‘Moana’ is back, but does it sink or swim?
"Moana 2" is the highly anticipated sequel.
The movie follows Moana (Auli'l Cravalho) as she returns from her expedition to find more islands with a population. After a disturbing vision of the past and the future, Moana builds a crew to search for Maui to prevent a dark prophecy from coming to fruition.
I like the first “Moana” movie well enough. I really like the titular character, but the world and the rest of the characters I had no real interest in.
This movie repeats a lot of the first movie's plot where it's another expedition to find Maui to save the future of her people. The songs were also very similar to the first movie, just with less creative lyrics.
Maui felt like a fun novelty the first time around; but here, he's kind of annoying.
Dwayne Johnson's vocal performance felt flat and underwhelming. He doesn't reach the same levels as the first movie, and I would have preferred if he hadn't shown up. He's only useful for the last 30 minutes; in everything before, he's a nuisance that makes Moana's journey harder because of some questionable choices.
The crew that Moana puts together also didn't grab my attention, as they all had overly quirky personalities that made it feel like a direct-to-DVD movie.
None of them were fleshed out and a lot of their plot relevance comes in the last act. Suddenly, they perfect their duties that should have had more time to develop.
The animation in the movie is really cool, but nothing that really wowed me. The water animation is the most impressive thing about this movie. A lot of the comedy is flat.
Admittedly, there's some emotional stake, but everything ends up being fine in the end.
Overall, it's a follow-up to a very beloved Disney movie; if you liked the first, you'll enjoy seeing this movie. While the movie is crushing box office records, its substance and story offers nothing new for long-time fans.
For me it's a 6/10. Unless you’re deeply committed, consider waiting until it comes to Disney Plus to enjoy.
Reviewer Carter Salley is a junior majoring in Media Arts. He is the co-host of Central Michigan Life's pop culture podcast "Raving Geeks."
