Is a live-action remake of Moana necessary, only 10 years after the original animated film premiered? The answer, decidedly, is no, but then again, none of the Disney live-action remakes have been necessary, so that’s where we’re starting from.
So, why remake this, so soon? Now? There’s Lin-Manuel Miranda’s incredible songs, including How Far I’ll Go, one of the best and most powerful I want ballads of all time.
We love hearing them again, but that’s not the reason. There’s the lovely representation of Polynesian and Pacific Islander culture, which is nice, but not enough to remake this beloved film either.
What seems the most plausible reason as to why they remade Moana now is about 250 pounds and sporting a really questionable wig.
That’s right, co-star Dwayne Johnson, who voiced the arrogant demigod Maui in the 2016 animated film, now stars as the arrogant demigod Maui in the live-action remake, and it almost seems like they had to do it before he aged out of the role. Indeed, the live-action Moana almost feels like a vanity project for Johnson.
That’s not to say that there aren’t fun aspects to watching Moana again, just slightly different. I’m only human, after all, I’m not immune to How Far I’ll Go, a song whose reprise can pull a tear from anyone’s eye.
But it is very weird to be watching a movie with the same word for word, note for note story of a film we watched – and loved – only 10 years ago.
Was there an option to do a live-action Moana but perhaps with a new story, a new adventure of Moana and Maui? It really is strange to see something so identical, just not executed as well as the original. None of these songs hit like the first time.
The director is Thomas Kail, a seasoned theater director (Hamilton, In the Heights) making what is essentially his narrative feature film directorial debut – he directed the staged version of Hamilton that streamed on Disney+ and episodes of television, including Fosse/Verdon.
He doesn’t stray from what we saw in the animated film, but he also doesn’t take as much advantage of shooting on location in Oahu or the possibilities that come from working with actors.
It’s either too faithful to the original, or a bit staid, and even stiff and claustrophobic.
His staging and camera blocking isn’t much to write home about, with medium close-ups in shallow focus (the Disney house style, unfortunately). Any elements of sweeping spectacle, like the visions of ancestral wayfinders navigating the seas, don’t feel all that much different from the animated version.
So what’s good about Moana? The heroine, as usual. Australian actress Catherine Laga’aia makes her film debut, and she’s terrific. Her singing voice sounds remarkably like the original Moana, Auli’i Cravalho (who also serves as a producer alongside Johnson and his team, and Miranda).
She embodies the scrappy determined spirit of this powerful female character, and the emotional moments between Moana and her grandmother, played by the wonderful Rena Owen, are very emotional. When it’s Moana on her own (or with grandma), the movie is genuinely moving, about a young person stepping into her power.
But Moana is, and always has been, an unlikely buddy comedy between the title character and Maui, with whom she has to collaborate to return the heart of Te Fiti, on an adventure that takes her far from home on her heroine’s journey.
Johnson plays Maui just this side of too snarky and sarcastic, but the friendship between the two characters is ultimately sweet.
Perhaps Johnson is just too big of a star now, but you only ever see him in the role. It’s like watching Moana and one of the biggest global superstars go on an adventure together, not the specific character of Maui.
But the real problem with this version is the recency bias.
With such a faithful remake so close to the original, it’s much easier to compare the two, and the second version is never going to stack up to the first, because we remember how we felt when we first heard How Far I’ll Go or Where You Are, or the glam rock tune Shiny (Jemaine Clement returns to voice the crab Tamatoa).
Kail, and writers Jared Bush and Dana Ledoux Miller, just don’t do enough to distinguish this as a fresher take on the familiar material, leaving us questioning why we’re watching this at all.
This live-action version is cute, and Laga’aia is an exciting new star, but it doesn’t quite pull off a convincing argument to go out when we already have Moana at home. – By Katie Walsh/Tribune News Service
Summary:
Competent remake, but still unneccesary.
