Was $30 for Mulan (2020) worth it and the future of movies

Ever since we we first saw the trailer for Disney's live action adaptation of Mulan, we didn't want to get our hopes up.. After being underwhelmed by other Disney live action adaptations, this one looked different but a trailer isn't always an accurate representation of the movie.

In March, at the height of the pandemic, the movie was pushed back which made sense for everyone's safety and now, about six months later, Disney has finally decided to release Mulan (2020) on Disney Plus....for $30...and as long as you're a subscriber.

We get it. Disney wanted to make their money back on the latest adaptation and couldn't do so by releasing it in theaters. It makes sense that it costs to watch the new movie upon release. At the end of the day we probably would have paid about $13 for two people to go see it if it were released in theaters. We have a movie reflection podcast so it made sense to watch and share our thoughts on current movies but we did go back and forth a few times on whether it would actually be worth our money.

Now that theaters are opening back up, we weren't sure if any movie was worth it.

The future of movie theaters

Movie theaters near us open on Friday. But, we're not quite sure we'll be back any time soon.

It's part comfort-level and part enjoying watching movies from our own home. Before the pandemic, we were relatively selective with our movie visits and favored inexpensive matinee times at our favorite AMC theater with the large, comfortable arm chairs.

8 out of 10 times, a movie we go see in theaters, we'll end up buying the movie (Tom still collects hard copies of his favorite movies) so he can watch it again at home. If we haven't seen it in theaters, we typically wait for it to show up on one of the streaming services where we subscribe.

Will movie theaters go out of business?

At the end of the day, we know we're not alone. That's why we have a podcast dedicated to reflecting on movies. So many other people enjoy finding an escape in another world through seeing worlds and characters brought to life on the screen. We dream for more than sometimes life can provide and the greatest trait of movies is to deliver on that, whether we let go of our struggles for a time or find greater meaning.

Once it's safe again, we can't imagine theaters going away completely. We have a large collection of movies we own and appreciate being able to watch them from the comfort of our own home so we might be even more selective about going to see movies from now on but we definitely won't stop entirely.

Was Mulan (2020) worth the $30?

Uncommon opinion here, but as two people who have not ventured into the movie theaters since before Christmas of last year, we were yearning for a piece of epic cinema and Mulan delivered. Mulan 2020 was a visual treat and distinct reimagining of the classic Disney animated feature with the ability to stand apart from its source material.

As long as you're not looking for a shot-for-shot remake of the classic, there's a lot to get out of this movie.

If you've watched it, check out our reflection here:

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