After seeing Zootopia, the candle that was my love of Disney was relit, and I was ecstatic to see their new animated film, Moana. I felt almost betrayed, however, when I viewed the flick. Instead of trying something new, or writing something original, I felt it was trying too hard to be Zootopia. How so? Let me give you the vague overview of the film and you can figure out which one I’m describing.
   

A female lead trying to do good for the world, meets a jerk who only thinks for himself. The jerk tries to ditch her, but it turns out she needs him, and she manipulates him into helping her on a quest. Later, after a lot of bickering and a fight scene with an outside force, the male lead reveals a tragic moment from his past. The two bond, team up with new found enjoyment of each other’s company, and go to finish their journey. The male becomes frustrated with the female, due to her actions, and abandons her at the start of the third act. She rekindles with family, and then re-unites with the male, whom is too snarky to admit he was wrong. They then finish their adventure, learning to love who you are on the inside.
   

See how that fits for both Moana and Zootopia? Same bones, different meat. Of course, there are a few differences between the two, as Zootopia dealt with race issues and prejudice, and Moana deals with… the same-old same-old Disney formula. Where Zootopia prevailed in witty character banter, wonderful writing, and funny dialogue, Moana fails. The duo from Zootopia was charismatic, with their opposite personalities fusing to create humor, and then later bonding over their similarities. The duo from Moana felt as though they actually hated each other, and later, when they learned to get along, it felt forced, rather than something that happened naturally. The dialogue suffered the same effect. For the most of it, Maui’s speech consisted of unfunny one-liners, and poorly written chatter.
   

Of course, what is a Disney movie without songs? A good one! The songs were… cool? No, not really. I only remember the beat, lyrics, and premise to two of them. Maui’s “You’re Welcome” and a giant crab’s (played by Flight of the Conchord’s Jemaine Clement) “Shiny” were the only two I liked, while the others felt bland. I hate using that word to describe movies, but that’s the best fit. The other songs were bland.
   

Warning, Spoilers ahead! Pacing was rushed in the first act, but slowed down in the latter two. However, the thing that took my attention away from all of that, the thing that made me groan in the theater when I saw it, was the importance of loss. Loss of a family member, more specifically. When Moana’s grandmother dies, she tells Moana to flee her island and follow her destiny, whispering that she’ll be with her. What I assumed, is that Grandma would be with her in figurative spirit, a comforting feeling inside Moana, a tiny voice telling her that she can prevail.
   

But nope. She was being literal. Reincarnated as a Manta Ray, and then later in human form, she literally talks to Moana, literally gives her advice, and literally touches her. You could say it was all in Moana’s head, but I think otherwise. This is another case of kid’s movies treating death like it isn’t important. Disney has done this before, and they will continue to do so.
   

Later still, when Maui loses his magical Hook (a gift from the gods allowing him to transform into various animals) while protecting Moana, he happily reveals to her that “Hook or no hook, I am still Maui.” Then, when a goddess gifts him with a new one, he happily accepts. What would have been more mature is if Maui declined the hook, reinforcing his statement that he was Maui, a person. Not a person with a defining item. A person who needed no material item to prove his worth. Instead, he takes it. So now that’s family loss and material loss Disney rules as unimportant. Good job, guys.
   

All in all, the film still has a lot of pros, but I’ll leave Rotten Tomatoes to tell you those. In my eyes, I enjoyed it, but it still had an ocean-full of problems. Final rating: 6/10