Moana is a family friendly must watch

Rating: 7/10 (23 February 2017)

The movie Moana starts off like many other Disney movies: thus setting the stage for the rest of the movie. Moana starts off as little girl and you soon see that she, like many other princesses, is aspiring to be something her family and society doesn't want her to be. This is a very similar idea to the movie Mulan in which she joins the Chinese army even though it was man's job and proceeded to win the support of her people and everyone was happy. So when the movie Moana started in a similar fashion I was hesitant that it would be a stale Mulan-ish re run. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Moana is a fun, cute, feel good movie that was enhanced by the plot, voice actors, and fluid script that I would recommend for all ages. For starters Moana's unpredictable plot is intriguing due to the unknown element of the ocean exploration. The movie incorporates the unpredictability of the ocean by making Moana curious about it from the time she was born thus conveying the unpredictable plot while at sea. These multiple unexpected setbacks that occur on the ocean enhance the plot and makes it less cookie cutter. However, one down side is since this is a Disney movie there has to be a happy ending because it's Disney and they aren't going to make a children's princess movie have a sad ending. Another factor that made Moana an exciting movie was the voice actors for the characters. Especially Dwayne Johnson because his voice and tone fit the character Maui perfectly. Maui is a very large, muscular, stocky man and Dwayne Johnson is a large man in real life too so it was natural for him to play the role. The confident and deep tone he read Maui's lines with was very accurate to the stereotypical big macho man, but he also made his voice soft enough that it wasn't frightening to young children who make up the majority of the audience for Moana. Auli'I Cravalho also did a very good and appropriate vocal acting job for the audience as well. She used a very energetic and inspiring tone when Moana was trying to convince Maui to come with her on the adventure. As well as used a sterner tone when things started to get out of control. However, my favorite voice actor was Rachel House who played the old grandma Tala. Her tone was spot on with an old knowledgeable grandma. This was displayed by her compassionate and shaky voice which typically signifies wisdom. Overall the voice actors preformed their roles well and added to the movie's positives. Lastly Moana had a script that just flowed with the movie and didn't seem too cheesy. The dialogue was also not too complicated or hard to follow either since it was intended for a younger audience. For example, Moana's dialogue with Maui was childish and filled with simplified words that displayed frustration instead of using super complex words to get the same emotions involved. By doing this it actually made it more enjoyable for an older viewer as well because it was very easy to understand and was sort of a childish throwback tying it all together. All in all, I would recommend Moana for anyone under the age of 10 or wanting to relive a little portion of childhood. Between the heartwarming warming plot, emotionally touching voice actors and childish script Moana was a solid Disney film. I would rate it 7/10 stars and would say it is worth the watch for all ages.