“Moana 2” review: Not so brilliant

“Moana 2” opens in theaters on Wednesday, November 26th.

In Moana 2, the stakes seem higher: After saving her home from ruin, the revered, titular wayfinder has a new mission: she reconnects with the groups of people scattered across the ocean by an angry deity. But the follow-up not only builds on the world she previously explored, but rather plays like a by-the-numbers, beat-for-beat replay. Moana leaves Motunui, has a few encounters with allies and villains, and then meets a powerful natural being in a final showdown. And while stars Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson and writer Jared Bush are back on board for Moana 2, the original directing and writing teams are not, resulting in more of the same but with the freshness of the first Films.

Moana reunites with the shape-shifting demigod Maui and sails to the ancient island of Motufetu, accompanied by a crew of her fellow islanders. At home, her younger sister Simea awaits Moana’s return, which only adds to the emotional responsibility that rests on the protagonist’s shoulders. Of the countless directions in which Bush and directors David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand and Dana Ledoux Miller could have taken the sea story, they instead chose to reproduce the original draft with only minor deviations from the story. Visually, there’s little deviation from what legendary directors John Musker and Ron Clements and the animators of “Moana” achieved with water effects and photorealistic vistas. There’s still worthy spectacle in Moana 2’s most intense action sequences, particularly one in which the group faces a raging storm. However, no formal risks are taken when it comes to character design or animation style. At least the filmmakers were able to come up with an early standout segment in which they dabbled ever so briefly in striking, dreamlike imagery, while “Moana” has a bleak vision of things to come.

Moana’s adorable pet pig Pua gets to come along for the ride this time, although he doesn’t have much to do other than pose for a few reaction photos. The same goes for wide-eyed chicken Hei Hei, whose comic supporting role has less impact now that Alan Tudyk’s frantic cackling competes for screen time with a boat full of unremarkable human sidekicks. These new friends include a skilled builder/designer, a farmer, and a muscular Maui admirer with a talent for painting. None of them overshadow the main characters, and they all remain on the sidelines of the story, adding the occasional humorous one-liner and being completely conflict-free.

But Moana 2’s central weakness is its music, a lackluster collection of songs that lack the spark of “How Far I’ll Go,” “You’re Welcome,” “Shiny” or any of composer Opetaia’s other recurring fan favorites Foa’i and Mark Mancina wrote with Lin-Manuel Miranda. Even the brooding main melody “Beyond” sounds disappointing. Miranda may have reached a point of overexposure in recent years, but his talent for a catchy tune – remember, he’s also responsible for Encanto’s chart-topper “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” – is sorely missing here. What makes Moana 2’s unforgettable tunes even worse are the film’s desperate attempts to evoke the franchise’s past musical successes through dialogue: the characters keep wondering how far they’ll go; At some point Maui says with a wink: “You’re welcome.”

Moana 2 gallery