Unlike Gladiator II: The Next Day, Moana 2 waited a mere eight years to give the first film a return visit. Moana 2 is an acceptable follow-up, with some wonderful animation, pleasant-enough songs but a sometimes-meandering plot.
Moana (Auli'i Cravalho) is still finding new islands and seeking new people but always returning to her native Motuniu. She has more reason to with her adorable little sister Simea (Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda), who are devoted to each other. On one of her searches, Moana finds a mysterious piece of pottery with symbols, which in an island ceremony grant her a vision of the legendary Tautai Vasa (Gerald Faitala Ramsey), a long-gone way-finder.
His vision tells her of the evil god Nalo, who has sunk the mystical island of Motufetu, which had connected all people together. Moana, the new Master Wayfinder, must raise the island from the sea. For that, she needs a crew to sail with. There is Pua, her pet pig, and Heihei, the very eccentric rooster. As for the humans, Moana recruits three crewmen: blabbermouth handywoman Loto (Rose Matafeo), grumpy farmer Kele (David Fane) and storyteller Moni (Hualalai Chung), the biggest Maui fanboy in the universe.
As for the demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson)? He is being held prisoner by Nalo and his henchwoman, Matangi (Awhimai Fraser), in Nalo's massive lair. Eventually, the two groups meet, thanks in part to the Kakamora, the coconut pirates from the first film. Maui informs them that humans were not meant to be in this world, so they will die even if successful. Encouraged by Matangi to Get Lost, Moana is determined to find another way. Will this motley crew be able to take down the wicked Nalo and raise Motufetu?
Moana 2 is surprisingly shorter than Moana. That is very strange given that Moana 2 has a mid-credit scene hinting that a Moana 3 may take place. Moana 2 has the same virtues and the same flaws as Moana too, so that may color your view on how you look at Moana 2.
You have some elements that teeter on the brink of pushing it down a bit. Some sequences, such as Moana's visions and the fight with a giant sea monster, may make it a bit too intense for younger children. You also have a character briefly die, and while the character does return, I think it ran a bit too long to not cause alarm among the younger set.
Moana 2 also has perhaps too much contemporary elements for its own good. Moni's total fanboy manner with Maui is fine for a while, but it soon becomes slightly eye-rolling. When the coconut pirates ask him to translate something he's written, he replies, "That is fanfic". Maui makes a comment about Moana perhaps being wrong about hearing a call for her mission. "Unless it's a butt dial," he quips, adding that the reference will make sense in 2,000 years. Just as a "tweet" quip in Moana, this "butt dial" thing might sound funny, but it will date the film in a few years.
Moana 2 did struggle in putting Maui into the overall story. I think audiences would be waiting for our megalomaniac demigod to pop up; I wonder, however, if Jared Bush and Dana Ledeux Miller's screenplay might have worked better if it had held back Maui's return to build up anticipation. I think it might have been funny to have the group of mortals first come upon Maui literally bound.
The film also doubled down on some characters that maybe were a bit too much. I liked the coconut pirates from the first film. I do think that in Moana 2, maybe the film relied on them too much. I'm reminded of the aliens from Men in Black. Fine in a small part, perhaps too much when you want to make them to take a more prominent role.
I also wonder if we needed a mid-credit scene. If we are going to hint that Moana will return, the scene should have been shown sooner. The only reason that I saw it at all was because I was still gathering my things before leaving. Had I been ready, I would have missed this brief bit altogether.
However, there are other elements that keep Moana 2 afloat (no pun intended). The little sister Simea is meant to be adorable and appeal to kids. In that, Simea did what was expected. The bond between "big sister" and "little sister" works very well. The same can be said of the Kakamora coconut pirates. They were meant to be cute in Moana. They are still cute in Moana 2, though perhaps this is a case of less is more.
Some of the animation is also quite beautiful. In some cases, it is almost life-like. The visions Moana has of Tautai Vasa are quite impressive. I thought well of at least the first two songs in Moana 2. We're Back, the opening song, is a fine way to start our adventure. Beyond, Moana's big power ballad and its version of the first film's How Far I'll Go, works well in expressing her views. I also think Get Lost is not bad, though ironically it gets a bit lost amidst the production design.
The others were not terrible but not great. What Could Be Better Than This? is to my mind filler but I think kids will find it cute. Johnson's big number, Can I Get a Chee Hoo? is at least mostly talked/rapped than sung, so that is a plus.
When watching Moana 2, I have to remember the target audience: children and their parents, especially fans of Moana. Will they like Moana 2? I think they will, though at least one child did ask her father near the end of the film, "Is it almost over?". Moana 2 is fine, pleasant enough, neither damaging the original nor adding much to it. I thought it was enough to please those going. Yes, it could have been better, but it was fine and cute enough. I can't fault Moana 2 for being acceptable when that was what it was aiming for.
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