10s Movie Review - Moana

Director: Ron Clements, John Musker
Genre: Fantasy/ Animation/ Musical
Runtime: 113 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: Auli’I Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Rachel House, Temuera Morrison, Jemaine Clement, Nicole Scherzinger, Alan Tudyk, Oscar Knightley, Troy Polamalo, Puanani Cravalho, Louise Bush

Description: In Ancient Polynesia, when a terrible curse incurred by the Demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) reaches Moana's island, she answers the Ocean's call to seek out the Demigod to set things right.

Review: Disney is planning to bring a lot of classic animations to life in the form of real-action. But luckily we also get to meet new heroes and heroines. We meet Moana, the daughter of a Polynesian tribe leader. She goes on a quest for demigod Maui, to save her island.
Disney explores another new cultural background and adds a new heroin to the Disney universe. Moana is a strong and independent young woman, who can easily take care of herself. She fights, sails and leads. A modern ideal in comparison with the classic princess, who simply falls hopelessly into prince charming’s arms. And talking about knights in shining armors, who is looking for romance, “Moana” is not that film. The focus is on the adventure and that’s nice for a change!
It’s not only because of the emancipation and the modern roles that makes “Moana” fit in this modern world we live in now. It also kills all the stereotypes. Moana actually has curves and is a believable character.
I’m glad Disney changes the standards from time to time. They did create heroic female leads before, like in “Mulan” and “Brave”. And “Moana” is a great addition to the list. It looks beautiful, which isn’t a surprise with Disney. It’s such a colorful and vibrant film. It has great action scenes, but it does miss a villain. The humor is also solid and the songs are catchy and well written (by Lin-Manuel Miranda).
There are some moments where “Moana” goes back to the predictable Disney territory and it does miss a bit of spirit here and there.
A great new recipe, different in a good way.

Rating: 4 / 5