By: Matthew Oldfield Freelancer
Disney might have entered another new age with its move from 2D into 3D animation. Like the ocean princess movie “The Little Mermaid” kicking off the titular Disney Renaissance, it’s next big steps come from its 3D art department separate from Pixar.
Nothing shows Disney’s biggest leap than with its new movie “Moana” about an Oceanian/Polynesian young girl who is “chosen” by the ocean to save hear island from a terrible curse cause by the demi-god and co-star Maui.
A lot of what Disney got right with the story is help from Oceanic/Polynesian people who helped develop the core of the story along with some of the music, with additional help from Hamilton’s own Lin-Manuel Miranda. The rooted lore of the culture helps submerse the audience in the story and characters, making them relatable and likeable.
On the story outside the lore, the character focus of Moana and Maui made helped show off the more friendship bond of love and not needing a romantic sub-plot. I’m glad the two main characters didn’t end up together. This shows that Disney is starting to slowly go away from their usual formula and try and do something new. Even if “Frozen” might have been the first to do so, they did it in a way that still had a romantic sub-plot still in there that could lead to a potential sequel.
With “Moana” the story feels complete and fine just the way it is without the romantics and staying with its core. What Disney missed however was in some of its pacing seemed too fast at times that didn’t fully disrupt the flow of the movie but left an odd feeling while still watching as well as a few low brow humors that was a bit off putting as well.
Overall the movie was a joy to see and a breath of fresh air. I’ll give “Moana” an 8/10 for its use of lore, musical score, and re-inventiveness on the story. This is a fresh breath of air that is something the traditional Disney film genre needs and will help push it forward to a new age.
The novel is not the most accessible for the average reader. The appeal of the book is that it’s a “Rogue One” prequel and “Star Wars” fans will find the locations and familiar characters fun to read about. However, the characters would just seem random without prior knowledge of the film.
