Great looking and sounding ocean adventure

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2018)

'Moana' is a near-flawless family film from Disney. It's got pretty much everything: comedy (mostly from a chicken!), pathos, a good journey with some adversity to overcome, some self-discovery, a great sidekick, some songs, the death of a loved one (the Grandma (House)) and heaps of great animation/scenery.
The Chief (Morrison/Jango Fett), doesn't want Moana (Cravalho) to leave their Pacific island, for fear of the big ocean, but she has to follow her destiny and find Maui (Johnson) to restore the heart of Te Fiti and restore balance to the islands. Maui obviously starts out as a bit of a jerk, but he endears himself to us with his well-meaning ways and hilarious moving-tattoos. The lava monster's cool, but not too scary - definitely OK for kids over 3.
It's great to see/hear Polynesian actors, songs (particularly the tribal drums) and ancestral art/tattoos. There's a great voice cast - the Grandma is touching - and Clement (Flight of the Conchords) is hilarious as the giant/evil crab. However, it's Moana's film and she's charismatic, feisty and respectful, depending on the situation (helps that they chose a 14-year-old Hawaiian to play her!). She probably sings a few too many songs for me (think there's about seven in the film), and they definitely could've done without The Rock's song! It all ends happily, with her people voyaging again.