Let’s get the obvious out of the way first: No, it’s not as good as the first film. Yes, it can easily be written off as a cash grab. Hell, Disney would have been foolish not to make this movie, given how much of a juggernaut the first film is on Disney+. However, if you decide to stow your cynicism aside, I assure you, Moana 2 is a pleasant enough follow-up to Moana, and worthy of the legitimate theatrical release it received.
There was a lot working against Moana 2. As excited as everyone was for it, given the goodwill of the first film, it was originally intended to be a Disney+ series. Upgrading it to a theatrical release meant potentially cramming about six hours of storytelling into less than two hours. The original legendary directors, John Musker and Ron Clements (The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Hercules, Moana), were not returning. Lin-Manuel Miranda wasn’t returning to do the music (instead he is inexplicably doing music for Mufasa). It wasn’t looking good overall.
Which is why it’s such a pleasant surprise to say it’s not bad! Even if it’s not a masterpiece, this isn’t the disaster it could have been. Moana 2 is much better than recent Walt Disney Animated fare like Wish or Strange World (does anyone even remember that one?). Though it’s hardly ambitious, and fails to live up to their best, it’s perfectly acceptable.
The storyline for this one finds Moana, older and now the official Wayfinder for Motunui, ready to seek out other people across the ocean. She receives a vision that if the village does not connect with others, it will wither and die. And so, she must set out to find a sunken island called Motufetu, and set foot on it to connect all other lands together through the ocean. Unfortunately, the island is cursed by an angry god, called Nalo, who wishes to destroy humanity, guarding the territory with fierce storms. It’s up to Moana, Pua, Heihei, and a new crew of sailors to find Maui, salvage Motufetu, and break the curse of Nalo before it’s too late.
As with the first film, Moana remains one of the best Disney protagonists to date. Actress and brilliant vocalist, Auliʻi Cravalho seamlessly returns to the role that made her a star. She is just as fierce, determined, and confident as ever – even more so. And it’s great to see this badass character take on so many monsters and treacherous challenges, and come out sailing through. There’s admittedly not a whole lot of growth for this character emotionally. She’s still as strong as she was in the first film. But narratively she “levels up,” as Maui (Dwayne Johnson) puts it, and because of our affections for her and Cravalho’s performance, we accept and celebrate it.
Moana’s chemistry with Johnson’s Maui is obviously the greatest selling point in the film. And Johnson, like Cravalho, hasn’t missed a step in his performance, delivering a heaping of delightful charisma and comedic timing with every line delivery. The thing that probably could have elevated the film would have been introducing a bit more tension into their friendship, as they did the first film. However, things between the two seem relatively status quo, with Maui essentially being around to do fun superhero stuff, and give Moana a much needed pep talk. Again, the movie could have benefitted from stronger character growth with him as well.
Between the two characters, I’m just not really sure what either of their arcs are. The film doesn’t really do much to progress these characters. Moana had clearly defined arcs for both characters, who grow significantly as a result of their time with one another and the voyage they take. Moana 2 really ends up being just a series of adventures that they get through. If the movie’s main arc for Moana is that she has to learn to get lost a little, that’s a pretty terrible one, and essentially pretty glossed over in a single musical sequence. There simply could have been more to do with these two characters but the movie doesn’t really challenge them the way we saw Riley and her emotions growing from Inside Out 2 – the most recent example of how to properly evolve your characters for an animated sequel.
Further emphasizing a downgrade in character building is Moana’s new crew. She’s accompanied this time by three new faces. There’s raft engineer Loto (Rose Matafeo), farmer Kele (David Fane), and historian Moni (Hualālai Chung). Sadly I must confess there’s not a lot to these characters outside of comic relief. They’re likable enough, and never obnoxious. But I can’t help but feel this may have been one of the elements they were looking to flesh out further in the series, but traded off for the sake of condensing things into the 100 minute film. I can’t say that wasn’t a good decision, but I do wish they did more with the characters other than using them as tools to help Moana get from one function to the next.
That said, the animation and the action sequences Maui and Moana are thrusted into are truly a spectacle to behold. It makes me incredibly grateful that this ended up becoming a feature film with a higher budget than a niche Disney+ show with potentially worse animation. The money and time they poured into bringing incredible sequences, like the climactic battle between Moana, her crew, and the fierce waves of Nalo, was quite worth the spectacle. There’s also some design work involving some incredible monsters and sequences involving a giant clam, and some fierce looking eel-type creatures attacking Moana, Maui, and the crew that absolutely needs to be commended.
Probably the biggest scene stealers in the film are the adorably compassionate Simea (Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda), Moana’s baby sister, Pua and Heihei (of course), and new member, Kakamora-warrior Kotu. Kotu is a little badass, armed to the teeth with neurotoxin darts. The little coconut saved the crew more times than anticipated. We find out a bit more about the Kakamora tribe as a whole in this installment, and the film and franchise benefit from it overall.
Breaking down what should be the greatest asset in the film, as it was for the first film, let’s discuss the music. Definite downgrade. While the tunes written by TikTokers and Grammy winners Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear are pleasant enough in the moment, they simply never reach the iconic levels of Miranda’s work in the first film. Upon hearing “How Far I’ll Go,” you knew it was a sweeping epic classic. The way Miranda plays with rhythms and rhymes, bucking the conventions of what we expect from a Disney musical at the time carried over into greater successes like Encanto‘s “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” and “Surface Pressure.” Barlow and Bear’s work feels like it’s trying desperately to recapture that magic, but ends up coming off sounding like a hollow imitation of Miranda’s work. The signature song of the sequel, “Beyond” is meant to be empowering, but it’s somewhat melodically unpleasant, feeling more like a dower and lacking the same purpose as “How Far I’ll Go.”
Miranda has the benefit of his years and experience on Broadway, knowing and understanding what the tropes of making a great musical are, from the traditional “I want” songs, to the “Refusal of the call” song. It’s because of that knowledge that he can play with the tropes and create internal purpose for the characters with the song’s lyrics and melody; not just progressing the story, but the characters themselves. This is something Barlow and Bear seem to be lacking in. Songs like the unfortunately named “Can I Get a Chee-Ho” and “What Could Be Better” may seem “Miranda”-ish with some relatively decent rapping from the cast. However, they’re hardly memorable, and seem explicitly created just to fill the soundtrack and kill runtime. It speaks volumes that I had to look up the song titles to talk about them, because immediately after the credits rolled I had forgotten them.
On the plus side, however, from a representation standpoint, the film introduces much more about the mythology behind the Pacific Islander folklore that made the first film a classic. There are more gods, more creatures, and even a few rituals and realms that make the world feel richer and more lived in. They also pay fitting tribute to the Pacific Islander customs and communities, further educating non-members with what those customs are, what they represent, and why they have meaning to the members of the community. Given the nature of the country and the world today, where let’s be frank, folks are using POCs as scapegoats for their problems, and protesting against the idea of actual tolerance and representation, this is something we absolutely need today from a cultural perspective.
I am struggling to find any real purpose in Moana 2 existing other than ticket sales. And I wish this was something the studio focused on before retooling it and rushing it into production. Even if we were to consider that Moana 2 expands the world, the purpose behind that just further emphasizes a cynical cash-grab nature for the franchise, because Disney is merely saying “you’re getting more sequels so we can take more of your money.” We understand Disney Animation absolutely needs a win, and it’s pleasant enough that they’ll get one with Moana 2. That said, I certainly hope they’ll put more thought into the next installment than they did with this one. It’s a perfectly fine movie, and an acceptable follow up. It’s just one that rarely goes “Beyond.”
7.5/10
Moana 2 is in theaters November 27, 2024
Photos © 2024 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
About the author: When not saving the world from apocalyptic circumstances, Mike Manalo is a mild-mannered freelance reporter passionate about attending comic cons, premieres, and screenings. Hobbies include being obsessed with comics, movies, and all things nerdy!
