Disney has gifted Mulan fans with the music video to a new song composed for the live-action remake titled "Loyal Brave True," sung by Christina Aguilera. Mulan is the next upcoming release in Disney's live-action remake craze. Disney+ subscribers can purchase Mulan for $30 starting September 4th, 2020. Fans of the original movie will notice that director Niki Caro has given the remake a more serious and cultural take than the classic. There will be no musical numbers or talking animals (sorry, Mushu.) Additionally, there will be more war and combat scenes.
Releasing Mulan has not been an easy project for Disney. Mulan faced adversity from the start while struggling to cast its leading lady. While many rumors were circulating that Disney planned on casting a white actress to play Mulan, Caro was set on finding a Chinese actress who fit a particular set of criteria. After an unsuccessful round of casting, Caro found Yifei Liu 2 years after casting started pushing back the expected release date. Disney had to push back Mulan's March 9th, 2020 theatrical release date when the pandemic began emerging in the US. After pushing back the date multiple times, Disney decided to backtrack on a theatrical release and settle for streaming to the disappointment of movie theater owners everywhere.
While Mulan has done away with musical numbers, the film will still have a strong soundtrack consisting of new original songs. In addition to a newly-recorded version of "Reflection," Aguilera is singing a new track featured in the movie titled "Loyal Brave True." To generate hype for its September 4th release, Disney has released a music video for the new song starring Aguilera. Caro, the film's director, directed the music video. The video is artistic but straightforward with Aguilera at the foreground and a red background cycling through thematic images.
The video has been met with mixed reactions. The music video itself is flooded with accolades and positive comments. Many fans praised the video's stylistic choices and Aguilera's performance. One fan even noted that this music video was a more enticing sell of the remake than the movie trailer. However, not everyone has raving reviews of the music video. Fans on twitter expressed that "Loyal Brave True" falls flat in comparison to "Reflection." Additionally, they described Aguilera's makeup and outfit as racially insensitive. Others have countered that the elements are a tribute to the film's setting.
Will it be the next "Let It Go"? Not likely. However, it certainly has a place in Mulan. While there are some lightly problematic elements in the video, Aguilera has become an iconic part of Disney's Mulan ever since her first cover of "Reflection," so it's no surprise that Disney has asked her to come back for the remake. Ultimately, the music video serves its purpose of amping up fans for Mulan's Disney+ release and showing that Caro is using the remake as an opportunity to exercise her own take on the classic. Disney+ subscribers can save up and see for themselves on September 4th or wait until the film is available for free.
Source: DisneyMusicVEVO / YouTube, Karen Han / Twitter
