Mulan Joins the Army (simplified Chinese: 木兰从军; traditional Chinese: 木蘭從軍; pinyin: Mùlán cóngjūn) is a 1939 Chinese historical war film and is one of several film adaptations of the Hua Mulan (花木兰) legend, a story of a young woman who disguises herself as a man in order to take her father's place in the army. Described as a musical comedy, the film was directed by Richard Poh (Bu Wancang) and stars Nancy Chan (credited as Chen Yunshang) as the title character. The success of the movie was evident by its record-breaking run of 83 days in Shanghai. The screenplay by Ouyang Yuqian, was produced in Shanghai by the Hwa Cheng Studio (華成製片廠), a subsidiary of the Xinhua Film Company.
Plot Hua Mulan, the heroine, is a young maiden who lives with her elderly father during the Tang Dynasty. Mulan is a mischievous girl who is also skilled in martial arts and archery as her father has raised her. After a day of hunting, she tricks some village people from the Li village into letting her go after setting up a ruse for an impossible archery challenge. Upon returning, she learns that her father has been conscripted for the war effort and decides to go in his stead.
On the day of departure, Mulan is followed by two conscripts who take an interest in her. They question her designation and origin among other things before another conscript intervenes but Mulan puts an end to it with a show of humiliation. She stops at an inn and coincidentally sees the latter conscript who introduces himself as Yuandu Liu.
For the next three years, Mulan and Yuandu work together to protect the border from the barbarian army. Yuandu reports to Mulan of a secret assault but says the commander is in denial after becoming complacent leading him to underestimate the enemy. Mulan and Yuandu manage to get approval of a reconnaissance mission to prove the assault. Yuandu and Mulan split up, having disguised a barbarian hunter and women respectively, to find the location of the army. Mulan is eventually stopped by two barbarian guards who she deceives into disclosing their army numbers. After acquiring further proof by dispatching a barbarian messenger she returns and reports directly to the Marshal her findings. The commander, who has been bribed by the enemy generals, refutes her claims saying it is all a decoy. Frustrated and persistent, Mulan continues to make preparations in secret and on the day of the attack, they manage to strategically reclaim their city as the commander is found guilty of being a traitor and is executed.
Returning to the Imperial capital, Mulan is offered a position in the Emperor's court. She turns the position down, asking only to return to her home. Returning to her feminine persona, she then marries Yuandu. After her heroic achievements and brave service to the State, Mulan finally reveals her life as a woman while Liu symbolically restores the conventional male role.
Production and cast members Director: Richard Poh (Bu Wancang) Screenplay: E. C. Ouyang (Ouyang Yuqian) Producer: Zhang Shankun Studio: Huacheng Release Date: 16 February 1939 Duration: 89 minutes
Cast Nancy Chan (Chen Yunshang (陈云裳)) as Hua Mulan (花木兰), the film's heroine Mai Hsi (Mei Xi) as Liu Yuandu (), Mulan's fellow general and eventual love interest. L. K. Han (Han Langen (韩兰根)) as one of the two draftees S. C. Ying (Yin Xiucen ()) as the second draftee C. C. Liu (Liu Jiqun ()) as Liu Ying () C. Z. Chong (Zhang Zhizhi (章志直)) as one of the soldier comrades N. S. Wong (Huang Naishuang ()) as Mulan's sister J. Tom (Tang Jie (汤杰)) as the Military Commander C. L. Hong (Hong Jingling (洪警铃)) as barbarian soldiers Yan Yan (严岩) as the Hunter He Jianfei (何剑飞) as Mulan's Father Wang Di (王蒂) as Mulan's Mother Jiang Xiou (姜修) as the Emperor Ye Xiaozhu (叶小珠) as Mulan's Brother Fu Weilian (傅威廉) as the Marshal
History of the tale of Mulan The story of Mulan first made its appearance in China as an ancient Chinese folk ballad. The story about Mulan, a warrior maiden who battled while dressed as a male soldier and shone, was retold for hundreds of years. The earliest written account of Mulan was in the Northern and Southern Dynasties (years 386–589), in a narrative poem called "Mulan Ci". It was written in the Northern Wei Dynasties, but also included in the Ancient and Modern Music Records of Chen in the Southern Dynasty. Mulan's story has continued to resonate with audiences through the centuries and has been a recurring theme in traditional Beijing opera performances. There are specific parts of the story that are present in its many retellings: a young woman takes the place of her elderly father in war, disguises as a man, serves her country, and returns home with honor and glory to resume her life as a woman. The film “Mulan Joins the Army” has been the subject of extensive historical discourse due to its contentious nature. To secure distribution in areas under Japanese control, the producer negotiated with Japanese authorities. These dealings subsequently fueled allegations that Japanese funding was involved when the film debuted in Chongqing. Nonetheless, the production took place in Shanghai, where it navigated the censorship thresholds of the Shanghai Municipal Council. By blending elements of national resistance with comedic and entertaining undertones, the film managed to cater to the unique tastes of the ‘Solitary Island’ audience while adhering to the expectations of the Shanghai Municipal Council.张杰.援古证今：孤岛古装电影《木兰从军》摄制之滥觞[J].山东工艺美术学院学报, page three 2023,(01):104-106. The story had previously been adapted as two silent films: Hua Mulan Joins the Army (1927) by Tianyi Film Company, and a less successful Mulan Joins the Army (1928) produced by China Sun Motion Picture Company. The 1939 film was also part of a broader wartime Chinese-language film culture. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, Chinese-language films continued to be produced in several regions, including Shanghai, Chongqing, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Manchukuo. Shanghai remained especially active: between 1938 and 1941, studios in the city released 230 feature films, and six new cinemas opened in the Shanghai concessions in 1939. Some people in the film industry referred to 1939 as the "year of cinema".
Production After the Japanese invasion in 1937, film production in Shanghai in the late 1930s was quite difficult, with most of the established talent fleeing to Hong Kong and the interior. One of the remaining production companies, the Xinhua Film Company, hoped to make Shanghai the “Hollywood of the East,” with the release of the costume epic Diao Chan, directed by Bu Wancang. Mulan Joins the Army was produced by Hwa Cheng Studio, which had developed from Xinhua Film Company. Hwa Cheng released twenty-four films in 1939, including Mulan Joins the Army. The film was a huge success, one that Xinhua’s chief Zhang Shankun wished to replicate with a second costume epic.
This film should be addressed with wartime of Shanghai, instead of only a war film that illustrate an ancient historical epic. Considering that this film was produced during Second Sino-Japanese War, Mulan Joins the Army used a well-known heroic figure, encouraged audiences' concern about the contemporary foreign invasion.
Nearly all of Shanghai's big stars such as Jin Yan or Zhao Dan had fled to Chongqing by 1939.Fu, p. 12. Zhang attempted to recruit Hu Die in Hong Kong for his studio's newest venture but failed. While in Hong Kong, however, he managed to sign with the playwright Ouyang Yuqian to pen his film, and Cantonese actress Chen Yunshang to star. Before starring in Mulan Joins the Army, Chen had appeared in more than a dozen Cantonese-language productions and was already known to audiences in South China. Their involvement reflected the movement of film talent between Hong Kong and Shanghai during the wartime period. Zhang very much focused on making the actress a fresh face for Shanghai, and publicity for Chen began before the studio even saw the script.Fu, p. 13.
Ouyang’s original inspiration for the script was drawn from the traditional interpretations of the legend of Hua Mulan, where she takes her own life, as well as his previous works that centred around tragic and oppressed women. Initially, he wanted Mulan to be portrayed as the tragic female heroine “who opposed feudalism". Still, he ultimately infused the film with subtle nationalist undertones and romance, choosing a more uplifting and patriotic approach to raise audience’s spirits in light of the ongoing Second Sino-Japanese War. According to Ouyang, he added plot details based on his research into records from the Ming and Qing dynasty regarding stories of Mulan. Impressed with the script, Zhang and Xinhua invested heavily in both production and publicity of the film. To promote Chen Yunshang, the actress who portrayed Mulan, the studio drew an image of her as a Westernized persona in real life and on-screen.Fitzgerald, Carolyn. "Review of Mulan: Five Versions of a Classic Chinese Legend, with Related Texts ed. and tran. by Wilt Idema and Shiamin Kwa". CHINOPERL Papers, vol. 30, 2011, pp. 267-270. Due to Bu Wancang’s vision of adding gimmicks into the film, Ouyang’s initial intentions were never fully conveyed by the film, and his original script was never released to the public. However, his final script was published a month after the release of the film, and was used by some Chinese travelling theater troupes as wartime propaganda to encourage the masses to take action.
Release Mulan Joins the Army was made during the Second Sino-Japanese War and the so-called Solitary Island period, when the city's foreign concessions remained outside direct Japanese occupation while much of Chinese-administered Shanghai had fallen after 1937. Given the film's subtle patriotism, it proved extremely popular with domestic audiences. Premiering in Shanghai's newest theater, the Astor in February 1939,Fu, p. 11. in time for the Chinese New Year, Mulan Joins the Army ended up being a critical success.Fu, p. 21 It was moreover, a major commercial success, playing to full theaters in Shanghai and remained on-screen for 83 consecutive days. The success even made its lead, Chen Yunshang, into a bona fide star,Hung, p. 72 with Hwa Cheng studio quickly capitalizing on her newfound fame by casting her in two additional musicals. Not only that, but before the release of this film, the movie industry during the isolated island period was rather sluggish. The release of "Mulan Joins the Army" pointed a direction for producers of the time. In the following two years, the emergence of many similar films provided spiritual solace to the people of Shanghai.王群,陈刘昱安.突围、嬗变与觉醒：“孤岛”时期历史古装片《木兰从军》的创作之思[J].西部广播电视,2023,44(02):133-135