You're so good at dissecting movies! I didn't even notice the things you said about Mulan and those other Disney movies! I missed so much when I was a kid! LOL! Girl, what the HECK?!

That’s my favourite aspect of film– noticing all the little details that make them extraordinary! Here are a few other titbits you might have missed from Mulan when you were a kid:

When Mulan takes her father’s armour and spooks her horse, she mouths the words “是我” (pronounced shi wu), which is Chinese for “it’s me”.

Near the end of the movie, when Shan Yu chases Mulan to the roof, the two men who yell in concern are the same two men who ignored Mulan when she entered the city. The woman in the corner is also one of the women from the Matchmaker sequence.

The Emperor was voiced by Pat Morita, who played the famed Mr. Miyagi in the 1984 hit classic The Karate Kid. One of the reasons why the Emperor speaks in metaphors, was to pay homage to the character of Miyagi, who taught Daniel karate using mostly metaphors.

Much of the calligraphy on the tombstones in the shrine are actually the names of many of the staff members who worked on the movie.

When I was a child and saw the movie in theatres, I heard a lot of people asking why Mulan was bleeding after the avalanche. Apparently a lot of people think it was caused by the avalanche itself, and that she cut herself when she was being dragged down the mountain. In actuality, it’s because Shan Yu slashes at her after she fires the canon and clips her side; which means she saved Shang and fought through the avalanche all while severely wounded.

The reason why Chi-Fu hates Shang, is because he believes Shang was given the role of Captain due to nepotism. At one point in the movie, when Shang and Chi-Fu are arguing, Chi-Fu says, “Be careful, Captain. The General may be your father, but I am the Emperor’s Council. And by the way, I got that job on my own.”

Chi-Fu is voiced by James Hong, a self-proclaimed feminist who wanted to be a part of the movie for his daughter, April.

When Mulan hugs the Emperor, Yao promptly asks, “Is she allowed to do that?” The answer, of course, being no. A big no. The ULTIMATE no. No one was allowed to casually touch the Emperor in ancient China, least of all a woman. But no one cares, including the Emperor himself, who embraces the hug. This is supposed to symbolise how much Mulan impacted society. The point being that no one should tell a woman what she’s “allowed” to do.

Mulan’s horse’s name is Khan, which may be a reference to Genghis Khan, a famous Mongolian Hun. In addition, Khan technically belongs to Mulan’s father, Fa Zhou, who was a respected war hero. This means Khan is also likely a warhorse, which explains why he understood warlike commands and activities so well.

The movie makes several “cross-dresser” jokes that may have gone over your head as a kid. Mushu also makes a couple.

The Grandma is the only character with colour in her eyes. I don’t know why, but I thought it was a neat little titbit.

At the end of the movie, Mulan’s father supports her decision to be with Shang, despite it being established at the beginning of the movie that her marriage was supposed to be arranged. This is yet another nod to Mulan’s newfound freedom.

A possible mistake in the movie: when Mulan and her friends dress up as concubines to distract the Huns, Mulan’s fan is green. But later, when she’s on the roof with Shan Yu, her fan is yellow.

The end credit song, “True to Your Heart” by Stevie Wonder, perfectly encapsulates the message of the film. If you listen to the lyrics, the song encourages making good decisions for yourself, not letting anyone control you, and, of course, being true to who you are.

When fighting the Huns who are guarding the door, Ling uses the chin attack to defeat his enemy. This is the throwback to an earlier part in the movie, when he failed to use it.

One of the jokes my sister missed as a kid was when Chi-Fu yells, “Order! Order!” The men then proceed to order different types of food from typical Asian cuisine. It kills me every time. XD

The day after Mulan joins the army, we see her tent setup, and it’s horrible. Sunken, deflated, tied to a tree– a clear indicator that she has no idea what she’s doing. I personally like this because it gives the movie a sense of realism. Mulan comes from a high social status family, and therefore would have been taught very feminine things. Naturally, she wouldn’t know how to fight or pitch a tent, etc. During her training, we also see her fail multiple times. This completely shatters the idea of her being a Mary Sue, because she isn’t perfect and she worked hard to become a good soldier.

Mulan and her friends wear the colours of the four elements. I can’t say for sure, but this is possibly a reference to the Chinese belief that while different, all four elements must work together for the world to function. This theory of mine is also supported by parts in the movie that pertain to each element. For example, during training Yao gets shot by a flaming arrow, but later runs through them effortlessly. Also during training, Chien-Po mentions he can’t sim, but later on happily dives into a pond, creating a giant wave. Ling is light and fast like the wind, which could be why he fails to break the brick during training. But later, he uses his speed to successfully chop it in half. Mulan wears green, the colour for earth, and causes the avalanche that destroys the Hun army. The colours also match their personalities, especially when it comes to Po, Ling, and Yao. Like a raging fire, Yao has an issue with his anger. Chien-Po is calm but powerful, like water. Ling is carefree and nimble. Just a theory.

Throughout the movie, Mulan always depends on her intelligence to outsmart her enemies. She tricks Yao, Ling, and Chien-Po when they chase her through the tent, she shoots the peak of the mountain to cause the avalanche that buries the Huns, she devises the plan to dress her friends as women so the Huns don’t suspect they can fight, and she outsmarts Shan Yu by leading him to the roof of the palace. The movie therefore pushes the message that intelligence is always better than brute force.

Every character in the film is out to help themselves. Her friends hope that joining the army will help them impress a woman, Shang expresses his wish to be known the greatest Captain in the history of China, and Mushu only cares about being reinstated as a guardian. Mulan is the only character whose motives don’t express personal gain.

During the “Girl Worth Fighting For” song, some of the animation resembles Chinese brush paintings, which is absolutely beautiful.

When the canon accidentally goes off, “giving away” the army’s position, it likely went off because the carriage was shot by a flaming arrow. Meaning the Huns already knew where they were.

In Chinese culture, the lily, lotus, or orchid symbolises marriage and a happy union. When Mulan leaves her lotus comb behind, I believe it symbolises her nonconformity.

What's your favorite part of Mulan?

That’s definitely a two part answer. You may think it’s the part where she cuts her hair to take her father’s place, or causes the avalanche that buries the Huns, or saves the Emperor and defeats Shan Yu– but no. Though all close seconds, my favourite part is a two part interaction with her father.

The first part is at the beginning of the movie, after her supreme debacle with the matchmaker. She’s so ashamed of herself that she won’t even let her father look at her. When he sits down next to her, she pulls away and hides under her hair.

However, instead of a lecture about her failure, Fa Zhou uses an analogy to comfort her and pins her hair back.

Letting her know it’s okay to face him.

But a little later on he says some very hurtful things to her:“Mulan, you dishonour me,” and, “I know my place! It is time you learned yours.”

At the end of the movie, under that same cherry blossom tree, you can see the pain and regret on his face, as all he thinks about is her safe return. Disney actually does a fantastic job capturing his guilt and sorrow. For all he knew, his daughter could’ve been dead, and the last thing he said to her was that she was a disappointment.

Then, when he sees her for the first time in likely a year or two (significantly longer if you go by the actual tale), he’s overcome with happiness, shock, and relief.

Mulan, on the other hand, can only focus on presenting him with gifts. She bows and offers the sword of Shan Yu and the Crest of the Emperor, which, in Chinese culture, is an honour I can’t even begin to express. To put it into perspective, these items would ensure the Fa family’s fortune, future, and high social standing for decades, if not centuries. In ancient China, objects were often more valued than actual people, especially when compared to a woman.

So when her father tosses the gifts aside like they’re nothing but trash, and drops to his knees, despite the pain in his bad leg, it really hits home. To me, it’s the most beautiful moment in the whole movie.

Then, he flat out tells her that having her for a daughter is the greatest gift and honour. He doesn’t care about swords or medallions or his image– he cares about her.

Bonus: I’m also quite fond of the part where the Emperor points out Shang’s stupidity and literally spells out–

I had a good, ugly laugh over that line. XD