Moana 2, 2024.
Directed by David G. Derrick Jr,. Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller.
Featuring the voice talents of Auli’i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Hualālai Chung, Rose Matafeo, David Fane, Awhimai Fraser, Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda, Temuera Morrison, Nicole Scherzinger, Rachel House, Gerald Ramsey, Alan Tudyk, Jemaine Clement, Tofiga Fepulea’i, Tiana Johnson, Jasmine Johnson, and Ata Maivia Johnson.
SYNOPSIS:
After receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, Moana must journey to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she’s ever faced.
There is a disappointing, dispiriting narrative flatness to Moana 2, an animated sequel recycling the original’s story (but with more characters, wasting them all) with almost no creative passion. The exception is that a couple of the new songs are lively, and the film is gorgeously animated with realistic detail.
Initially put into production as a Disney+ series before ending up as a feature-length film (presumably rushed out for the wholly unnecessary upcoming live-action remake), the entire adventure comes across as a sequence of filler events backed up by no momentum, sometimes abandoning introduced characters with zero payoffs (unless a third animated film is also in the works.) If anything, it feels like episodes 1-2 (maybe a third if one is being generous) of that proposed series.
From directors David G. Derrick Jr,. Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller (all of whom appear to be making their feature-length debuts), the film (written by the former two alongside contributions from Bek Smith) the island of Motufetu, cursed and sunk to the bottom of the ocean, but was once a place connecting the various civilizations of Oceania. Having been a skilled wayfinder for three years, Moana (voiced by a returning Auli’i Cravalho) takes it upon herself to set out into the ocean and lift the curse to reconnect everyone.
The only difference is that instead of riffing and bantering with Maui (once again voiced by Dwayne Johnson), who doesn’t even reunite with her until roughly 1/3 into the story, she brings along a real crew (excitable navigational experts, grumpy farmers) with her pet chicken and, this time, also a pet pig. This is a similar quest of using Maui’s prized hook to lift something enormous while Moana heals the ocean.
Expectedly, there are also songs, some upbeat and liven up dull proceedings. The one intriguing human dilemma here is that Moana feels some internal conflict about leaving behind her family for these oceanic journeys, especially her younger sister Simea (Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda), who naturally always worries she might never return. As such, this brings about a somewhat moving number where the emotions are felt strictly because of Auli’i Cravalho’s beautifully booming voice. When she starts feeling pressured further and questioning whether or not her objective remains possible, Dwayne Johnson gets to perform a catchy motivational song that largely works due to that tone, tapping into his WWE acting style, just with song lyrics. The filmmakers also smartly give each musical number a vibrant color palette among striking, alternating backgrounds.
Despite some encounters with gigantic, monstrous clams, ancestral spirits, and a character with a connection to bats who may or may not be evil, nothing of note or excitement happens in Moana 2. It’s a generic tale about family always being together in spirit or across the living and the afterlife while retooling the same plot beats and jokes from the first film. As if that wasn’t enough, there are also several callbacks to lyrics from the original songs, as if the filmmakers had no confidence their creations would exceed or meet expectations.
There also isn’t anything in Moana 2 one can point at as offensively bad. The performances from Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson are still charming with amusing chemistry (the latter should also try doing more voiceover roles or anything to get away from his recent long string of garbage), but there isn’t anything especially new about their characters. Whenever Maui shapeshifts into an animal or talks to one of his sage-like tattoos, it feels like a reminder that those are things he can do rather than the film trying to do anything interesting with it. Maybe it’s an opportunity to show off how expressive the animation here is, which is rich with lifelike facial expressions. Again, there isn’t a worthwhile narrative for any of that to go to.
While there is much to appreciate about having these Polynesian characters in the animated landscape, Moana 2 isn’t interested in taking them far or much of anywhere. The film sets up entirely new areas to explore and the possibilities of reconnecting with other societies, only to retread material from the original. It simply lacks soul, drive, or any meaningful sense of purpose beyond cash-grabbing before the real inevitable live-action cash grab.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews, follow my Twitter or Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com
