‘Moana’ Review: Blissfully refreshing

Oggs Cruz

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‘Moana’ Review: Blissfully refreshing
Moana is a step up from your typical Disney heroine – and there's a lot to love about the latest from Disney

Let’s face it, beloved Disney isn’t as innocent as it seems. Ever since the cartoon conglomerate struck gold with Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937), it has unabashedly been reinforcing dated stereotypes. Its precious princesses, from golden-haired Aurora to slender-legged Ariel, are all representations of unrealistic concepts of what a beautiful woman should be. They loyal not to their nonexistent responsibilities over their constituents but mostly to their respective princes. 

Hesitant princess 

It is from this harsh but very real perspective that Ron Clements and John Musker’s Moana feels like a cold blast of fresh air. 

 

The titular protagonist (Auli’i Cravalho) is by all definitions of the word, a princess. She is the daughter of village chief and she is being groomed to rule her people and to solve her problems. She is unlike all other Disney princesses. She isn’t beholden to love. Heck, she isn’t even beholden to Maui (Dwayne Johnson), the self-worshipping demigod whom she recruits to help her fulfill her mission of delivering a magical jewel to its owner, a sleeping deity. 

Photo courtesy of Disney

In fact, when Maui starts to tease her about her being a princess, she takes offense. She does have an animal sidekick, but unlike Ariel’s dutiful crab or Jasmine’s ferocious tiger, Moana’s dimwitted chicken Heihei is more a liability than an asset. Moana’s physical attributes, such as her naturally tan skin and her frame, are defiantly rooted in her origins. 

Photo courtesy of Disney

Sure, like most of Disney’s other princesses, she also disobeys her father (Temueru Morrison) not to sail past the reef. However, her escape from the clutches of her stern parents isn’t out of teenage angst or romance or just the innate and sometimes inexplicable desire for freedom. It is out of self-fulfillment, out of a sincere notion that there is something direly lacking in her and her people’s way of living.

This is the reason why that one particular scene where she discovers that her people are actually voyagers makes narrative and emotional sense, despite being so conveniently expository. It is what the character needed to remain within the realm of reason, to not be just another stubborn princess off on another personal adventure to seek her self-centered happily-ever-after.

Ocean adventure

Moana’s adventure itself isn’t very novel.

As it turns out, the legend of mischievous Maui stealing a jewel from a goddess is true.

Photo courtesy of Disney

The village’s coconut harvests are being lost to rot. Its bays are no longer swarming with fish. It is now up to Moana, who was chosen by the sea to bear the mission to restore order to the world, to find Maui so that he can undo everything his irresponsible act has caused.

Photo courtesy of Disney

Much of the film is a collection of ingeniously conceived stunts. 

There’s a pirate raid that has coconuts storming Moana and Maui’s little boat in a feat of silly but exhilarating action. There’s also a rather inventive musical number involving a self-obsessed glow-in-the-dark crustacean (Jermaine Clement) who becomes embroiled in a battle of wits with the movie’s heroic duo. 

There aren’t that many surprises when it comes to the story. It is as straightforward as it should be. It doesn’t need to rely on needless innovation, since to muddle the formula might just lessen the impact of Disney’s effort to embrace progress and diversity – especially amidst a history so laden with stubbornness.

Gorgeous apology

In the end, Moana feels like a gorgeous and affecting apology for all of Disney’s sins and omissions. It is too little and too late, but the small gesture resounds especially in a time when intolerance and hate are threatening to strike like a cursed plague. – Rappler.com

Francis Joseph Cruz litigates for a living and writes about cinema for fun. The first Filipino movie he saw in the theaters was Carlo J. Caparas’ ‘Tirad Pass.’ Since then, he’s been on a mission to find better memories with Philippine cinema.

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