6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
The epic story of the Chinese girl-warrior, Mulan, who fights to defend her father.
Starring: Wei Zhao, Jaycee Cho-Ming Chan, Rongguang Yu, Kun Chen, Jun HuForeign | 100% |
Martial arts | 59% |
Action | 41% |
War | 24% |
Period | 6% |
Romance | 4% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Mandarin: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Mandarin: Dolby Digital 5.1
Cantonese: Dolby Digital 5.1
Mandarin (Traditional), English
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Jingle Ma's "Hua Mulan" a.k.a "Mulan" (2009) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors Panorama. The supplemental features on the disc include director and cast interviews; a gallery of deleted scenes; behind the scenes featurette; making of; the movie theme song; and trailer. In Mandarin, with optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles. Region-A "locked".
Vicky Zhao as Mulan
Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jingle Ma's Mulan arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors Panorama.
The high-definition transfer is relatively strong. Generally speaking, fine object detail is pleasing. Many of the daylight close-ups, for example, look crisp and fresh. Clarity is also pleasing, though I must say that portions of Mulan look somewhat soft, at times even pale. Some were shot that way; other, however, reveal minor noise corrections, which I assume most viewers with larger than 50' screens would probably notice.
Mulan has a very unique color-scheme. Practically the entire film boasts a light blueish tint. Yellow, brown, gray and black are also prominent colors. During a couple of selected scenes, I noticed mild edge-enhancement creeping in, but I don't think that most of you would be bothered by its presence; it is extremely minor. Macroblocking is not an issue of concern. There are no stability issues to report in this review either. Finally, I did not detect any disturbing cuts, scratches, warps, debris, or stains. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).
There are three audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1 and Cantonese Dolby Digital 5.1. For the record, Panorama have provided optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.
The Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is solid. The bass is potent and punchy, the surround channels used intelligently and the high-frequencies not overdone. As expected, the Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is most impressive during the clashes between Mulan's army and the Rouran tribes. The dialog is clean, crisp and easy to follow. I also did not detect any balance issues with the epic music score to report in this review. All in all, the Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is probably as good as it could possibly be.
I tested a couple of scenes with the Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1 track. However, there is one specific scene - the giant sand storm that hits Mulan's army during the second half of the film - that immediately makes it perfectly clear that the Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1 track is not a match for the Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. Dynamically, the Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1 track does not even come close to matching the intensity of the Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track.
Note: All of the supplemental features are placed on a Region-3 SDVD. Therefore, in order to view them, you must have a Region-Free SDVD player or a Region-Free Blu-ray player capable of playing Region-3 SDVDs.
Movie Theme Song - with footage from the film. In Mandarin, not subtitled in English. (4 min).
Making of - a standard featurette containing raw footage from the shooting of the film and comments from various cast and crew members. In Mandarin, with optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles. (15 min).
Trailer - the original theatrical trailer for Mulan. In Mandarin, with optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles. (3 min).
Director & Cast Interviews - Vicky Zhao, Jingle Ma, Chen Kun, Hu Jun and Jaycee Chan discuss their characters, the message of the film, the legend that inspired it, etc. In Mandarin, with optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles. (40 min).
Behind the Scenes - additional footage from the shooting of the film. In Mandarin, with optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles. (29 min).
Deleted Scenes - a gallery of deleted and extended scenes. In Mandarin, with optional English and Traditional Chinese subtitles. (24 min).
Filled with spectacular battle scenes, Jingle Ma's Mulan should appeal primarily to those of you who like period Asian films where style outweighs substance. The Blu-ray disc herein reviewed, courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors Panorama, looks and sounds good. RECOMMENDED.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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