Back in the 1990s, as Disney’s second golden age of animated
movies surged, the company entered the sequel business, churning out follow-ups
to their popular titles. For the most part, these represented inferior products
and Disney knew it, but the goal was to expand branding rather than create art.
Although featuring the original voice actors, even the best were characterized
by shallow stories, cut-rate animation, and lackluster songs. Instead of going
the theatrical distribution route, Disney opted for direct-to-video releases –
a decision that created a lucrative revenue stream for more than a decade. In
some ways, Moana 2 feels like a throwback to those ‘90s sequels – a movie
that was made more to capitalize on the popularity of a character than because
there was a compelling new story to tell. Moana 2 features top-notch
animation and songs that are better than passable but the plot feels like a regurgitation
of elements from the first movie combined with bits and pieces of other Disney
animated projects from across the years.

Moana 2 began life as a planned Disney+ series taking
the character on new adventures. Upon seeing footage from the series, Disney
CEO Bob Iger thought it was “too good” for direct-to-streaming and had the production
team rework the series into a movie. Although the result feels reasonably
self-contained, an unevenness in pacing and some narrative hiccups are evidence
of the late-innings metamorphosis. The result will likely please the legions of
Moana fans and is easily digestible for accompanying parents even if Moana
2 falls short of being the next Disney classic.

The story transpires three years after the original (even if
Moana’s little sister, Simea, seems only a little older). Moana, now a revered wayfinder,
has been taking long trips away from home in the company of her pet rooster,
Heihei, and pig, Pua, seeking to find other tribes of humans. She learns that
the storm god Nalo has cast a curse that prevents diverse groups of people from
contacting each other. In order to reverse the curse, she must find the mystical
island of Motufetu and raise it from the ocean depths. To this end, she builds
a bigger canoe and recruits a crew of three: warrior Moni (Hualalai Chung),
engineer and craftswoman Loto (Rose Matafeo), and grumpy farmer Keke (David
Fane). As she sets out, the demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson), who is separately on
his own quest to find Motufetu, is captured by one of Nalo’s allies, Matangi (Awhimai
Fraser), possibly to be used as bait to lure Moana.

Moana 2 features surprisingly little in the way of
conflict – the climax, which is sufficiently suspenseful, is more of a
human-versus-nature battle – and the main villain, Nalo, appears sparingly. It seems
that the filmmakers may have visions of making him a Thanos-style “Big Bad” who
remains in the background (at least for now). This ongoing-adventure approach
makes more sense for a TV series than in a movie, although a box office win for
Moana 2 would guarantee the greenlighting of more sequels. Visually, the
movie pops although there are no noticeable advances from the first film
(perhaps because this form of animation has reached full maturity). Although
the first half of the story is light on action, things ramp up during the final
45 minutes.

One of the biggest disappointments in Moana 2 is the
lack of direct interaction between Moana and Maui. Once they are co-located,
the camaraderie from the first film re-ignites but it takes nearly an hour
before the two share the screen. For kids wanting to see the characters resume
their banter, that’s an awfully long time to wait.

With Lin-Manuel Miranda having stepped away from songwriting
duties to work on Mufasa, Abigail Barlow & Emily Bear came on board
to collaborate with composers Mark Mancina and Opetaia Foa’i. Although the
movie’s songs are a step up from generic, they lack the dynamism evident in
Miranda’s contributions to Moana. Moana’s new anthem, “Beyond,” echoes “How
Far I’ll Go” without reaching the same emotional heights. Likewise, while Maui’s
“Can I Get a Chee Hoo?” is fun and energetic, it’s not “You’re Welcome.” An
argument can be made that the musical highlight of Moana 2 is “We Know
the Way” – a reprise of the Miranda-penned song from the first film.

Overall, Moana 2 does enough to fit the bill of solid
family entertainment. It accomplishes the most important thing for any sequel: reunite
the original characters with each other and the audience. Its high points lack
the amplitude of its predecessor’s pinnacles but it avoids craters. Rather than
taking any sort of bold step forward, Moana 2 is more of the same.
Although that can be seen as a positive, it feels a little disappointing that this
is the best Disney was able to craft after an eight-year wait.

Moana 2 (United States, 2024)

“Ghosts of Red Ridge” is a low-budget Western that tries to be a ghost story. It’s not anything to write home about in either genre.

There’s some nice lived-in detail in the locations, the dusty, dirty costumes and almost-colorful characters. But that plot. Those characters.

Owen Williams stars as the sheriff of Red Ridge, a guy so haunted by the violence of the place and his job that he starts seeing the dark-eyed dead.

This little piece of Texas (a long-standing movie set in Arizona) popped up as a mining town, but the precious metals rush was a bust. Even waiting for the railroad to come through isn’t enough to keep the locals from lashing out.

With Trent (John Marrs) and Gretchen (Lena Wilcox) running a gang bent on robbing the general store (by proxy) and a stagecoach converted to freight hauling, it’s all Sheriff Dunlap and his deputy (Trent Culkin) can do to go a whole day without a shootout.

There’s backstabbing afoot, and a land scheme in play. Neither of them makes any sense.

The period-correct but sparse Gammons Gulch Movie Set (Is it still for sale?) lays out a common problem for no-budget Westerns — more extras and cast members than buildings to house, feed and employ them. It’s a convincing looking village, but just a bare bones “movie” version of an Old West town.

That’s quibbling, as is any mention of the movie’s dialogue anachronisms and the screwy choice to have the sheriff a well-read man into thermodynamics, “kinetic theory” and the like.

Maybe he should be reading up on the law — misexplaining “due process” to a stranger (Griffin Wade) who just happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“You’re a good man,” saloon gal Mary (Mercedes Peterson) declares. “Some things ‘good’ can’t fix.”

That might be the best line of dialogue. The worst?

“They went THATaway!”

There’s a hold-up by highwaymen (and a highwaywoman), a shipment of nitroglycerin to contend with and with every new body, the sheriff has another face to put on the apparitions that fill his dreams and rattle his waking hours.

I always appreciate the degree of difficulty filmmakers take on when they tackle a period piece, especially a Western, instead of the broke movie maker’s favorite genre — horror.

But director Stefan Colson and screenwriter Brandon Cahela take their shot at trying it both ways, and fail in both genres.

Rating: unrated, violence, profanity

Cast: Owen Williams, Trent Culkin, Griffin Wade, Lena Wilcox and John Marrs.

Credits: Directed by Stefan Colson, scripted by Brandon Cahela. A Well Go USA release.

Running time: 1:21

Star cast (Voiceovers): Auliʻi Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda, Rose Matafeo, David Fane, Hualālai Chung, Awhimai Fraser, and Gerald Ramsey

Directors: David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, Dana Ledoux Miller

Well, the first part of Moana was like a breath of fresh air for me, and I still cherish it as one of my favourites thanks to its emotional depth and other amazing elements. After a gap of eight years, the second part of our beloved is set to hit the screens, and while the expectations are sky-high, with a heavy heart, I have to admit that it fails to recreate the magic of the first part.

Talking about the plot, _
Moana 2 s_tarts after 3 years from where the first part concluded. Our beloved wayfinder Moana is hunting for more islands like her own Motunui, where people reside. Amid this, she gets an unexpected call from her ancestors, who inform her about the cursed island of Motufetu, which is deserted by the power-hungry god Nalo.

As the world is disconnected due to Motufetu being submerged in the ocean, Moana along with her small group of unique and weird people is on a mission to find Motufetu, which will reconnect all the people. On the journey, she also finds her old friend Maui, who claims himself to be a demi-god. Well, will they be able to save the island and beat god Nalo? For that, you have to watch Moana 2 on the big screen.

Honestly, the makers have made Moana 2 a visual spectacle but failed to add depth to the emotions of the characters and are marred by the unidimensional and predictable storyline. While the sequel is ahead of its predecessor in terms of VFX but lacks the magic of the first part.

The film doesn’t have any high points or wow moments as the challenges faced by the limited and prominent characters don’t emerge as an engrossing experience. Despite these problems, I still feel Moana 2 will be a delightful experience for kids between 10-12 years, who will love the cheerfulness and larger-than-life portrayals.

On the whole, Moana 2 is not a bad film but nowhere close to its prequel.

Moana 2 is releasing on 29th November

Rating: 2.5 (out of 5 stars)