Iria

Perhaps it would have been a better experience in Japanese...

Yes, I know Sailor Moon is one the most popular anime in the world (which reflects upon the average level of human thought). Many known acquaintances of the opposite gender have told me they like it because of the aesthetically-pleasing female characters. Females like it because there's sap, romance (also note that sap and romance do not mean the same thing to me), and that "Oh-I-can-relate-to-Sailor [insert name of planet]" gushy feel-good emotion.

Sure, sure, it *ahem* explores the complex relationships of human individuality (and since when is life not intricate?), and gee golly, don't we all feel happier thinking that we have scintillated our dendrites in such an enlightening and entertaining manner. Few people realize that all the characters are, in fact, stereotyped. Each Sailor *snort* Scout has some outstanding (note, this does not necessarily mean "fantastic") quality that makes them oh-so individual. For example, Mercury is the genius, Moon's the ditz, Rei's the "bitz," etc., and each one of them personally saves the day in some episode or another. And, of course, there's Tuxedo Mask, of whom is studly in every way (excluding his appellation).

Never mind that the same pre-battle sequence (during which the Scouts get to show off their fully developed bodies...did I say they're junior high school students? Kind of like Disney's Pocahontas and the fact that she was 13 when it all happened) plays in every episode...never mind the loops, exaggerated faces (referring to the frequency of the low-quality, minimal work boggle-eyed faces drawn to delineate anger, shame, and hormonal surges), and every other shortcut in animation is incorporated (according to one critic, the studio has one week to draw one episode, but that's basically the same for all the other Japanese anime studios). After all, what counts is the all-consuming plot, so I've heard (but have not deemed that my opinion from what I've seen). That is said more often so that those defending the anime can utilize a spuriously intelligent excuse, as opposed to admitting the foolish subconscious attraction for superficial beauty. Comments, anyone? Please give me a decent argument. I dread those who are unable to express something with depth, such as "It's the best! I loved it! There's so much plot complexity!" Yeah, like I've never heard THAT one before (they never even bother to give a comprehensive justification, either...or for that matter, even a simple definition would suffice. For example, I could say the plot is complex relative to Bananas in Pajamas). Uh-oh, the mob's coming, thrusting their SM paraphernalia. Ta-ta.

The animation wasn't terribly impressive; at times, it seemed too simplistic, with the quality of shading and attention to detail falling drastically short of say, for example, Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King. In addition, I felt that Disney was trying to stereotype and "play into" the Chinese culture too much by trying to imitate Chinese music in some of the soundtracks (which, I might add, weren't that great either. Only "Reflections" I shall acknowledge as being somewhat enjoyable). Mulan's character design is a stereotype in itself. Since when do Asians really have eyes that tilt at almost a 45 degree angle? I realize it might seem like a little thing to get so excited over, but I'm Asian, so I am sensitive to details like that simply because I have been the target of many jokes of that ilk during my adolescence. I also think that Mulan is the most flat-chested Disney human female I've ever seen. Pocahontas, who, historically, was 13 when Smith "discovered" her, was stacked. Of course, there's no stereotype about flat-chested Asians, right (which is entirely a grossly incorrect generalization). Now all I can say is, "Gee, thanks, Disney." I suppose that some credit should be given, because usually a giant corporation will not take risks by exploring a minority group. Yet in doing so, they have only played upon the American society's expectations of what Asian culture means to them, but doesn't necessarily reflect the truth.

At face value, however, Mulan was entertaining enough. Granted, this film is supposed to be for little kids, so hey, why not give some of the music a Chinesy feel to make it all cute. Why not paint Mulan's face entirely white (even though that extent of make-up is used, NOT for matchmaking, but most commonly for Chinese opera). Let's give the public something familiar, but at the same make it seem exotic and make it appear like we really *heh heh* want to explore Chinese tradition for its inherent value, and not to exploit it for our purposes. Mulan is something I'll watch when I have absolutely nothing better to do. Even then, I don't think I'd watch it more than two times. In the words of a previous reviewer, "Excuse me, I have to go watch some Anime now." Go watch Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Since there are so many comments already, I'm sure the ones that I have have already been repeated in other various places, so I'll just point out some visual discrepancies I noticed during the movie.

I will say that the special effects and mecha/landscape/building designs, along with the costumes, were as nice as I had expected them to be. Aesthetically, this is a superior film. However, I am the sort of individual who appreciates plot complexity and depth, so to see a little more character development and less pod-racing probably wouldn't have induced my dozing off during the middle of the film. Even still, I would like to point out some interesting things (note, I have only seen this movie once--in a theatre--so my observations may be flawed!):

1) In the couple of scenes before the beginning of the pod race, Jar Jar is trailing across the sand behind the other characters (I think...it's been a while). It's a wide-angle shot, so he's not really close up or in detail, but the camera's close enough to be able to see Queen Amidala & co. leaving footprints in the sand...but Jar Jar doesn't!

2) That Queen Amidala sure has a nice chrome-colored silver ship. Boy, it reflects everything! The blue sky, the clouds. What a beautiful day to land in Coruscant. Ahh, just staring up into the clear, bright sky that is crowded with other airships, watching the objects weave paths above the city horizon...wow, I wonder what kind of finish Amidala uses on her ship to make it so that only the sky, clear of airborne objects, is reflected.

Like I said, it's been four months since I saw the movie, so I could possibly be inaccurate or utilize inaccurate reasoning (i.e., maybe it was a physics "trick" that enabled Amidala's ship to do what it did). Anyway, the reason why I was so observant on visual effects was because all the other elements of a film failed to maintain my attention. Actually, I don't think anything (besides the visual effects) really even captured my attention in the first place. It seems as if there are those who believe that stunning graphics can compromise plot substance. *yawn* Even trying to come up with other positive points about The Phantom Menace make me sleepy.