Moana 2
Walt Disney Animation Studios is responsible for the production of Moana 2, an American musical adventure film set in 2024. It was directed by David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller from a screenplay by Miller and executive producer Jared Bush.
It is the second film in the Moana franchise and the sequel to Moana (2016). Dwayne Johnson and Auli’i Cravalho reprise their roles from the original movie. It takes place three years later and tells the story of Moana reuniting with the demigod Maui and putting together a wayfinding team to locate the lost island of Motufetu, break its curse, and reunite the ocean’s inhabitants.
Originally planned as a Disney+ miniseries, the Moana 2 sequel was reworked into a theatrical sequel by February 2024. The first film’s co-songwriters, Mark Mancina and Opetaia Foai, returned to score and write the songs, and Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear took over for Lin-Manuel Miranda as additional songwriters.
Moana 2 had its world premiere on November 21, 2024, at the Lanikuhonua Cultural Institute in Kapolei, Hawaii. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures released the film on November 27 in the United States.
The film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $1.06 billion worldwide, outgrossing its predecessor and becoming the third highest-grossing film of 2024. At the 82nd Golden Globe Awards, it was considered for a nomination for Best Animated Feature Film.
Plot
Moana spends her days exploring other islands near her home island of Motunui in the hope of finding people connected to the ocean three years after her adventure with the demigod Maui and the island goddess Te Fiti.
In a vision, her ancestor, Tautai Vasa, reveals why none of those people are connected anymore: the malicious storm god Nalo wanted power over the mortals, so he sunk a legendary island called Motufetu—which connected all islands—down to the depths of the ocean. If Moana is unable to raise Motufetu, Tautai also warns that the Motunui people will die out in the future. Along with her pet pig and rooster, Pua and Heihei, she gathers a group of people from Motunui—craftswoman Loto, historian Moni, and grumpy elderly farmer Kele—to follow the path of a comet across the ocean toward Motufetu.
In the meantime, Motufetu is captured by Matangi, Nalo’s enforcer, and Maui is looking for him because he had an argument with Nalo in the past. Maui is reluctant to get in touch with Moana because he is concerned that she might not survive if she comes to help.
Moana and her crew are captured by the Kakamora, a tribe of savage coconut-like pirates previously encountered by Moana, who reveal that Nalo’s actions against Motufetu had caused them to be disconnected from their home island. Kotu, a Kakamora crewmember, assists in paralyzing a massive monster clam, which houses Matangi’s hideout. Moana meets Matangi and learns that she is unhappy serving Nalo while the crew is searching for Maui. Before sending Moana and her friends to Nalo’s location, Matangi helps Moana escape and reunite with Maui and her friends.
Maui warns that fighting Nalo will result in death for mere mortals and that Nalo’s realm is more deadly than the mortal realm. The group is ambushed by the monsters of Nalo, causing damage to their raft and washing them ashore on an isolated island. Moana starts to feel hopeless, but Maui tells her to keep going. With Moana revitalized, the group plans to have Maui raise the island so that Moana can touch it, as that is the only way to restore Motufetu and stop Nalo. Her crew repairs her raft, but when the group ventures forth to confront Nalo, they encounter a gigantic storm.
Moana, realizing that Nalo is trying to stop the humans from breaking the curse, asks Maui to lift the island enough for her to touch it. With a lightning bolt, Nalo deprives Maui of his demigod powers as he begins to pull up the island with his gigantic hook. Moana dives into the ocean in a desperate attempt to touch the island underwater. Moana is successful until Nalo’s lightning bolt kills her.
Maui jumps in after her body, and with a magical chant, summons the spirits of Tautai Vasa and Moana’s ancestors (including her grandmother Tala) who help revive her as a demigoddess, with Moana gaining a wayfinder’s tattoo. Motufetu is finally raised by Maui, who has also regained his powers as a demigod. He assists Moana in reconnecting the people with the ocean.
A celebration in Moana’s honor is held when the crew, led by a flotilla of ocean people, returns to Motunui. In a scene near the end of the credits, Nalo is planning his vengeance and getting ready to punish Matangi for helping Moana when the enormous crab Tamatoa shows up to support him.
Voice Cast
Credit – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moana_2
- Auliʻi Cravalho as Moana,[7][8] the curious daughter of village chief Tui and his wife Sina, who is chosen by the ocean to break the curse on the island of Motufetu
- Cravalho reprises her role in the film’s Hawaiian language dubbing.[9]
- Dwayne Johnson as Maui,[10][11] a strong-willed shapeshifting demigod who accompanies Moana on her journey.
- Hualālai Chung as Moni, a member of Moana’s wayfinding crew and a fan of Maui’s[12]
- Rose Matafeo as Loto, a brainy but quirky craftswoman member of Moana’s wayfinding crew[12]
- David Fane as Kele, a grumpy farmer and member of Moana’s wayfinding crew[12]
- Awhimai Fraser as Matangi, Nalo’s enforcer who controls bats.
- Fraser reprises her role in the film’s Māori-language dubbing.[13]
- Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda as Simea, Moana’s little sister[12]
- Temuera Morrison as Tui, Moana’s father, and chief of Motunui Island.[12] Unlike the first film, where his singing voice was done by Christopher Jackson, Morrison does his own singing.
- Morrison reprises his role in the film’s Māori language dubbing.[13]
- Nicole Scherzinger as Sina, Moana’s mother and Chieftess of Motunui[12]
- Rachel House as Tala, Tui’s late mother and Moana’s paternal grandmother, who returns as a manta ray spirit
- House reprises her role in the film’s Māori-language dubbing.[13]
- Gerald Ramsey as Tautai Vasa, Moana’s ancestor
- Alan Tudyk as Heihei,[14] Moana’s pet rooster
Additionally, some of Dwayne Johnson’s family members have voice roles in the film including daughters Jasmine and Tiana as members of Moana’s fan club “MOANA-BE’s”, and his mother Ata Maivia Johnson as a villager.[15] Tofiga Fepulea’i voices the storm god and main antagonist Nalo in the mid-credits scene, which also features the giant coconut crab Tamatoa from the first film, reprised by Jemaine Clement.
Our General Review
Alright, buckle up, folks, because it’s time to set sail on the choppy seas of *Moana 2*—a sequel that’s less “How Far I’ll Go” and more “How Far Did This Go Off Course?” As Grok 3, built by xAI, I’ve got no skin in the game (or coconuts on my boat), so let’s dive into this Polynesian adventure with the enthusiasm of Moana’s chicken sidekick, Heihei, and the skepticism of a demigod who’s seen one too many sequels. Spoiler alert: it’s a wild ride, but not always for the right reasons.
First off, let’s talk about the visuals. *Moana 2* is a feast for the eyes, like someone took the original’s stunning animation, gave it a 2020s Disney budget, and said, “Make it shinier than Tamatoa’s treasure hoard!” The water sparkles like it’s auditioning for a shampoo commercial, the islands are lush enough to make you want to quit your job and move to Oceania, and the character designs are so vibrant you’ll wonder if they’re secretly powered by Maui’s magical fish hook.
Even the coconut pirates (yes, they’re back!) look like they’ve been hitting the gym since 2016. If nothing else, this movie is a reminder that Disney’s animators deserve a raise—or at least a lifetime supply of pineapple.
But here’s where the canoe starts to leak: the story. Oh boy, it’s like someone took the original *Moana* script, threw it into a blender with a bunch of new characters, and hit “puree.” Moana (voiced by the ever-talented Auliʻi Cravalho) is back, now a seasoned wayfinder with a little sister, Simea, who’s so adorable you’ll want to adopt her—until she starts singing, and you realize the songs are about as memorable as a grocery list.
The plot? Moana’s off to find Motufetu, a mythical island that’ll supposedly reconnect all the scattered Polynesian peoples. Why? Because a grumpy storm god named Nalo cursed it, and apparently, Moana’s the only one who can fix it. It’s a noble quest, sure, but it feels like a side mission from a video game rather than the epic journey we got last time.
Speaking of new characters, let’s meet the crew—because apparently, Moana can’t sail solo anymore. We’ve got Kele, a farmer who’s grumpier than a seasick pig; Loto, a chatty boat-fixer who’s basically the human equivalent of a Swiss Army knife; and Moni, a Maui fanboy who probably has a shrine to The Rock in his hut. They’re fine, I guess, but they’re about as useful as a screen door on a submarine. Half the time, you’re wondering why they’re even there—probably because this was originally a TV series, and Disney decided to cram six episodes into 100 minutes. The result? A narrative so choppy it makes the Pacific Ocean look like a kiddie pool.
And then there’s Maui, the demigod we all know and love, voiced by Dwayne “Can You Smell What The Rock Is Cooking?” Johnson. He’s still got the charm, the tattoos, and the ego the size of a volcanic island, but he spends the first half of the movie trapped by Matangi, a bat-obsessed diva who’s basically a vampire without the bloodlust. When he finally reunites with Moana, it’s like the movie remembers why we’re here—but it’s too little, too late. Their chemistry is still gold, though, and Maui’s song “Can I Get a Chee Hoo?” is the one tune that might stick in your head, mostly because it’s the closest thing to Lin-Manuel Miranda’s magic we get.
Oh, right, the music. Let’s pour one out for Lin-Manuel, who’s off doing *Mufasa* or something, leaving us with a soundtrack by Abigail Barlow, Emily Bear, and a couple of returning composers. Look, these songs aren’t *bad*—they’re just the musical equivalent of store-brand cereal. “Beyond” tries to be the new “How Far I’ll Go,” but it’s more like “How Far Can We Stretch This Franchise?” Matangi’s “Get Lost” is a bop, I’ll give it that, but the rest? You’ll forget them faster than Heihei forgets where he parked his brain. The original *Moana* had us belting out “You’re Welcome” for years; this one’s got us humming “Uh… What Was That Again?”
The humor, though? It’s there, and it’s delightfully weird at times. Maui calling Moana’s pig and chicken “bacon and eggs” got a snort out of me, and the coconut pirates are still the chaotic little gremlins we adore. There’s even a giant killer clam that tries to eat everyone, which is peak Disney absurdity. But then there’s the gross-out stuff—like an elder’s butt crack making a cameo—that feels like it’s pandering to the five-year-olds in the audience who think fart jokes are high art. It’s a mixed bag, like a luau buffet where half the dishes are delicious and the other half are questionable.
The climax is where *Moana 2* finally finds its sea legs. There’s a storm, a showdown with Nalo (who’s more of a plot device than a villain), and some genuinely cool visuals that’ll make you glad you saw this on the big screen. Moana’s perseverance shines, and the message about teamwork and connection is sweet, if a bit heavy-handed. But it’s hard to shake the feeling that this is a sequel for sequel’s sake—like Disney said, “Hey, the first one made bank, let’s do it again, but with more sidekicks!”
So, what’s the verdict? *Moana 2* is a gorgeous, occasionally hilarious mess that’s about as necessary as a second helping of poi when you’re already full. It’s not a shipwreck, but it’s not smooth sailing either. Kids will probably love it—there’s enough color and chaos to keep them entertained—but if you’re expecting the heart and soul of the original, you might be left adrift.
I’d give it a solid “Eh, it’s fine” out of ten, with bonus points for the animation and a stern “Where’s Lin-Manuel when you need him?” thrown in for good measure. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to rewatch the first one and pretend this was just a fever dream on the high seas. Chee hoo, indeed!
People Review (Taken From Google)
