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Prepare for battle! In this pulse-pounding training anthem from Disneyâs Mulan, Captain Li Shang rallies a rag-tag group of recruits with bold commands to be âplus violent que le cours du torrentâ and âplus puissant que les ouragans.â On the surface it is a classic montage song: soldiers learn to shoot arrows, scale poles, and harden their resolve before facing the Huns. Beneath the booming drums, however, hides Mulanâs secret. Disguised as a man, she must meet Shangâs tough standards while proving that courage and discipline are not limited to any one gender.
The repeated refrain about becoming âreal menâ pokes at rigid ideas of masculinity. Each boastful lineâbe fiercer than torrents, hotter than volcanoesâhighlights societyâs narrow expectations, only to be quietly subverted by Mulanâs success. By the end, the message is clear: true strength comes from balance, ingenuity, and heart, not just brute force. The song turns a lesson in martial arts into a celebration of self-belief and the power of redefining what it means to be a hero.