not know much about Chinese history or folklore, Mulan is
as much a Disney classic as The Little Mermaid.
Mulan ends with the merest suggestion of romance between our heroine and her prince, or general
in this case.
"Would you like to stay for dinner?"
"Would you like to stay forever?"
"Dinner would be great."
They like each other, that's clear, and have earned each other's respect through feats
of strength and daring moves.
But instead of stamping them as officially married, Disney chose to end their relationship
at its beginning: a first date and the hope for more to come.
Nothing else quite compares in the Disney canon, even today, but plenty of heroines
have followed in Mulan's footsteps.
Moana, Elsa, and Merida evade romance entirely in their respective movies, Anna and Kristoff
end on a kiss in Frozen, and we're informed of Rapunzel and Flynn Rider's marriage in
an ending voice-over in Tangled.
None of these endings might have happened without Mulan and Shang's unique relationship
ambiguity.
In the post-Mulan world, happily-ever-after is largely something a girl builds for herself.
Snow White, Cinderella, and Aurora were kind-hearted heroines with big, bright dreams.
Yet they are also overwhelmingly passive, and they largely bide their time wishing,
waiting, and snoozing as their princes pursue them.
The "Disney Renaissance," kicked off by 1989's The Little Mermaid, established a firm break
with this tradition.
Ariel, Jasmine, and Belle want more than their lives currently offer them.
It's pretty vague beyond that, though, and their lives are often tied up in their love
interests.
But Mulan is different.
She has a specific goal and she achieves it.
She saves her dad, her unit, and her country and then goes home as a national hero.
After Mulan, princesses started to want accomplishments as well as love.
Magic and romance come along for the ride too, but, nowadays, they're not the point
of the entire journey.
Disney movies have always looked incredible.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarves brought storybook illustration to life.
The team behind The Hunchback of Notre Dame incorporated the legendary cathedral's real
attributes into its dizzyingly detailed frames.
Beauty and the Beast used computer animation to make a simple ballroom dance into an unforgettable
climax.
Mulan looked just as good but it was also the first animated Disney feature to incorporate
a specific, non-Western aesthetic into its visuals to tremendous effect.
Animators looked to traditional Chinese paintings for their inspiration, and the results are
clearly on display through much of the film.
That willingness to reach beyond the Western canon would become a Disney staple going forward.
Once upon a time, a Disney princess needed to lose at least one parent.
Sometimes it was symbolic, but usually it was literal.
This loss symbolized their rootlessness in the world and fueled their desire to find
a love interest.
Who needs a wicked stepmother when you can move into the castle?
Mulan, in contrast, has a family that she seeks to protect and return to.
She is anchored in her own life and doesn't need another to abandon herself to.
Nowadays, a Disney princess, even if she does lose a parent, gets to keep hold of her own
past and legacy.
When creating a story rooted in a culture that is not one's own, it's best to let an
expert take the lead.
When it comes to large-scale productions like a Disney movie which employs hundreds of animators,
writers, actors, and editors, that becomes a top priority.
Mulan, in contrast to the long history of missteps in this arena, hired many Asian voice
actors for the film.
Actress Ming-Na Wen won the role of Mulan after her stirring work in The Joy Luck Club,
and BD Wong was chosen to play Shang.
This level of thoughtfulness in casting would become the Disney standard, most recently
evidenced by Auli'i Cravalho, the young Native Hawaiian woman who gave Moana her voice.
Nowadays, a great cast doesn't just give their characters personality, songs, and zippy one-liners
— they give them their roots as well.
Princesses are femininity incarnate, especially when it comes to their looks.
Magical makeovers are common.
A fabulous ball gown often makes an appearance.
Songbirds flock to them.
Mulan charged into all this loveliness like a cannonball.
She is at her most uncomfortable when dolled up for the matchmaker, wiping off the makeup
as she sings of how false all that finery feels on her.
She only truly finds herself once she's in armor with a sword in her hand.
When she returns home as a hero, she wears a simple blue and red gown.
Mulan proved that a Disney heroine can go beyond the bounds of traditional womanhood
and still be beloved by Disney fans worldwide.
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