From trusted sources, I've heard that it's not even at the level of B-movie Chinese dramas.
And they really fuck up the cultural context of Mulan and its feminism - the point of Mulan was that she liked sewing and all that "femme" stuff, and also decided to fight in the war. When she came back from it, she happily wore flowy dresses and things like that again.
The live action movie tried to make it seem like all of Mulan's problems would be solved if she were only a boy.
Like, the fuck. That's not the point???
I really loved the animated Mulan movie, especially as a transwoman and having to do 'boyface' for so many years.
I have not seen the new Mulan movie yet, so I have no idea if it is really any good.
But that doesn't matter, they are totally allowed to just tell another story, and as I see Chinese culture today (admittedly from an outsider perspective), a transmasculine type of narrative is much more radical and necessary.
There are quite rigid gender roles in Confucianism, such that in China being binary transgender is socially more accepted, but being anything non-binary can be more difficult.
There does not have to be one true Mulan story or interpretation. These stories have meaning to many different people for many different reasons.
And I'm pretty sure I've watched a video arguing basically this, possibly Lindsey Ellis, but I'm not sure.
I was going to reply with a long comment, but it got deleted near the end, so here's the short version:
Disclaimer, I am not trying to argue with you or tear you down etc.
Ofc they can tell another story, but I can definitely make the argument that this is a deviation, and not a good one either. I mention culture, because they clearly don't get what "Chi" is, nor the concept of honor in chinese society. Yet they bring it up, incessantly.
I would also say that as a chinese person, it is rather insensitive to say that Chinese culture needs Disney to provide some transmasculine or non-binary narrative, and that non-binary-ness is somehow radical to China. It ignores the very rich and old history of non-binary identities in Chinese mythology. For instance, the most well known Buddhist figures in China is 观音菩萨, or the "Goddess" of mercy in english. They are not explicitly labelled as male or female in chinese, and gender neutral terms are used for them. Their statues, temples, figures, pendants, drawings etc. are everywhere in China. I have several pendants of them myself.
One of the eight immortals in Daoism is 藍采和, who is also very well known for being not explicitly male or female. They were known for touring china, singing philosophical songs, and carrying a basket of flowers. The scene of the eight immortals are also very well known, and a common literary and artistic motif.
Beijing Opera has a whole lot of trans-masculine and trans-feminine roles. For instance, young female roles (但) are often played by men, and male roles (生 and 净) can definitely be played by women. I am not making the argument that these actors ARE trans, but they are definitely queer coded/fluid. A C-drama called winter begonia is about the romance (?) between a guy who plays said feminine roles in Peking opera, and another dude. Apparently, it's pretty good!
So ehhh, I wouldn't say Chinese culture needs non-binary/trans-masculine/trans-feminine narratives. It would certainly be nice to see more, but it is not somehow necessary, nor is it "radical"??
I hope that was informative for you, and again, I'm not trying to attack you.
If you ever log in to this account again, I watched that Mulan movie and have some odd theories about it.
Would like to get input from someone more familiar with Chinese language and culture.
From trusted sources, I've heard that it's not even at the level of B-movie Chinese dramas.
And they really fuck up the cultural context of Mulan and its feminism - the point of Mulan was that she liked sewing and all that "femme" stuff, and also decided to fight in the war. When she came back from it, she happily wore flowy dresses and things like that again. The live action movie tried to make it seem like all of Mulan's problems would be solved if she were only a boy. Like, the fuck. That's not the point???
Also, fuck disney.
I really loved the animated Mulan movie, especially as a transwoman and having to do 'boyface' for so many years.
I have not seen the new Mulan movie yet, so I have no idea if it is really any good.
But that doesn't matter, they are totally allowed to just tell another story, and as I see Chinese culture today (admittedly from an outsider perspective), a transmasculine type of narrative is much more radical and necessary.
There are quite rigid gender roles in Confucianism, such that in China being binary transgender is socially more accepted, but being anything non-binary can be more difficult.
There does not have to be one true Mulan story or interpretation. These stories have meaning to many different people for many different reasons.
And I'm pretty sure I've watched a video arguing basically this, possibly Lindsey Ellis, but I'm not sure.
I was going to reply with a long comment, but it got deleted near the end, so here's the short version: Disclaimer, I am not trying to argue with you or tear you down etc.
Ofc they can tell another story, but I can definitely make the argument that this is a deviation, and not a good one either. I mention culture, because they clearly don't get what "Chi" is, nor the concept of honor in chinese society. Yet they bring it up, incessantly.
I would also say that as a chinese person, it is rather insensitive to say that Chinese culture needs Disney to provide some transmasculine or non-binary narrative, and that non-binary-ness is somehow radical to China. It ignores the very rich and old history of non-binary identities in Chinese mythology. For instance, the most well known Buddhist figures in China is 观音菩萨, or the "Goddess" of mercy in english. They are not explicitly labelled as male or female in chinese, and gender neutral terms are used for them. Their statues, temples, figures, pendants, drawings etc. are everywhere in China. I have several pendants of them myself.
One of the eight immortals in Daoism is 藍采和, who is also very well known for being not explicitly male or female. They were known for touring china, singing philosophical songs, and carrying a basket of flowers. The scene of the eight immortals are also very well known, and a common literary and artistic motif.
Beijing Opera has a whole lot of trans-masculine and trans-feminine roles. For instance, young female roles (但) are often played by men, and male roles (生 and 净) can definitely be played by women. I am not making the argument that these actors ARE trans, but they are definitely queer coded/fluid. A C-drama called winter begonia is about the romance (?) between a guy who plays said feminine roles in Peking opera, and another dude. Apparently, it's pretty good!
So ehhh, I wouldn't say Chinese culture needs non-binary/trans-masculine/trans-feminine narratives. It would certainly be nice to see more, but it is not somehow necessary, nor is it "radical"??
I hope that was informative for you, and again, I'm not trying to attack you.
If you ever log in to this account again, I watched that Mulan movie and have some odd theories about it.
Would like to get input from someone more familiar with Chinese language and culture.