Moana
Pacific Heights
released 3 april (Blu-ray 3d, Blu-ray, dVd)/OUT NOW! (download) 2016 | pG | Blu-ray 3d, Blu-ray, dVd, download Directors ron Clements, John Musker Cast auli’i Cravalho, dwayne Johnson, Temuera Morrison, rachel House, Nicole scherzinger, Jemaine Clement
Since Pixar pioneer John Lasseter became creative top dog at Disney Animation, the studio’s output has been impressively eclectic. Alongside traditional (-ish) fairytales like Tangled and Frozen, we’ve had the videogame mash-up of Wreck-It Ralph, the alt-Marvel universe of Big Hero 6, and the animal cop thriller of Zootropolis. Moana marks another gear change for the studio, as they set sail for the high seas of the South Pacific with a fun, aquatic take on the road movie.
The film works because it takes the standard tropes of a Disney movie, and subverts them just enough to make them feel fresh. The eponymous Moana (newcomer Auli’i Cravalho) is an island chief’s teenage daughter, who teams up with egotistical demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) – in a hilariously antagonistic relationship that recalls the best Pixar mismatches – on a suitably mythic quest to return the heart of island goddess Te Fiti.
She’s a princess in all but name, but also heroic, intelligent and mostly in charge of her own destiny. While the tunes are catchy (The Rock can sing – who knew?), there’s also a self-awareness at play: at one point Maui tells Moana, “If you start singing, I’m going to throw up”. Even the sidekicks are unconventional twists on Disney cliché: an opinionated tattoo on Maui’s chest and the ocean itself, represented by an Abyss-like water tentacle.
By its nature Moana is episodic, hopping from one monster quest to the next – think Homer’s Odyssey transplanted to another hemisphere – but that doesn’t really matter when the foes range from an army of angry coconuts to a giant bling-obsessed crab who does a decent take on glam-era Bowie (courtesy of Flight Of The Conchords’ Jemaine Clement).
Moana also looks amazing, with an incredible quality of (artificial) light that makes you feel as if tropical warmth is radiating out of your TV. It’s the ideal way to kickstart spring after a typically dreary British winter.
Extras An impressively loaded Blu-ray boasts a commentary from the directors, seven deleted scenes (26 minutes), Maui short “Gone Fishing” (two minutes), Disney short “Inner Workings” (six minutes), a music video for “How Far I’ll Go”, and a reel of the song being sung in different languages.
There are also 70 minutes’ worth of featurettes: while a couple are throwaway, most are genuinely enlightening, covering everything from Polynesian fashions and the movie’s music, to the challenges of creating Moana’s CG barnet. Best of the bunch is “Voice Of The Islands” (31 minutes), which takes a rewardingly in-depth look at the history and mythology of the Pacific Islands – a surprisingly large amount made it into the movie. Buy the DVD and you just get the commentary, “Inner Workings” and the music video. Richard Edwards
Maui’s tattoo sidekick was hand-drawn by Eric Goldberg, best known for working on Aladdin’s Genie.
The ideal way to kickstart spring