Disney's live-action MULAN adaptation has made itself stand out from the rest well ahead of its release date. The film, although rooted in some fantasy, seems to offer a more realistic and grounded approach that has it doing away with talking animals or the film's signature songs. MULAN is also going to stand out from its live-action counterparts in others ways because the film's MPAA rating has been stepped up a notch in comparison to its predecessors.
The Motion Picture Association of America has handed down a PG-13 rating to MULAN due to "sequences of violence." This will make it the first Disney live-action remake to receive a rating above PG. The last Disney film to be bestowed with a PG-13 rating was PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES back in 2017.
A PG-13 rating is still family friendly enough to ensure that it won't cut out the target audience from checking out the film and it's not likely to really cause much of a box office problem. Warner Bro's. went PG-13 for the final two HARRY POTTER films and DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 1 & 2 made $296.3 million and $381 million, respectively, at the domestic box office. If MULAN proves to be good, the slightly enhanced rating shouldn't be a detriment.
Although some fans have balked at the fact that MULAN won't feature musical numbers or Mushu the talking dragon originally voiced by Eddie Murphy in the animated film, I have to give Disney credit for not making this another retread of the original movie. This take feels more like a fantasy war epic and not just a shot for shot remake like last year's "photo realistic" spin on THE LION KING. The subject matter for MULAN allows for a bit more realism and we'll just have to wait and see if Disney can pull this off without their safety net of just giving us a repackaged version of what we've seen before.
Do YOU think MULAN will benefit from its PG-13 rating? MULAN battles her way into theaters on March 27, 2020
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