Nearly a decade ago the original Moana dropped. It taught us Dwayne Johnson could sing.
More than that. It shifted the deck chairs at Disney. Centering Polynesians wasn’t a gimmick. It was the point. Except for the crab guy. Jemaine Clement plays Tamatoa and he loves jewelry. Otherwise it is all Pacific Islanders.
The animated films continued a trend Frozen and Brave started. No princes needed. Just a girl finding her way. My daughter is seven. We watch them until my eyes blur.
So when Disney announced a live-action version, my instinct was cynical. IP farming. Easy money. Read the script? Probably just copying beats from 2016.
Read more: How Disney crafted water for its visually stunning Moana
It hits theaters Friday. And here is the rub. It is completely unnecessary.
But it is fun.
Actually it might be the best time I’ve had at one of these remake marathons. No Will Smith Genie awkwardness here. No sweating through the nostalgia. Just… a good time.
I had fears. Of course I did. The opening minutes in Motonui move at a glacial pace. You know the beats. The father says no. The ocean says go. It feels like homework. Watching humans re-enact animation feels redundant. Why bother?
Then Catherine Laga’aia steps onto the screen.
She plays Moana. And she is electric. Along with Rena Owen as grandmother Tala. They warm up the room immediately. The adventure feels real again.
The plot? Same as always. Moana defies her dad, Chief Tui. She hunts down Maui. The demigod stole the heart of Te Fiti. Now rot is spreading across Moana’s home. Save the stone, save the island. Standard stakes. High stakes.
But out on the ocean, the movie finds its legs.
It stops being a photocopy and becomes its own thing. The songs? Re-recorded. Organic. Lin-Manuel Miranda and director Thomas Kail are working together again. The duo behind Hamilton. They bring that theatrical energy here. It fits.
Laga’aia is making her feature debut. You can see why she got the job. Her joy is infectious. Every note hits different because a real person is screaming into a mic. It’s raw.
And then there’s Dwayne.
When the trailer came out, I winced. That wig. It screamed “I am trying too hard.” Flashback to the Hercules fumble. Dread set in.
But the wig isn’t the problem. Johnson owns Maui. Again.
His third go-around with this character works because he leans in. He’s not just buffed-up CGI anymore. He has texture. Scars. Hair that moves when it rains. He brings this weird dad energy. Egomanic. Cantankerous. Hilarious.
Laga’aia keeps him grounded. Their scenes have chemistry. The demigod feels flawed. Human, even if he is not one. He’s more interesting than the animated version.
The visual effects hold up. The ocean still acts weird and magical. Coconut pirates lurk in the mist. Te Kā, the lava beast, terrifies as usual. But these effects don’t overshadow the story. They support it. They expand the world without stealing the focus.
Take the scene with Tamatoa. Clement voices the crab again. The colors. The sparkles. The musical number Shiny is a spectacle. It pops on screen. It belongs here.
This version doesn’t replace the original. It shouldn’t.
Think of it as a companion piece. A sibling. It explores legacy and destiny with the same resonance as before.
It wins. I’m going to take my daughter to see it. Let’s just go with the flow. 🌊
