Director: David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, Dana Ledoux Miller
Cast: Auli’I Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Temeura Morrison, Nicole Scherzinger, Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda, Rose Matafeo, David Fane, Hualalai Chung, Rachel House, Awhimai Fraser, Gerald Ramsey, Alan Tudyk
Screenplay: Jared Bush, Dana Ledoux Miller
100 mins. Rated PG.

Back in the 1990s, Disney frequently release direct-to-video sequels to their popular theatrical properties. Occasionally, these sequels would be constructed from several episodes of an abandoned TV series, and they were the absolute worst, so when I heard that the Moana limited series on Disney+ would be restructured into a theatrical sequel, my mind flew back to the horror of those direct-to-video duds, and while Moana 2 does feel like a fully constructed story as opposed to several disparate episodes, it’s completely missing the heart and soul of the original film.

Moana (Auli’I Cravalho, Mean Girls) has spent the last several years as a wayfinder for her people, searching for other communities spread across the ocean. When she receives a message from her ancestors, she sets out with a new crew in search of a missing island that can lead to finding those other communities, if only they can survive these new dangerous waters.

Moana 2 is gorgeously displayed, with some of the most striking visuals of recent animated fare, and the three-person directing team made great use of that visual palette in order to showcase some of the most interesting and exciting action set pieces of the year. While the film is lacking in other aspects, it’s absolutely exciting when focused on its adventure story, even though it’s similarly structured to its predecessor. Providing new context to some returning players like the Kakamora and even some new mythical creatures like the giant clam island are delightful.

Unfortunately, Moana 2 feels like a movie of obligatory elements that are both unnecessary and unsuccessful. The first film featured musical numbers, so the creative team included new songs, but the absence of Lin-Manuel Miranda is felt and there isn’t a single song in the film that is impactful or memorable once leaving the theater. The first film had Dwayne Johnson (Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle) as Maui, so the team wrote Maui into the sequel. The problem is that Maui doesn’t feel necessary to Moana 2. This time around, Moana has a team of her villagers assisting in her quest, and if the film had given the dedicated Maui run time to developing these supporting characters and Moana’s internal journey to become the leader her people need her to be, the film would have been all the better.

Speaking of the new secondary characters, I appreciated the idea of giving Moana a chance to become a leader and introducing a number of new characters to join her. This should give the sequel an identity all its own, but we quickly learn, however, that the screenplay just assigns each of these supporting players a single definable trait. One of them loves to tinker! One of them hates everything! One of them loves Maui! But that’s about it. Had these characters been fleshed out, the whole film would’ve felt more important to Moana’s character growth as she finds a way to make them work together, but NO, we have to get Maui back instead, making the follow-up feel more wash-rinse-repeat than it original.

Moana 2 has some genuine excitement in its narrative, and it’s a lovely-looking movie, but it feels so shackled to what the filmmakers think they need to include instead of what would actually benefit the film. Remove the music and Maui and uplift your supporting players and the sequel has a lot more to work with, but what is here feels a little soulless. While not a bad film (certainly much better than most of those direct-to-video sequels) this follow-up is a mixed bag. It’ll work for families looking for harmless consumable entertainment, though I found it to be a mostly missed opportunity to forge a new path.

2.5/5
-Kyle A. Goethe