Moana 2 (2024)

★★★1/2

Moana 2 is surprisingly a lot better and more entertaining than I thought it would be, however when compared with the first film it pales in comparison. Originally intended as a series for Disney+, this sequel attempts to recapture the magic of the original but falls short in nearly every area. The story feels like a natural continuation of the first and actually was pretty decent, however, it loses the strong emotion and authenticity the first film had. As well, the pacing felt episodic at times rather than flowing as a cohesive story. The animation, while overall very good, does not have the rich detail and quality we have come to expect from Disney animation as it becomes clear this was made on a TV budget. I thought the songs were better than expected despite not being written by Lin Manuel-Miranda, but again, they come nowhere near the first film’s iconic songs. Maui’s reduced presence for much of the film doesn’t help, though Auliʻi Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson still bring enough charm, energy, and humour to their roles to make this a passable sequel for families and devoted fans. I genuinely enjoyed it and it did surpass my low expectations — it's a worthy and fun sequel that has a decent story just unfortunately doesn’t hit all the same marks as the fantastic first film, most notably in terms of music. SO much better than Wish and Strange World though!

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Premise: After receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, Moana must journey to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she's ever faced.

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Disney

Directed by David G. Derrick Jr, Jason Hand & Dana Ledoux Miller

Screenplay by Jared Bush & Dana Ledoux Miller

Story by Jared Bush, Dana Ledoux Miller & Bell Smith

Cast: Auli’i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Hualalai Chung, Rose Matafeo, David Fane

Runtime: 1hr 40min

Rating: PG

Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Musical

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IMDb Rating: 7.0/10

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 61%

RT Audience Score: 86%

RT Critic Average: 6.0/10

RT Audience Average: 4.4/5

Metacritic Score: 58

CinemaScore: A-

Letterboxd: 2.9/5

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Fun Fact: Originally began as a television series in 2020, with plans for the series to air on Disney+. In February 2024, the series was transformed into a theatrical sequel.

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