1. 9April 7, 2015 A&EBeacon
BEHREND
The
PAIGE MOLDOVAN
copy editor
Get excited 90’s kids, Walt Disney’s 1998 animated musical action-comedy-
drama film “Mulan” is returning to theaters.
It has been confirmed that Disney has ordered a script for a live-action movie
of the popular film. “Mulan” was first released in June 1998 as an animated film,
and it ran in United States theaters for 87 minutes and earned an estimated
$304.3 million at the box office. The popular family film was also praised after
earning Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations.
The animation was adapted from the story of Chinese legend Hua Mulan and
the film is plotted around the main, and fictional character, Fa Mulan. In the film,
Fa pretends to be a male so she can take her father’s place in the war, ultimately
becoming a hero. Not only was the film made enjoyable because of its heartfelt
plot and characters, but “Mulan” also produced a catchy soundtrack as well. The
film’s soundtrack was credited for boosting the career of music sensation Chris-
tina Aguilera, after she recorded the hit “Reflection” for the movie. Aguilera went
on to release her first album shortly after, which included the “Mulan” hit. “Mu-
lan” became a Disney hit after its release, and “Mulan II,” a direct-to-video sequel
followed in 2005.
“The Hollywood Reporter” was the first to report on March 30 that Disney
has expressed the detailed interest in a live action and 3D adaptation of “Mulan.”
Although cast members and crew have not yet been reported, fans of the 1998
hit have already started campaigning for who they would like to see star in the
newly anticipated film. Many fans have expressed their wish for Ming-Na Wen,
who voiced the original character for Fa Mulan, to star once again as the film’s
main heroic character. After the announcement and opinions of fans, Wen tweeted
“Wow, so many tweets to @Disney announcement for a live-action #Mulan.
Thank U4 wanting me 2B in the film. Tweet @DisneyPictures about it! Xo.”
No announcements have been made as to when the film is set to begin shoot-
ing or when it will be released, but no doubt, fans will be waiting and watching for
information intently.
Mulan to
grace the big screen
It’s ride or die time folks; “Furious 7” is finally here.
“Fast Five” delivered a fair share of thrills while
“Fast & Furious 6” was a flaming ball of insanity. With
that, the previous movies created high expectations
for “Furious 7.”
There were two questions that I had going into the
seventh installment of the series. First, would “Furi-
ous 7” find a way to top the sixth movie? Secondly,
how would they send off Paul Walker and his charac-
ter Brian O’Conner? James Wan, the movie’s director,
managed to deliver a high octane, sentimental experi-
ence.
The storyline of “Furious 7” is all about family and
revenge. Recall Shaw from “Fast & Furious 6,” who
was the evil criminal mastermind who led a team of
mercenaries. It turns out he has a brother, Deckard
Shaw, who is played by action movie badass Jason
Statham. He’s out for revenge for what Dominic Tor-
retto (Vin Diesel) and his crew did to his brother.
After injuring Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) at his own
headquarters, Deckard then moves on to Tokyo to
take out Hans. He even proceeds to plant a bomb at
O’Conner’s house, which they narrowly avoid. This is
enough for Dom to assemble his team because no one
messes with his family.
Statham does a great job at playing the menacing
assassin-like character of Deckard. It’s a shame that
the movie treated him like a mere distraction. Later on
in the movie, the next battle Dom and his team have
to face is revealed. The technology called “God’s Eye”
is the big piece that is the root of all conflict in the
plot. It’s a device that allows the user to tap into every
camera in the world in order to find anyone they are
after. This technology takes all of the challenge out of
a manhunt.
In all honesty, it is hard to really care about the
overall plot when the high-speed races and the intense
stunts are what we watch these movies for. “Furious
7” doesn’t give us massive set piece moments like
the crazy airstrip scene in the previous movie, but it
manages to deliver non-stop thrills over the movie’s
140-minute runtime. Cars are being dropped out of
planes as well as driven out of skyscrapers. In addi-
tion, we also get to see street fights and races through
Los Angeles. Suspension of disbelief is required,
because the movie knows it is not rooted in reality. It
undoubtedly takes stunts to extreme levels of un-
believability.
The movie manages to press hard on the gas pedal,
but it does slow down for a few sentimental moments.
As previously mentioned, the movie gives a nice send-
off for not only Brian O’Conner, but actor Paul Walker
himself.
The actor’s death came during the production of
the movie, but they managed to use his two brothers,
old footage and CGI to fill in the blanks. There were
some instances where we saw Walker’s face obscured,
or his back to the camera, but the directors did a good
job working with what they had.
The ending took me by surprise, and it actually
pulls pretty hard on the heart-strings. I didn’t know
what to expect going into the movie, but I was pretty
satisfied with how they said goodbye to Walker. Over-
all, James Wan and Universal Studios did a great job
at handling the actor’s death.
The “Fast and Furious” movies continue to out-do
themselves, and “Furious 7” is no different. While the
movie gets ridiculous at some points, almost laugh-
ably so, that is the theme which remains withheld
throughout the series. “Furious 7” hints at the possibil-
ity of another sequel, but that decision is in the hands
of the directors.
at it again
NICK DEMARCO
staff writer
In a recent preview for upcoming episodes of “Keeping
Up With the Kardashians,” Scott Disick, Kourtney Kar-
dashian’s longtime boyfriend, makes a comment regarding
the couple’s - at the time - unborn son. Disick jokes around
with Kim Kardashian, who is currently suffering from fer-
tility issues, by suggesting she can “have [their] baby when
he gets here in two weeks.”
Disick is probably glad Kim did not take him up on the
offer because Reign Aston Disick is simply adorable. Kar-
dashian and Disick welcomed their third child just before
Christmas on December 14, and somehow the Kardashian
clan has managed to keep Reign out of the public eye since
his birth about four months ago.
Kourtney released the first photo of the baby boy earlier
this month via Instagram. The 35-year-old mother posted
an image of her son lying on a fuzzy white rug in a Misty
Grey onesie with the caption “My little turtle dove angel
baby boy Reign Aston Disick.”
Rumor has it Disick was not happy with Kardashian for
releasing a photo of Reign via Instagram because there
were various magazine offers the couple considered. How-
ever, she changed her mind on working with the tabloids
because she is not interested in “selling” her children to the
media.
Kardashian has spent some time out of the limelight to
take care of the couple’s new baby. She refuses to hire a
nurse or help of any sort and prefers to care for her chil-
dren herself.
In a recent interview, she told E! News, “I take two
months off and no one is allowed to bother me or talk to
me about anything work-related—or maybe three months
this time.”
Kardashian family fans can tune into E! on Sundays at
9 p.m. for more details on the birth of Reign and all their
other drama.
AMANDA CERMAK
copy editor
Baby Disick: Let him Reign
Review
Photo:popsugar.com