MOANA 2
(directors: David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, Dana Ledoux Miller; screenwriters: Jared Bush, Dana Ledoux Miller; editors: Michael Lewis Hill/Jeremy Milton; music: Abigail Barlow, Emily Bear, Mark Mancina, Opetaia Foa’i; cast: Auli’I Cravalho (voice-Moana), Dwayne Johnson (voice-Maui), Temuera Morrison (voice-Chief Tui), Nicole Scherzinger (voice-Sina), Rose Matafeo (voice-Loto), Hualālai Chung (voice-Moni), David Fane (voice-Kele), Rachel House (voice-Gramma Tala), Alan Tudyk (voice-Heihei), Awhimai Fraser (Matangi), Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda (voice-Simea); Runtime: 100; MPAA Rating: PG; producers: Christina Chen, Yvett Merino; A Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures; 2024)
“It’s a zesty mid-level Disney family film whose stunning visuals should appeal to the kiddies more than to their demanding parents, who may want a story that makes more sense.”
Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz
The follow up film to Moana (2016) is a lesser film, as it goes from magical to mundane. If it impresses, it’s mostly through the quality of its excellent animation and maybe by a few catchy Polynesian songs (courtesy of Abigail Barlow & Emily Bear, but they are not as good as the Lin-Manuel Miranda songs from the original). Also, its cobbled together story pulls it in the wrong direction with false stoppages and too many missed opportunities.
It’s directed in a so-so way by David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller. The writers are Bush and Miller.
The overtaxing plot has the evil storm god Nalo as the villain, who sinks the hidden island of Motufetu which connected all the other islands. This impels the adventurous island wayfinder and ocean lover Moana (voice-Auli’i Cravalho, the Hawaiian actress), who has a great singing voice, to adventure again three years after returning from her last adventure in the Heart of Te Fifi, to go on a long journey to the foreign land of Kakamora to correct this foul deed. She travels there with her crew of the Maui fanboy storyteller of the legends Moni (Hualālai Chung), the thoughtful and cheerful Loto (Rose Matafeo), and the reluctant grumpy farming expert elder Kele (David Fane). Also along for the ride are the farm animal skinny rooster Heihei (Alan Tudyk) and the small pig pua.
Moana reunites with the demigod Maui (voice-Dwayne Johnson), who sings through a conch shell “Can I Get a Chee Hoo?” If he can only use his powers to raise the island (whatever the hell that means!), Moana can restore it by touching it. If Moana fails, the residents on the island might perish.
On Kakamora, in the land of the coconut pirates, the saviors encounter the mysterious acerbic bat lady, Matangi (Awhimai Fraser), who imprisons Moni and sounds the alarm for the travelers to “get lost, cut loose, and lose your way.”
Its main faults are that the jokes aren’t funny, the quality of songs don’t match those of the original, and the story fails to generate much tension. Yet it’s colorful, has a number of action sequences that may be inconsequential but are entertaining, and it’s never boring. It’s a zesty mid-level Disney family film whose stunning visuals should appeal to the kiddies more than to their demanding parents, who may want a story that makes more sense.
REVIEWED ON 12/11/2024 GRADE: C+