With 'Moana', Clements and Musker Learn Valuable Lessons

Poster from Disney's Moana

With Moana, Clements and Musker Learn Valuable Lessons

                                                                                                             (Disney, 2016)

            A people’s culture is scared.  Many peoples are protective of that culture. A peoples’ identity is worth protecting.  To hand that over to someone is to trust them—say to them, “These beliefs, rituals, customs are me. I pray you do not harm me.” When that trust is respected, a beautiful union may blossom and create a wonderful piece of art and connection.  Disney’s Moana is a beautiful example of what these masterpieces can look like.

            The directors of the film Ron Clements and John Musker, who have Disney credits such The Princess and the Frog, Hercules, Aladdin, and The Little Mermaid to their names, have learned many things from their past films; the first lesson being a hard lesson about cultural appropriation. 

Aladdin happened to not have a cast member of Middle Eastern decent in any of the lead roles. Moana is beautifully cast with Hawaiian and Polynesian voices that use culturally appropriate singing culturally aware. 

The second lesson that Mr. Clements and Mr. Musker have learned through the years that the greatest thing to do as a directors is to put together the best, most talented group of people they can and then stay out of the way. 

            The screenplay by Jared Bush, who is celebrating the success of his screenplay for Zootopia, digs into the Hawaiian folklore to honor the history of the people.  In true Disney tradition, it is both comic—especially from a pet, seemingly-suicidal chicken—and heartbreaking.  Beyond the tradition, Mr. Bush uses mythology to create the demi-god Maui voiced by Dwayne Johnson.  In Hawaiian mythology, Maui is both hero and villain—raising the Hawaiian Islands from the sea waters and unleashing darkness upon the world that forces the people of Hawaii into a famine.

            Mr. Johnson, who was raised partly in Hawaii himself, as Maui is lovably infuriating.  He is so full of his own ego that within moments of meeting him, he sings “You’re Welcome,” a delightfully fun, narcissistic song.  Mr. Johnson’s voice acting is only matched by his full-throttle energetic singing.  He sings without hesitation and fear.  It is obvious to the audience that he takes such joy in playing this character and that joy is transferred to the audience, who taps their feet along.

                                                                                                             (Disney, 2016)

            Mr. Johnson is not the only joyful voice in the film.  Making her debut film appearance, the voice of Moana, Auli’i Cravalho sings out with such perfection that all I want is for her to make another film as soon as possible.

            The music that Ms. Cravalho and Mr. Johnson sing is composed by Lin-Manuel Miranda or Hamilton fame.  Mr. Miranda, a Manhattan native, brings a sense of joy, pride, and love to the songs he composes, combing a hip-hop rhythm and lyrical expression that does not seem to have a contemporary peer.  If you were to only half-listen, you would be moved to recognize traditional Hawaiian instruments, but to take note of the lyrics is to access a part of your soul that you could never describe.

                                                                                                             (Disney, 2016)

            At first glance, Mr. Clements’ and Mr. Musker’s film appears to be another in a long line of Disney princess films.  At a slightly closer look, it is another in a short line of Disney princess films in which the princess goes on a journey of self-discovery and triumphs with a new understanding of herself, the world, and her independence from a romantically submissive relationship. But at a deep, true examination of this beautiful film reveals the fondness and compassion with which the cast, writers, and directors approached this story. If there was hesitation of the Hawaiian people to hand over their culture—their story—to the creative team when they started to make this film, I hope they feel that the entire world now feels a respect and affection for a folklore that was already a wonderful piece of art has been recreated into a film that will live on through Disney history.

Title: Moana

Release date: 23 November 2017

Director: Robert Clements and John Musker

Writers: Jared Bush

Stars: Auli’i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Lin-Manuel Miranda

Rating: PG

Category: Comedy, Animated, Musical, Adventure

Run Time: 1 hr 47 min