Disney’s live action “Mulan” was criticized for failing to portray female empowerment and included background shots of Xinjiang, where Uighurs live under repression and mass internment.

I found the bird witch Xianniang the most developed and interesting character in the movie. This powerful qi-wielding warrior was an outsider in her own land and even in her own army. Her designation as a “bad guy” seemed like a lackluster typecasting of a female villain in a film that’s supposed to be about female empowerment.