The Mosley Review: Moana 2

I know I'm not in the only one that remembers the days when Disney would release a sequel to their highly successful animated films straight to VHS and DVD. Don't get me wrong, there were a couple sequels that actually deserved a theatrical release, but instead became cult classics. The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, An Extremely Goofy Movie and Aladdin and the King of Thieves were among the best and one of their songs is always in my head. On the other hand, alot of the major Disney Classics received the sequel treatment that didn't need to it and ended up getting a lesser quality film. Well, this film is a mixture of both circumstances. It was great to revisit the main two characters and although their accompanied by a few great songs, the qaulity of storytelling has taken a dip and it needed a little more time on the fire. The plot may have been straight forward in the beginning, but half way through it loses focus and becomes over crowded with characters that really don't add to the growth to the main heroes. At least the acting from the leads continued to be fun and dazzle.

Auliʻi Cravalho continues to be a powerhouse of a performer as Moana. Her strength, comedic timing and heart once again shines the brightest. Her connection to her family was always at her core and her scenes with her little sister Simea, played wonderfully by Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda, were the sweetest moments. Aside from her fully developed adventurous spirit, I hate to say that there really wasn't that much more of a growth for her. Sure she gains a bit of a new ability, but that’s about it when it comes to the challenges she faces. Dwayne Johnson returns as Maui and he was just as fun and action driven as you'd expect. He sort of loses a bit of intelligence for me because of his unwillingness to learn from his past mistakes, which he makes again in this film. You can be the fun loving action hero all day, but at some point you gotta learn to negotiate a bit more instead of fighting everyone first. The chemistry between Moana and Maui is still electric and reaches a new emotional depth by the end. I just wish the film just focused on them on the waters again. Hualālai Chung was good as the fan boy artist of Maui, Moni. He had his moments to shine comedically with some great art. Rose Matafeo was energetic and a bit annoying as Loto. I loved her ever creative mind in building the best ship, but man did she need to stop cutting everything. She was more destructive and clumsy than helpful. David Fane was good as the grumpy old man, Kele. He was a sour grape for the majority of the film and honestly didn't add much than just cynicism to journey. They all join Moana's crew and I honestly stopped carrying about them shortly after they got on the boat. Awhimai Fraser was great as Matangi, but I felt her character was all over the place. She was a mysterious villain that could've been more sinister and manipulative, but she comes off as a new fun possible ally. It was disappointing as she has a great aesthetic, but no real depth.

The score by Mark Mancina and Opetaia Foaʻi was great, but this film was really missing the magical collaboration that Lin Manuel-Miranda brought to the first film. The musical numbers were good, but weren't as memorable. Moana and Maui both get to shine in their respective moments, but Moana's new anthem, Beyond, was outstanding and fulfills that same energy that How Far I'll Go produced from the original. Visually, this is one of the most gorgeous animated films of the year as the color pallete is varied in epic proportions and the animation of the water was magical. Overall, the first film remains prestine while this film was lacking the same polish and focus. Its a safe sequel that doesn't really go anywhere in character growth and falls into the trap of over crowding the film with useless side characters. There is a mid credit scene that could have potential if they actually focus on a singular goal. Let me know what you thought of the film or my review in the comments below.