Disney, 2016
Voices of Auli'i Cravahalo, Dwayne Johnson, Rachel House, and Temura Morrison
Directed by John Musker and Ron Clements
Music and Lyrics by Opetaia Foa'i, Mark Mancina, and Lin-Manuel Miranda
In honor of Asian American and Pacific Island Heritage Month, I'm finally taking a look at one of the most recent Disney princess films. Moana came out of Musker and Clements reading about Polynesian mythology and finding many of its stories fascinating, including that of trickster demi-god Maui and the fact that Pacific Islanders once explored many miles away from their homes, finding their way back via their own knowledge rather than European direction systems. They stopped exploring for three thousand years, then returned to it over a thousand years ago. Their own explorations of the real-life Pacific Islands inspired the story of the chief's daughter who breaks with tradition to save her home. How does this tropical fable look now? We begin with two-dimensional animation telling the story of how Maui (Johnson) stole the stone heart of the goddess island Te Fiti and find out...
The Story: Moana (Cravahalo) has heard the call of the sea all her life. Her parents, especially her father Chief Tui (Morrison), want her to stay on the island and focus on becoming Chief. No one's ventured past the island for three thousand years. Only her eccentric grandmother Tala (House) encourages her love of the ocean and desire to explore. It's her grandmother who reveals ancient boats hidden in a cave. Her people were once explorers, searching for new islands across the Pacific.
When the villagers discover that the foliage of the island is dying and fish are disappearing, Moana finally takes off in one of the camacaus from the cave. She's determined to find Maui and restore the goddess island Te Fiti, but it's not easy. Not only does Maui refuse to help, but she has to deal with rough seas, treasure-loving giant crabs, and her own lack of sailing abilities.
The Animation: Among the most gorgeous from any recent Disney movie. The brilliant colors bring life to Moana's village and the blue waters of the Pacific alike. With the ocean as much of a character as the humans and animals, it was important for the animators to really render it realistically. They did a mostly fantastic job. You can see every splash and wave crashing like it would on the real ocean. The stormy seas are particularly realistic (and realistically scary). There's also the neon colors and glittering splashes of Tamatoa the Coconut Crab's hoard in his cave.
The ocean isn't the only well-rendered non-human character in the film. Maui's living tattoos are done in the same 2-D animation as the opening sequence, and they're as expressive and funny as any of the humans. For many critics, the tattoos and their very funny gags stole the show.
The Song and Dance: Disney did everything possible to make sure this was faithful to Pacific Islander culture and heritage. The movie's worth seeing for the rich details alone, from the colorful outfits and feather and shell headdresses worn in Moana's village to the sweeping designs of the camacaus boats to Maui's tattoos that represent every adventure he ever went on and act as his conscience.
Hawaiian teen Cravalho is a delight as Moana. She's smart, brave, and determined, but also a rebellious teenager with a temper who is just finding her place in the world. Johnson's even funnier, spoofing his action-hero image as the cocky trickster demi-god more interested in remaining popular with humans than in Moana or her village. House and Morrison also do well as Moana's encouraging grandmother who acts as her guide and mentor and her stubborn father who wants no one from his village to get hurt, including his daughter.
(I also appreciate that, despite some mild hinting towards the end, they didn't go for the obvious love interest route with Maui and Moana. He's more of a mentor and a big brother to her than a lover, putting the focus on her story where it should be.)
Favorite Number: "Where You Are" is the big opening chorus number, as Tui shows his young daughter the delights and traditions of their village and watches her grow into a young woman. "You're Welcome" is Maui's big number as he shows off those expressive tattoos, brags about his adventures, and tries to get rid of Moana. "Shiny" spoofs the glam rock stars of the 1970's with brilliant neon colors, sparkling treasure on Tamatoa. Jermaine Clement has a great time with his slinky, jangly routine, even as Moana tries her hardest to distract him.
The big one here is the Oscar-nominated "How Far I'll Go," Moana's defining song. She first performs it after her father tells her that she has to stay on the island. She wants so badly to heed that call of the sea...but she also wants to be a good daughter. We hear it again when she finally hears that call and heads out on the ocean for good. She also gets "Know Who You Are" as she realizes why evil lava island Te Ka attacks them and what it truly is.
What I Don't Like: For all the tropical trappings, Moana and her core plot aren't that far removed from other recent Disney action heroines like Mulan, Pocahontas, and Merida whose culture form the basis of their stories. I suspect the derivative story was one of the big reasons the somewhat more original Zootopia walked off with most of the awards and reviews in 2016 and early 2017.
The Big Finale: If your daughter loves those other take-charge Disney princesses, or you're interested in seeing a musical immersed in a unique and colorful culture, you'll want to heed the call of the sea and head out on an adventure with Moana, too.
Home Media: As one of Disney's most recent and popular films, it goes without saying that this is easily found everywhere and in every format.
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