Saturday, June 04, 2022
Moana
- Commentary: Truth is, I first watched this movie when it was on Netflix and I was in the middle of an at-ends evening and didn't want to do anything, let alone watch a movie that would require mental involvement on my part. I figured this would be a good movie to watch and expected it to be the first in an evening that promised a lot of movie switching. I couldn't imagine I would like the movie or stay with it long. See, I was raised on an island for the bulk of my childhood and young adulthood. I was absolutely positive that Moana would get everything, everything psychological and emotional, anyway, about the island experience wrong. Turns out, I was wrong.
Despite the fact that it featured yet another wide-eyed, plucky, Disney heroine, the type I loathe, it got a surprising number of island-heart things right. The fear of swimming, for one thing. This was standard on the island on which I was raised. The chickens, Cuban Cocks, to boot. Ye gads! Cuban chickens were everywhere on my home! I wasn't pleased with the protrayal of the Cuban Cock sidekick. I thought he either could have been improved, along the lines of the mini-dragon in Mulan, or dropped altogether from the story. The resolution of the conflict in the movie, which ends with Te Fiti curling up and "going to sleep" as an island was intriguing in light of the legends I'd learned about the creation of my home island. And all the characters were well drawn, particularly Moana and Maui. "Yep," I thought after watching it, "this movie I have to own, even if it is a Disney cartoon."
Update 2/10/18: I know, Moana isn't the classic super-hero, but Te Fiti is, and Maui is a demigod with possibilities of becoming a super-hero. By the end of the movie it's easy to wonder if Moana might have turned him around in his tracks through her display or non-super heroism.
Update 6/2/2022: This post was originally published on 2/5/2018 but disappeared from public view. I am now reinstating it.
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Auliʻi Cravalho Moana Dwayne Johnson Maui Rachel House Tala, Moana's Grandmother Temuera Morrison Tui, Moana's Father Nicole Scherzinger Sina, Moana's Mother Jemaine Clement Tamatoa, Coconut Crab Alan Tudyk Heihei, Rooster/Villager #3 Oscar Kightley Fisherman
Release Date: 2016
Directed by Don Hall & Chris Williams.
Labels: adventure1, animated, coming-of-age1, drama5, musical1, popcorn-and-soda2, road-movie, super-hero2
