A nice addition to Disney's 3D animated film library

Rating: 8/10 (16 August 2017)

Moana is a CGI musical animated film from Walt Disney Animation Studios. Featuring the voices of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Temuera Morrison, and newcomer Auli'i Cravalho, it is a nice addition to Disney's 3D animated film library and a fun journey of self-discovery.
On the small Polynesian island of Motunui, Moana (voiced by Auli'i Cravalho), the daughter and heir of the island's chief, lives in harmony with her fellow inhabitants. One day, Motunui is struck by a terrible curse brought on by the Demigod Maui (voiced by Dwayne The Rock Johnson), which causes food and vegetation to become scarce. Determined to fix this, Moana departs from the island to search for Maui to help her in accomplishing this task.
Despite containing some of the typical Disney tropes and clichés, Moana manages to feel fresh and vibrant, thanks in part to its huge heart and likable charm. I particularly enjoyed the nice blend of the Polynesian culture, which includes those of Samoa, Hawaii, and New Zealand. The film is very beautiful to look at and the visuals can be stunning at times. The songs, in particular, "You're Welcome", are catchy and compliment the film quite well, and never feel annoying or as if they were written specifically to win awards, unlike a certain song from another Disney film about letting go. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is amusing as Maui and he certainly projects enough of his good-naturedness into the role. However, it is newcomer Auli'i Cravalho who stands out the most, mainly due to how well written her character happens to be.
I rate it 8/10