Moana (2026 | US | 116 minutes | Thomas Kail)
For just a quick overview, Moana is a live action remake of a 2016 Disney animated film of the same name. Moana is a chieftess-to-be obsessed with the ocean, yet unable to venture passed the inner reef of her native island at the warning of an overbearing father. As food resources become slim, Moana goes out on a supernatual quest to find a demi-god named Maui and restore the heart of her peoples’ goddess island in the hopes it will also restore her home to it’s natural splendor.
If you haven’t seen the animated version of the film, watching the live action remake wouldn’t be the worst way to introduce yourself to the story, but renting the animated version would probably get you about the same amount of joy. That being said, if this is your story, if they’re portraying your ancestors or if you feel connected to the people on the screen, then the live action film has a stronger sense of that simply because it uses human actors. You do feel more of a connection as a human to the story simply because of that fact.
In my review of the live action Stitch I lauded it’s fun and playful atmosphere and how well it integrated an animated character with live actors. However, I didn’t take that opportunity to discuss the whitewashing of a culture because I was sadly ignorant of that perspective and that’s definitely a failing on my part. So, I wanted to do better this time and look into how Pacific Islanders felt about the characters and the story. I want to add a caveat that any group of people whether it’s employees at a company or a nation of people, are not a monolith. The beauty of human is our diversity even compared to someone who grew up next door, because we are all incredibly unique. Identifying with a paticular culture can offer a sense of belonging, but when that culture is maligned, devalued or simply wiped from history books, it’s important to make sure portrayals do them the justice they deserve. I wasn’t able to interview any folks directly, but discourse I’m seeing online is a general joy at the representation in the story. There are smaller issues here and there (calling the tribal elder a “crazy lady” isn’t great) but overall it gives a voice to a people that deserve to be heard. This refers to the story and the animated series specifically. With the live action film, I want to broach what seemed to be a lack of indigenous folks working in make up, costuming and any other aspect of the film. The more folks connected to the story, the authentic it will feel. I believe they added a bit more indigenous language to the musical parts, but I may just be imaginging that.
As for the live action version of the film, it was fun. Hey Hey the chicken wasn’t cheesy or contrite (probably because it didn’t have any lines, just a lot of squaking), the interactions between Moana (Catherine Laga’aia) and Maui (Dwayne Johnson) felt genuine and even the moving tattoos on the demi-god’s body were silly in the right way and not overdone. The one “complaint” I have is Johnson’s highly overdone costume. I’m not talking about the Polynesian clothing, I’m talking about the muscle suit. That’s right, they added fake muscles to the already very muscular Dwayne Johnson. I get that the animated character he is portraying is unusually big and a demi-god, but one of the complaints I read about was that Maui is actually lithe, tricky, slim and a powerful warrior. Not a barrel-chested behemoth. Johnson would have done just fine with his own muscles and just adding the tattoos, it would have felt not only more realistic but more relatable… he is half-human after all.
If you’re looking for a fun time at an air conditioned movie theater watching a film that your kids might sit still for, then this could be the ticket. As far as the rest of it goes, it’s still a shot for shot, line for line remake of the 2016 animated feature. It was kind of fun to see how they reimagined specific parts like her grandmother’s blue aura in the ocean as she contemplates giving up or the enormous shiny crab in a bioluminescent hole near the center of the Earth, but nothing in particular stood out. Do with that what you will.
Moana arrives in theaters on 7/10