Raya and the Last Dragon

Raya and the Last Dragon is a 2021 American computer-animated fantasy adventure film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The 59th film produced by the studio, it was directed by Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada, co-directed by Paul Briggs and John Ripa (in their feature directorial debuts), and produced by Osnat Shurer and Peter Del Vecho. The screenplay was written by Qui Nguyen and Adele Lim, both of whom also wrote the story with Hall, Estrada, Briggs, Ripa, Kiel Murray, and Dean Wellins. The film is based on traditional Southeast Asian cultures.

Featuring the voices of Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Izaac Wang, Gemma Chan, Daniel Dae Kim, Benedict Wong, Sandra Oh, Thalia Tran, Lucille Soong, and Alan Tudyk, Raya and the Last Dragon is about the titular warrior princess, Raya. She seeks out the fabled last dragon, hoping to restore the dragon gem that would bring back her father and banish the evil spirits known as the Druun from the land of Kumandra.

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures had planned to release Raya and the Last Dragon in theaters in the United States on November 25, 2020, but the movie was delayed to March 5, 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The film was simultaneously available on Disney+ Premier Access as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic's effects on movie theaters.

In July 2021, shortly after its premium access run, the film became the second most-viewed streaming title behind Netflix's fifth season of Lucifer. The film became the third most streamed movie title of 2021, and has grossed over $130 million worldwide and received positive reviews from critics, who praised the animation and voice acting. The film received various accolades, including a nomination for Best Animated Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards, and was nominated in the same category at the 79th Golden Globe Awards. However it lost both awards to another Disney film, Encanto. Raya and the Last Dragon also led the 49th Annie Awards with ten nominations, but did not win in any of the categories.

## Plot

Five hundred years ago, the peaceful and prosperous sub-continent of Kumandra is ravaged by the Druun, evil, dark-colored spirits that turn every living thing in their path to stone. Sisu, the last surviving dragon, is given her siblings' magic which was placed in a gem. She concentrates her magic into the gem and blasts the Druun away, reviving Kumandra's people but not its dragons. A power struggle for the gem divides Kumandra's people into five separate kingdoms called Fang, Heart, Spine, Talon, and Tail, corresponding to their placement along a gigantic dragon-shaped river.

Five hundred years later, Chief Benja of the Heart tribe, which ends up retaining possession of the dragon gem, trains his daughter, young warrior Princess Raya to protect the gem. Firmly believing Kumandra can be reunited, Benja holds a feast for the leadership of all five tribes. During the feast, Raya befriends Namaari, daughter of Chief Virana of the Fang tribe and Fang's princess, who gives Raya a dragon pendant and tells her of a legend that says the dragon Sisu still exists and can be summoned. Trusting Namaari, Raya shows her the gem's chamber. Namaari betrays Raya as part of a plot to help Fang steal the gem. Alerted to the attack, Benja and the other tribes arrive and start fighting over the gem, breaking it into five pieces in the scuffle. The gem's destruction creates a fissure which releases the Druun once more, quickly overtaking the Land of Heart. As every tribe member steals a piece of the gem and flees, Benja notices that the Druun are repelled by water and sacrifices himself to save Raya's life by throwing her in the river before getting turned to stone by the Druun.

Six years later Raya treks across Kumandra searching for Sisu to have her create another gem and banish the Druun once more. She manages to summon her at a shipwreck in Tail where Sisu admits that she did not create the gem, but wielded it on behalf of her four siblings, who each contributed their magic to the gem. Raya and Sisu resolve to take back the four stolen pieces of the gem, reassemble it and use it to banish the Druun and restore Raya's father and others who were turned to stone.

Raya and Sisu travel through tribes, reclaiming pieces of the gem and making new friends: the young restaurateur Boun from Tail, the baby con artist Little Noi and her three ongis from Talon, and the warrior Tong from Spine, all of whom have lost loved ones to the Druun. Namaari pursues Raya, hoping to gain the gem shards for the Fang tribe. Each gem shard they acquire blesses Sisu with one of her siblings' magical powers. Raya, not fully trusting their new companions, insists Sisu remain disguised as a human, but Sisu reveals herself to save Raya from Namaari at Spine.

At Fang, Sisu persuades Raya to propose an alliance to Namaari rather than steal the final piece of the gem. As a gesture of trust, Raya returns the pendant Namaari gave her years ago. Namaari, torn between her responsibility to Fang and her wish to help defeat the Druun, threatens them with a crossbow. Sisu tries to calm Namaari but Raya attacks with her sword, causing Namaari's crossbow to fire and kill Sisu.

Sisu's death drains away all the water of Kumandra, allowing the Druun to overrun the realm. Furious by Namaari's actions, Raya pursues Namaari, whom she finds grieving the petrification of her mother and they fight while Raya's companions use the gem pieces to evacuate the people of Fang. Raya defeats and prepares to kill Namaari, but stops when Namaari reminds Raya of her role in Sisu’s death due to her inability to trust others. Raya and Namaari go to aid the others. As the Druun gain on her group, Raya remembers how trust allowed Sisu to save the world. She urges the others to unite and reassemble the gem, showing her faith in Namaari by handing over her gem piece and allowing the Druun to turn her into stone. Boun, Tong, Noi, and the ongis follow suit, and Namaari reassembles the gem before the Druun petrifies her as well. With the dragon gem reassembled, it unleashes a powerful shockwave that spreads throughout Kumandra, vanquishes all the Druun, and conjures up a magical rainstorm which revives everyone, alongside all the dragons who later revive Sisu. The group reunites with their lost loved ones, including Raya and her father; the tribes and dragons gather at Heart to unify as Kumandra once again.

## Characters and Voice Cast

* Raya - Kelly Marie Tran
* Sisu - Awkwafina
* Namaari - Gemma Chan