Visual Splendor Rises to the Surface in Disney’s Live-Action ‘Moana’

Back in the day, critics — and not exclusively on the political left — were up in arms over what Richard Schickel described in the title of his influential 1968 book as “The Disney Version.” The charge was that Disney movies conquered the world with a viewpoint that was strictly patriarchal, bourgeois, and middle American. In short, it amounted to nothing less than cultural imperialism, white privilege writ very large.In more recent decades, the Disney vision has been nothing if not expansive and inclusive, taking Uncle Walt at his word when he rightfully declared that Disneyland, and by extension, all Disney product, is for everyone. We have seen gay couples and families welcomed in The Magic Kingdom, as well as a balanced representation of different ethnic backgrounds in the films themselves. What’s more, the time-honored Disney trope of the Princess-centric story has been strengthened and renewed by the inclusion of non-white heroines. In the past, it was alleged that Disney himself was antisemitic, but lately that notion has been reduced to a running gag on “Family Guy,” with no more veracity than the old wives’ tale that Disney himself has resided in an icebox these past 60 years.One other point about the Black and Brown Disney princesses: they get all the best songs, courtesy of no less than Stephen Schwartz (“Pocohontas,” 1995), Randy Newman (“The Princess and the Frog,” 2009), and Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Moana,” 2016). And now Disney has given us what they’re calling a live-action “Moana,” outfitted with a brand new song by Mr. Miranda, “Along the Way,” heard over the end titles.As with all the recent remakes of classic Disney IP, calling this live action is a stretch since nearly every shot makes use of digitally-generated imagery. The 2026 “Moana,” a theatrical feature directorial debut for Thomas Kail, whose major credit up to now has been Disney’s “canned” version of the Broadway production “Hamilton”; in fact, the most memorable song in the 2016 “Moana” score is “How Far I Go,” which sounds like The Schuyler Sisters go to Polynesia.The new “Moana” is far and away the most successful of the new line of what are technically described as “photorealistic CGI animated feature films,” in many ways, it’s even more compelling than the original. (The 2019 “Lion King” was possibly the worst, but the 2024 sequel, “Mufasa: The Lion King” was a vast improvement.) The new “Moana” is engaging, fast-moving, and never bloated like the “photorealistic” “Beauty and the Beast” and “Aladdin.”The 2026 “Moana” is so close to the original, almost shot-for-shot and beat-for-beat, that they could have practically reused the 2016 soundtrack, with Catherine Laga’aia, in the title role, lipsyncing to the original Moana, Auliʻi Cravalho, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, reprising his role onscreen, mouthing to his own dialog and vocals from a decade ago. You can’t help but notice certain unintended differences: it seemed perfectly natural in the animated version when the entire island of Motunui somehow does a line dance together. In the new version, it becomes more theatrical than cinematic and reminiscent of the swimming pool number in Mr. Miranda’s “In the Heights.” Your mileage may vary, but the connection between Moana and her community seems less tangible here. The middle section, once Moana gets beyond the reef and meets the demigod Maui (Mr. Johnson) is remarkable; it’s virtually non-stop action and amazing effects, one breathtaking visual after another (I recommend viewing the 3D edition) but even so I occasionally wonder, what do a giant talking crab and a colossal female fire demon have to do with a cocoanut blight back home on Motunui?You may wonder, since the new “Moana,” enjoyable as it is, is so close to the 2016 original, what exactly is the point? (Including a reprise of those deathless lines, “Let’s do this!” and “Bring it on!”) At least the 2023 “Little Mermaid” added something new at the center in the form of a non-white Ariel. Obviously, the idea is to make money, an ambition that in this instance has been dashed by a disappointing box office opening weekend.But longtime fans of what has become a proper franchise — there’s also an excellent animated sequel, “Moana 2,” from two years ago — will welcome the opportunity to spend more time with Moana and Maui and their dimwitted chicken companion, who comes across as even more of a cartoon character than he did in the original. The imagery is overwhelming, but not so much as to obscure the characters, and the story still radiates heart and warmth. My only disappointment was that the Rock, enhanced musculature, fright wig, and all, didn’t get more opportunities to sing and dance and that the chicken and the pig were not given a number. I guess we’ll have to wait. Paging Julie Taymor, for the Broadway version.

Visual Splendor Rises to the Surface in Disney’s Live-Action ‘Moana’

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