BACKGROUND
Moana was the second Disney movie to have been set around the Pacific islands, after Lilo & Stitch (2002), which was located in Hawaii. Unlike Lilo & Stitch, Moana is another “princess musical” film from Disney Animation, yet it is different even to other fairy-tale stories made by Disney in the 2010s.
Moana has absolutely no focus on any romantic connections in Moana’s life throughout the movie. If we look at Tangled (2010) and even Frozen (2013), romantic interests may take a backseat to the strong heroines of the movie, but they are still there.
They do all have something in common and that is that they parody their fairy-tale format which became rooted in Disney history, thanks to the Disney Renaissance Era from 1989 to 2000: just think of the line “Anna, you can’t marry a man you just met”. Within Moana, Moana is teased by demi-god Maui for being a “princess”, because she wears a dress and has an animal sidekick, Heihei, the dumb rooster. He also expects her to spontaneously burst into song at times, which she does, but not in front of him!
I really like Moana. I first watched it in the cinema when it was released at the end of 2016. I loved it then, especially the soundtrack which I would constantly play, and then saw it many more times, either on Blu-Ray or on television. I even went to see it in a drive-in movie setting! However, I hadn’t watched Moana for a few years until this week, but I was pleased to say that I did still enjoy it as much as I remembered.
PLOT
Moana follows the story of a young girl, torn between her duty to her village, being the next in line to be chief, and her love of the ocean. Moana lives on an island called Motunui, an island within the Pacific. She was chosen by the ocean from a very young age to fulfil a task, but has been kept away from it by her father, Chief Tui. The task comes as a result of a poor decision by demi-god Maui. Many years ago, he stole “the Heart of Te Fiti”, a stone which allowed Te Fiti to create lands and make them prosperous. Maui was then hunted by Te Kā, a volcanic demon, shortly afterwards. He lost the heart as well as his magical fish-hook and disappeared, though many still hunt for the heart. Moana was given the heart by the ocean one day, though she dropped it when her father came to find her.
Chief Tui wants Moana to focus on becoming a great chief and taking over some of his responsibilities. Though Moana spends much of her childhood trying to get in the ocean and sail out beyond the reef, it is forbidden and she gradually comes to accept her lot in life. One day, Moana is being told that the villagers are struggling to find food: fish aren’t coming to their nets, and the coconut trees have become diseased. Moana decides that they must sail out beyond the reef to find food, but Chief Tui angrily refuses to allow it.
Moana is angry with her father, though her mother, Sina, tells her he is just scared as his friend drowned out at sea after him and her father went out there one day as children. Moana decides to prove she can sail out there, even if Tui cannot, but she finds that the ocean is not her friend today and her canoe is consumed by a large wave. Moana’s leg becomes trapped in coral, but she manages to free herself and makes it back to shore. Her grandmother, Tala, finds her and promises not to tell her father. Instead, Tala leads Moana to a cave and is told to bang the drum to find out about their ancestors. Moana learns that their ancestors were voyagers and that the cave is full of canoes, so they could sail again. Tala gives Moana the Heart of Te Fiti, which she picked up that day after seeing the ocean choose her. She tells her to find Maui and get him to restore the heart; he is said to be found under the “fish hook” in the stars. She excitedly goes to tell her father, interrupting a village meeting. Tui does not listen and threatens to burn all the canoes; however, Tala is taken ill and the two rush to her side. Tala tells Moana to go and complete her mission. She gives Moana her locket and places the heart within it. Moana tearfully leaves, with her mother’s approval. As Moana is about to cross the reef, the spirit of a ray, Tala’s spirit animal, crosses under her, showing that her grandmother’s spirit is still with her, despite her death.
After some struggles with the canoe, as Moana doesn’t know how to sail or navigate, plus she has the added distraction of Heihei, the rooster, stowing away with her, they end up crash-landing on an island after a storm. This is where they meet Maui. Moana has unknowingly made it to his island; the ocean must have helped her. Maui is pleased to have found a boat so he can sail away to find his fish-hook, but has no intention of returning the Heart of Te Fiti. He traps Moana in a cave, hoping to never see her again, but Moana frees herself and the ocean carries her over to the canoe. No matter how hard Maui tries, Moana keeps being returned to the canoe. Maui warns Moana to not talk about the heart, but Moana doesn’t listen and soon they are surrounded by “Kakamora”, a group of vicious coconut-pirates. They steal Heihei, as he has eaten the Heart, with Maui wanting just to escape. Moana doesn’t allow him to, and retrieves Heihei and the heart. The two then make a deal to find his fish hook and then go to Te Fiti together.
The fish hook lies within the Realm of Monsters, or Lalotai. They travel to the entry point and jump down into a huge hole. Moana bounces down further than expected, and Maui looks for his hook, not bothered by Moana’s fate. Moana manages to free herself from the monsters and meets up with Maui at the lair of Tamatoa. The hook is on the back of his shell. Moana is used to distract Tamatoa, by getting him to talk about himself and his love of all things shiny. Maui steals back his hook and tries to use its shape-shifting powers, but it does not work properly and he is caught by Tamatoa. Moana saves him by covering a barnacle in algae, making it look like the Heart of Te Fiti. Tamatoa runs to get it, but soon realises he was duped. Moana and Maui manage to escape via a well-timed geyser.
Maui is sad that his hook doesn’t seem to be working properly but Moana encourages him to practise with it, and sure enough, he can use it again. At the same time, Maui teaches Moana about sailing and navigating. They soon reach Te Fiti, where Maui takes the heart, and starts to attack Te Kā. Him and his fish hook are hit, and it looks like they will lose the battle if they continue. Maui wants to turn back but Moana believes they can make it through a gap in the rocks. It doesn’t work and they are pushed far back into the ocean again. Maui is so angry with Moana that he transforms into a hawk and flies away, leaving her alone. Moana tells the ocean it chose the wrong person, and the ocean takes the Heart back sadly. Soon, Moana is joined by the spirit of her grandmother, who tells her it’s alright to go back if she wants, but Moana hesitates, knowing that she must complete the mission. Emboldened, she swims down and retrieves the heart, repairs the canoe and heads back to Te Fiti alone. She tries to get past the Barrier Islands, knowing that Te Kā cannot touch the water on the other side. Moana gets through but the canoe is thrown over by a shot of lava from Te Kā. Maui arrives to help, having changed his mind, and goes to attack Te Kā, using a variety of shape-shifting animals to distract it. Maui uses his final chance with the hook to overpower Te Kā, and sure enough, the hook is destroyed. Moana has found the site of Te Fiti, but the island is not there. She then realises that Te Kā is actually Te Fiti. She calls Te Kā to her, and returns her heart.
Te Kā transforms into Te Fiti, very thankful to Moana for restoring her heart. She reverts the darkness that had been taking over other islands, and even gets Maui a new fish hook, despite her initial disappointment that he stole her heart in the first place! They are also given a new boat, and Moana returns to Motunui a hero, where she becomes a great chief and leads the others in voyaging again, as their ancestors did.
CHARACTERS & CAST
Obviously, Moana is the lead character; her name is the title of the movie after all! Moana is a very likable character. She is strong, brave, and independent, yet is also very caring and has a sense of duty and family. Moana may want to go out into the ocean, but she accepts that it has been forbidden by her father eventually. She becomes very helpful to her village during this time; she fixes roofs, teaches the children to dance, and comes up with solutions for problems, though Moana is aware that there is no escaping the darkness that is threatening their island and destroying their food sources. This is when she decides things must change and that they have no option but to go out to another island to save themselves. This is when she finds out from her grandmother that by restoring “the Heart of Te Fiti”, she can defeat the darkness once and for all. Her grandmother encourages her to go and complete the mission that the ocean chose her for when she was just a baby. Though it upsets Moana to leave her family, she knows she must go on. Throughout her journey, Moana overcomes obstacles and difficulties, always seeming optimistic, even when Maui is being the complete opposite, not wanting anything to do with her. Even though Moana loses her courage for a brief moment, her grandmother again guides her to the right decision, which shows how much Moana loves her family and knows what is ultimately the right thing to do. Moana succeeds as we all knew she would from the start, and is a hero for it, not only fixing the ultimate problem affect the islands, but also encouraging her village to go back to voyaging as they used to, being able to move forward in life. Moana may be a princess-type role, but she is certainly one of the good role models to have.
Moana is voiced by Auli’i Cravalho. Cravalho was born and grew up in Hawaii. She never expected to make her acting debut in something as big as Moana. The Disney team had an open call for the character, and on their last day in Hawaii, they said she stood out, with her singing being a particular highlight of her voice performance. Cravalho felt good being involved in a film about her culture and reprised her role for the film’s Hawaiian-language version. She has since gone on to star in the drama series Rise (2018), performed the part of Ariel in the TV special The Little Mermaid Live! (2019), and acted in the Hulu comedy film Crush (2022). She played the role of Janis in the new version of Mean Girls (2024).
Maui is the supporting character to Moana. He comes across as very braggy and arrogant at the start, although quite lovable at the same time. Maui’s whole life story is tattooed over his body, detailing the accomplishments that the demi-god has fulfilled during his lifetime to help people, such as pulling islands up from the sea. His “Mini-Maui” tattoo is like his very own Jiminy Cricket, a conscience that pulls him back from making poor decisions or being too confident. We get some backstory to Maui during the movie, after he has retrieved his fish hook. It turns out that Maui was born mortal and was thrown into the ocean by his parents who did not want him. He was found by the gods, who gave him the magical fish-hook. It then turns out that Maui making all these amazing things happen was just to try and win approval from people as he doesn’t believe he is worthy of anything. Maui also thinks that the fish-hook is the only reason he has any meaning whatsoever and that without it, he is nothing. This is clearly why he struggles after finding that his shape-shifting powers aren’t working right when he gets the hook back, and why he won’t sacrifice it to help Moana the first time they fight Te Kā. He soon realises, with Moana’s help, that he is a good person and that he is more than just whatever power the gods gave him. If nothing else, this experience helps him and Moana become true friends.
Maui is voiced by wrestler-turned-actor, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. I’m pretty sure the whole world knows who he is, but Johnson has starred in multiple movies and franchises such as the Fast and Furious franchise from 2011 as the character Luke Hobbs, as well as Spencer in the new Jumanji movies (2017-present). For Disney, Johnson made multiple guest appearances in Disney Channel series in the mid-2000s, such as Hannah Montana (2007), and starred in the movie Jungle Cruise (2021). Johnson also created, produced and starred in the partly-autobiographical television series Young Rock (2021-present). Johnson was the only person Disney had in mind for the character of Maui, partly because, as Maui says so many things that could come across as narcissistic, they needed someone so lovable as a person that it wouldn’t matter what he was saying! Johnson was happy to voice the role as an opportunity to showcase his culture as he is Samoan[1].
Tala is probably the next most important character in the movie, as she is the one to guide Moana to her destiny. Tala and Moana have a very close relationship, partly because they are quite similar; both of them don’t follow the crowd and have their own opinions. Tala is known as “the village crazy lady”; she tells legends of the lands, and stories of their ancestors despite Chief Tui’s, her son, insistence that she stop as she scares the children – all except Moana, anyway. Moana wants to follow her love of the ocean, which she shares with Tala. Tala is both a fun figure and a caring one for Moana. She encourages Moana to be whatever she wants to be – and to take what her father tells her to do with a pinch of salt!
Tala is voiced by New Zealand actress and director Rachel House. She has starred in films such as Boy (2010) and White Lies (2013), as well as in TV series such as Heartbreak High (2022-present). For Disney and Pixar, House has performed the voice roles of Terry in Soul (2020) and Mama Binturong in The Lion Guard (2019), and reprised her role of Tala in the Māori-language version of Moana.
Then there are Moana’s parents, Tui and Sina. Tui is Chief of the village. He is overprotective, wanting Moana to keep out of the ocean so she will stay safe. He does it because he cares about her, though it is a bit awkward hearing him say “and no-one leaves”, within the song “Where You Are” because why shouldn’t someone leave the island if they want to? Sina is Moana’s mother, who feels a bit stuck in the middle of the two of them, as she wants to be supportive of both of them. Though Sina does not feature too much in the film, when we see her watching Moana pack up to leave, you almost think that she’s going to convince Moana to stay – but Sina does the opposite, and helps her pack everything she needs. Sina obviously knows that Moana is not happy on the island, and most follow her heart in doing what she thinks is right for her and them.
Tui is voiced by New Zealand actor Temuera Morrison, who is currently playing the role of Tom Curry in the DC Extended Universe, and portrays and voices Boba Fett in Star Wars projects such as The Mandalorian (2020-23) and The Book of Boba Fett (2021-22). Tui’s singing voice is provided by Christopher Jackson, who originated the role of George Washington in the musical Hamilton (2015-16). Sina is voiced by singer and actress Nicole Scherzinger of The Pussycat Dolls fame. Scherzinger also reprised the role of Sina in the Hawaiian-language version of Moana. She was born in Hawaii.
Tamatoa is the shiny-thing loving coconut crab who resides within the Realm of Monsters. He loves to talk about himself and collects new items to store on his shell so he can be fabulous and beautiful. But don’t be fooled by his appearance, because he is still the villain of this piece. As well as being huge, he has no problems with attacking anyone who comes into his lair, and threatening to kill Moana is just one of those times, I’m sure!. New Zealand actor and comedian Jemaine Clement voices the role of Tamatoa. He is one half of the musical comedy duo Flight of the Concords, alongside Bret McKenzie, founded in 1998. They have released multiple albums and had a comedy series of the same name from 2007 to 2009. Clement has also starred in numerous films and TV series including as Boris the Animal in Men in Black 3 (2012) and as Dr. Ian Garvin in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022). Tamatoa has a small “End Credits” scene, where he is still lying on his back, asking the audience if they could help him, saying that if his name was Sebastian and he had a cool Jamaican accent, then we would, clearly referencing Sebastian from The Little Mermaid (1989), another famous Disney crab! Although a villain in Moana, Tamatoa is still incredibly funny as a villain, and he is very different to many other Disney villains
On to the non-speaking characters in Moana, the ocean is a character of its own in Moana; it can gesture, so we can tell what it is trying to communicate, and becomes a good friend to Moana, helping her on her journey in many ways. We also have Heihei and Pua, Moana’s animal sidekicks. Pua is Moana’s loyal pet pig, who, unfortunately, misses out on this great adventure, only appearing in the first part of the movie in Motunui, though he does get to go out on the canoe for Moana’s first voyage attempt, which does not end well! The lack of appearances by Pua was one of the biggest complaints that came out of Moana. In early stages of the movie, Pua was going to go out on the trip, but this was changed to him being left on the beach, partly for his own safety and so that Moana could be isolated without the comfort of him, so she’d have to stand on her own two feet[2]. But Moana still did have a pet sidekick to keep her company, Heihei. Heihei is a silly rooster, who stowed away on Moana’s voyage, and he does not enjoy being out on the water. Moana has to rescue him multiple times, as he keeps falling in the ocean. He’s not a smart rooster by any means, but he is the comedic relief of the movie. Heihei is “voiced” by Disney veteran and lucky charm, Alan Tudyk, who has had roles in every Disney movie release since Wreck-It Ralph (2012). Tudyk is the only member of the voice cast to not have any heritage within the Pacific islands. Originally, Heihei and Pua were going to be modelled after directors John Musker and Ron Clements, as they have “appeared” in many of the previous films they have directed for Disney, such as Aladdin (1992) and Hercules (1997). This was then changed after Pua was kept on the beach and when Heihei was made to be more stupid[3]! Instead, the two directors feature printed on a cloth (tapa) during the song “Where You Are”.
The final characters, or should that just be character, to mention is Te Kā and Te Fiti. Te Kā seems to be the main villain of the movie, the lava demon, but in actual fact Te Kā is just Te Fiti, wanting her heart back. It’s a surprise villain twist, I suppose, and one that I was surprised by when I first watched, though it does make sense! Of course, she’d be angry that someone stole her heart. But all is well in the end, with Te Fiti reversing all the damage that has been caused by the unfortunate event. She is a benevolent goddess, forgiving Maui quite quickly for all the problems he caused! I think she understands why he did it – to try and win further approval from the humans – so I’m sure that helped.
PRODUCTION
The idea for Moana came about from a discussion with John Lasseter, Chief Creative Officer of Disney Animation at the time, who suggested that Clements and Musker make a film based in the Pacific Islands. The two directors were happy to look into this idea further and went on a three-week research trip with some other members of the team. They went to Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti, as well as some of the smaller islands around those areas, before ending the trip in New Zealand. Whilst on this trip, they experienced many things, such as being taken out on a traditional canoe. Their guide, Angel, told them about the ocean not being a barrier to each other on the islands but something that connects them, showing how big a role the ocean plays in their culture. Angel told them to speak gently and calmly to the ocean. This was a driving force in ensuring that the ocean was a character within Moana.
Moana was originally not going to be the main character of the movie; Maui was going to be. They moved over to the idea fairly early on, with Moana (which means “ocean” in Polynesian) having dreams of being a navigator, since that was such an important part of the ancestry of the area. 3000 years ago, navigators migrated from Taiwan and moved eastward. They went to the islands of Fiji and Samoa, before the migrations suddenly stopped. 1,000 years later they suddenly began again, going eastward once more to areas such as New Zealand. This gap in the timeline, called “The Long Pause” was used as the setting of the film, with Moana being the driving force for the migrations happening again. For the act of navigation, the team at Disney learnt the correct hand positing, whilst also detailing the importance of star and cloud patterns, getting as much information as they could into the film.
Disney also learnt how spiritual music and singing, along with dancing, is to the people of the Pacific islands. They listened to the communities singing, especially in church, and how they interacted whilst doing so. They learnt about the origins of the Haka which is featured in a couple of scenes with Maui. Tattoos are a rite of passage in the area, taking days to complete, and being quite painful, but they are incredibly important to the culture. As Maui is covered in tattoos, they had to be respectful of the traditions of tattooing whilst also letting them show Maui’s life story in a way that was easy for the audience to understand.
Another important aspect to include was the respect for nature. It is a vital message in the Pacific islands that you do not own the land and that it must be nurtured. No materials are wasted, with the coconut tree being a great example of that, with uses such as food, drink, fire and building materials. This is detailed within the song and scene of “Where You Are”. Family is also of great importance in the movie, as the team at Disney saw how close the communities are, by sharing meals together, welcoming in others with such warmth, always being kind and sincere, telling stories and legends.
Through this research trip, Disney established the Oceanic Story Trust, where field experts and groups of individuals from the Pacific areas were brought in to discuss their local culture as research for the film. The locals felt respected and were glad to see that Disney cared enough about their culture to involve them multiple times, with changes even being made based on their input. For example, Maui was going to be bald, however the Oceanic Story Trust said that he has long hair and that it is part of his power, so the character was changed to have long, flowing hair. Another point was that after Moana argues with Chief Tui, she was going to smash coconuts out of anger, but it was quickly pointed out that no-one from that area would ever do that, so instead, she throws sticks into the sand.
The Disney team came back changed and wanted to ensure that the audience felt some of the things they had done, like being connected to nature and having a strong sense of community, whilst watching the movie. They also hoped that those of the area would see themselves in the movie and that they would see that it was done respectfully[4].
Many scenes were storyboarded and then deleted from the final release. One idea was that Moana was going to have six brothers, with her father not seeing that she could do just as much as they could, as well as having her already be a great navigator and sailor in Motunui. These were ultimately changed to make her an only child and to give her the opportunity to use this new adventure as a chance to learn navigation skills; it made her journey more interesting to have her overcome obstacles. Grandmother Tala and Chief Tui would also have featured more, discussing Moana’s future and what was right for her. A song was written by Lin-Manuel Miranda and deleted, titled “Warrior Face”, which had some basis in the Haka, and would have had Maui teaching Moana how to look strong before they faced the Realm of Monsters. It was written whilst Miranda was performing Hamilton; the demo even used some of the cast of the musical such as Christopher Jackson (George Washington) and Phillipa Soo (Eliza)[5].
As there are no photo references from 3,000 years ago, when Moana is set, the team had to guess what kind of pieces may have been worn then when deciding on the costumes for the characters. They spent time looking at the fashions of the Polynesian and Pacific islands, coming up with concepts of different pieces, before putting them together to make full costumes. Moana had to wear something functional, not just pretty, as she spends much of the movie sailing. They found that tree bark was softened and made into textiles, so a top based on that methodology was used for Moana, with the skirts being made from dried material as well. Flowers were used to accessorise, especially in the case of Moana’s mother. The team ensured that time was taken in choosing these pieces, and that they were careful to treat the culture with respect, with meaning placed into every detail[6].
For specific elements in Moana, much time was taken with those of water, lava, and hair. For the water, they had to develop software to be able to have the ocean interact with Moana. This was called “Splash”. The scene of baby Moana interacting with the ocean was actually an internal demonstration for the system, but as it was such a great scene, the movie was rewritten to include it! Making the ocean a character took a lot of work but made a huge difference to the movie. For the lava of Te Kā, the character was created as a mannequin to get the basic shape, before the effects of smoke and lava were layered onto it. It was difficult recreating the natural phenomena correctly, to make Te Kā a living, imposing volcano, but they succeeded. Hair was another big, but fun, challenge for Disney. Hair had been an important part of other Disney characters such as Ariel and Pocahontas, but hair is harder to deal with correctly in CG than in 2D animation. To begin with, many of the characters are animated bald or with a stiff basic hair shape. An unwritten rule in animation is also for hair not to be touched, however, as Moana is a teenager, they wanted her to be realistically playing with her hair, as teenagers tend to do. A new hair system was developed to make the hair realistic and dynamic, whilst reacting to natural elements. This new technology helped with the underwater sequences too. Disney also relied on previous software that had been designed in-house for previous films, such as the fur tooling, developed for Zootopia (2016) and the Hyperion renderer from Big Hero 6 (2014).
Another animation complexity is that at times 2D is mixed with CGI. This is most obvious with Maui’s “mini-Maui” tattoo. Mini-Maui was animated by veteran Disney animator Eric Goldberg, who had animated the Genie in Aladdin (1992). Lots of the team wanted to help him with these scenes so they could work with him! Mini-Maui was meant to be like Jiminy Cricket but with more attitude, and had to move around Maui’s body to get him to notice and listen to him. The tattoos were designed to be as similar to the Pacific traditions as possible, whilst also detailing Maui’s backstory. The body was split into different areas, with sequences of Mini-Maui moving between them being created. At one point, Maui pokes Mini-Maui so a reaction had to be drawn there. Disney managed to integrate 2D and 3D animation unlike anything before in these scenes[7].
MUSIC
The music for Moana is probably my favourite part of the movie, as I like every song on the soundtrack which is quite rare for me, even in Disney movies! Disney went for a similar set-up to that of The Lion King (1994) with their song-writing team: they had another trio, with a veteran composer (Mark Mancina vs Hans Zimmer), the star song-writer (Lin-Manuel Miranda vs Elton John) and a song-writer from the real-world setting (Opetaia Foa’i vs Lebo M)[8]. Mark Mancina was brought in to compose the score, as well as help with the songs. He had composed the score for other Disney movies such as Tarzan (1999) and Brother Bear (2003), and arranged the music for The Lion King Broadway musical for which he was nominated for a Tony Award. Lin-Manuel Miranda was not yet known for his Hamilton fame when he was brought on to the Moana project, though he was known on Broadway for his musical In the Heights (2005) at this time. He has gone on to work with Disney again, for Encanto (2021) and the live-action The Little Mermaid (2023). Samoan song-writer Opetaia Foa’i founded the group, Te Vaka in 1995, with the group having had much success over the years. The band also contributed to the Moana soundtrack. He was very happy to collaborate with Disney on this soundtrack as he had spent years promoting his culture through music anyway. Originally, the trio were unsure how they would work together, all having different tastes and ways of working, as well as coming from different musical backgrounds, however, on the New Zealand leg of the Moana research trip, the music came together for “We Know the Way”, with that being the first song to be written.
They soon followed that good start with the rest of the music, such as “Where You Are”, where they capitalised on their love of the Pacific cultures on their return from the areas. “How Far I’ll Go” pushed the musical story-telling further and Miranda loved how Cravalho’s beautiful singing pushed it further. Miranda stated his favourite song was “You’re Welcome”, which he wrote specifically for Dwayne Johnson, using inspiration from his wrestling days when he could say anything and still captivate people! For “Shiny”, Miranda has said that he was inspired by the music of David Bowie, making a real rock ‘n’ roll piece, full of exuberance and fun, but also menace.
The score is heavily based in percussion and vocals, to suit the style of traditional Pacific music. Mancina wanted the music to match the incredible action, whilst also feeling like the audience is on the sea, or part of the island community. For the vocals, Opetaia Foa’i and Iglese Ete with the Pacific Voices Choir helped to do the arrangements. It was a spiritual time for him and the vocalists when they recorded their tracks[9]. The soundtrack certainly succeeds in being memorable outside of the movie itself, including those not in the English language. I personally love the opening song “Tulou Tagaloa” and “Logo Te Pate”, but, like I said, I really like all the music, especially “I Am Moana”, which is a very powerful song set within a very emotional scene.
RECEPTION
Moana was originally planned to be released in 2018, however, it was bumped up by two years, being released in theatres in November 2016. In August 2015, at the D23 Expo, expo-goers were treated to some footage and models of the characters that they would be seeing in the movie the following year. They showed the clip of Moana being chosen by the ocean, as well as one of Maui explaining his tattoos to an unimpressed Moana and Pua. This second clip must have been cut in the year or 18 months between the preview and actual release, as the D23 expo mentioned that Pua came along for the ride, and we know that this was an idea that was ultimately changed. The original concept for Te Kā also looked incredibly monstrous, so I’m glad it was toned down a bit in the final cut[10]. Regardless of how much the movie changed between these two dates, there was a very positive reaction to what was shown at D23 in 2015 and no doubt helped promote the movie.
The movie was released alongside a typical Disney short, titled Inner Workings, directed and written by Leo Matsuda. He was inspired by his joint Japanese and Brazilian heritage, and the idea of two different sides fighting against each other, a more focused, risk-averse approach battling against the opportunity to be fun and carefree. This short is a similar idea to the now-defunct Epcot attraction Cranium Command, in that it follows the main character’s, Paul, primary organs and how they deal with a normal day. Paul in the end leaves his boring office to have fun during his lunch-break, coming back with a whole new outlook on life, even encouraging his office to have a dance party! When Moana was released on DVD and Blu-Ray, a new mini movie was added to the bonus features, titled Maui Mini Movie: Gone Fishing (2017). This short film shows Maui trying to fish in Moana’s home island of Motunui, after the events of the movie, with the ocean and Moana stopping him from being successful in his attempts[11]!
Moana did incredibly well both financially and critically, making around $680 million at the box office in total, with many reviews stating that Moana featured a good message of embracing your family and community, and that Moana was a great heroine. Many also liked the catchy soundtrack and the amazing visual imagery.
However, Moana did not avoid all criticism. From some in the Pacific community, they felt that Maui had been depicted in an insulting way, by him being represented as narcissistic as well as coming across as a bit of a buffoon. Some also did not think that the cultures of the Pacific were represented correctly or deeply enough. This is similar criticism to that received by Raya and the Last Dragon (2021), despite Disney’s desire and dedication to including the local communities in their ongoing production and development of the story and its characters. I do feel like some of this criticism is unfair. Disney also did have to pull a children’s costume for Maui which featured a brown body suit with all of Maui’s tattoos printed onto it. This was blasted for cultural misappropriation; yhat is a fair critique. Another fair critique is that the “Kakamora” are in reality a legendary, short-statured people of the Solomon Islands, and that by having them be cute but vicious coconuts in the movie was considered to be in very bad taste, though I’m sure it was unintentional[12]. Having said that, like Raya and the Last Dragon, Disney goes a long way in representing cultures that had previously been ignored or misrepresented.
Moana was nominated for numerous awards, such as Best Animated Film at the BAFTAs, the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes, and the Annie Awards, unfortunately losing out to Zootopia (2016), Disney Animation’s spring release of that year, in many cases. Having said that, Moana did win many other awards in other categories such as for Outstanding Achievement in Animated Effects and for Voice Acting for Auli’i Cravalho at the Annie Awards; a Grammy for Lin-Manuel Miranda for the song “How Far I’ll Go”, which was also nominated for Best Song at the Academy Awards and Golden Globes; and two Teen Choice Awards for Dwayne Johnson as Choice Fantasy Movie Actor and Auli’i Cravalho as Choice Breakout Movie Star. The Moana soundtrack as a whole won Top Soundtrack Album at the American Music Awards in 2017 and at the Billboard Music Awards in 2018. Moana continued its fame way beyond its 2016 release, and the 2017 award season, by becoming one of the Top 15 movies to be streamed in the US in 2022, as well as the soundtrack breaking the Billboard Soundtrack chart record for number of weeks spent at No. 1. The record was won in 2021, after 52 weeks at No.1.
LEGACY
Though Moana was only released in 2016, the movie has already made a big impact in the 2020s, probably due to these incredibly viewing figures that continued way after the initial release. The biggest development, which was announced in April 2023, is a live-action Moana film. Dwayne Johnson recorded a message in Hawaii making the announcement, with him planning to return as Maui, however, a new actress will be found to play Moana. Auli’i Cravalho has been named as one of the executive producers. Johnson is very grateful to be able to bring this story into a live-action setting as he is so proud of the story and how it features his culture. Thomas Kail, director of Hamilton, has recently been named as director[13]. I can only assume that the song writing team will return as well. I already dislike live-action adaptations of Disney animated movies, so I am probably biased, but I don’t think this is necessary, especially as the film was only released seven years ago. It just seems way too early, I think. Another announcement came in 2020, stating that a Disney+ series based on the film would be released in 2023. That date was then moved to 2024.
However, in February 2024, Disney CEO Bob Iger announced that this Disney+ series would actually be re-worked into a full-length feature film to be theatrically released in November 2024. Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson have been announced as returning to voice Moana and Maui. Given the success of the original film, and the buzz around the live-action remake, this makes good business sense as I’m assuming Disney are hoping Moana 2 will encourage more people into cinemas and movies theatres. I just hope the story is good enough because when I heard this, I thought of Atlantis 2: Milo’s Return (2003) and how that direct-to-video sequel is simply three episodes of the cancelled television series packaged together after Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) failed at the box-office. It is blatantly obvious when watching Atlantis 2 that this was just episodes of a series put together because it did not flow well at all. I don’t want Moana 2 to feel like that.
Within the Disney theme parks, Moana started a full-time residency at Disney’s Animal Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort, on 22nd April 2023, as part of the park’s 25th anniversary celebrations and as part of the Disney100. Concept art was also released in 2022 by Disney Parks chairman Josh D’Amaro for a whole Moana-themed land at Animal Kingdom. This is only a theoretical idea, but the concept would appear to be a revamp of the entire DinoLand U.S.A area. This did not go down well with many Disney Parks fans, who feel that DinoLand U.S.A is a big part of the park’s history so should not be replaced with another IP. To be clear, this idea has never been confirmed[14].
Also at Walt Disney World, but this time within Epcot, a whole new attraction opened on 16th October 2023, called Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana, which is a self-guided interactive outdoor trail where guests can play and interact with water, as well as learn about its importance and its playful personality, as Moana did. There was much hype around this attraction when it was first announced in 2019. It was delayed multiple times due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but now it has opened, you can see the impressively tall Te Fiti topiary, as well as numerous beautiful waterfalls and streams[15].
Further appearances by Moana within the Walt Disney World Resort include her own scene with the heroes’ montage of Fantasmic! at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, as well as being part of the night-time fireworks show Happily Ever After and on top of the Adventure Friends Cavalcade float at the Magic Kingdom. Furthermore, the rooms within Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort were updated in July 2021 to be themed to Moana, though this is done tastefully via Moana-inspired artworks and themed patterns on pillows, carpets and furnishings.
Outside of the Walt Disney World Resort, Moana can be found at meet-and-greets, and within shows and parades. At Disneyland, Moana has a meet-and-greet location in Adventureland and appears during the Magic Happens parade. In Shanghai Disneyland, Moana is a part of Mickey’s Storybook Adventure live theatre show, and she even has her own stage show at Hong Kong Disneyland called Moana: A Homecoming Celebration, along with a meet-and-greet location in Adventureland. At Tokyo Disneyland, Moana appears as part of the Harmony in Color parade which began in 2023 to celebrate the park’s 40th anniversary, and is also featured within the Believe! Sea of Dreams night-time show at Tokyo DisneySea. Moana used to have a meet-and-greet location at Disneyland Paris, but does not seem to appear anymore. Moana can also be found at Disney’s Hawaii resort, Aulani.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This shows just how quickly Moana, the movie and the character, have gained in popularity and proves the success of the movie. It is a great movie from Disney: the songs and music are amazing; the characters are lovable, funny, and relatable; the story is easy to follow, yet full of excitement and adventure, and, to top it off, it showcases cultures that have previously been misrepresented. It may not have been perfect but the good intentions are clear. Moana tells us to always follow what we believe is right, and that family and protecting our natural resources are two of the most important things in life.
Moana is a princess film with a difference, and clearly, I’m not the only one who believes it to be one of the best Disney animated films to have come out of the 2010s. Its reputation and following speaks for itself.
REFERENCES
[1] Credit: Disney, “Voice of the Islands”, from Moana (2016) Blu-Ray Release (2017).
[2] Credit: Marc Snetiker, ’10 fun facts about Moana that will make you say ‘Wow, what a fun Moana fact’, Entertainment Weekly (online), 15th June 2022.
[3] Credit: Marc Snetiker, ’10 fun facts about Moana that will make you say ‘Wow, what a fun Moana fact’, Entertainment Weekly (online), 15th June 2022.
[4] Credit: Disney, “Voice of the Islands”, from Moana (2016) Blu-Ray Release (2017).
[5] Credit: Disney, “Deleted Scenes”, from Moana (2016) Blu-Ray Release (2017).
[6] Credit: Disney, “Island Fashion” from Moana (2016) Blu-Ray (2017).
[7] Credit: Disney, “The Elements Of…” from Moana (2016) Blu-Ray Release (2017).
[8] Credit: Marc Snetiker, ’10 fun facts about Moana that will make you say ‘Wow, what a fun Moana fact’, Entertainment Weekly (online), 15th June 2022.
[9] Credit: Disney, “They Know the Way: Making the Music of Moana”, from Moana (2016) Blu-Ray Release (2017).
[10] Credit: Ethan Anderton, ‘Disney Animation’s ‘Moana’ Looks and Sounds Absolutely Gorgeous [D23 Expo 2015]’, SlashFilm.com, 14th August 2015.
[11] Credit: Disney, “Inner Workings” and “Maui Mini Movie: Gone Fishing”, from Moana (2016) Blu-Ray Release (2017).
[12] Credit: Doug Herman, ‘How the Story of “Moana” and Maui Holds Up Against Cultural Truths’, Smithsonian Magazine (online), 2nd December 2016.
[13] Credit: Disney, ‘Dwayne Johnson Reveals Plans for Live-Action Reimagining of Disney’s ‘Moana’, The Walt Disney Company (online). 3rd April 2023.
[14] Credit: Chloe James, ‘”Who Wants This?” Fans Criticize Plans for ‘Moana’ Land at Disney World’, InsidetheMagic.net, 4th April 2023.
[15] Credit: Emmanuel Detres, ‘Moana-Inspired EPCOT Attraction Revealed in New Video’, InsidetheMagic.net, 7th April 2023.
The Disney Purist 