Leaving her island for the first time, young Moana embarks on an epic seafaring adventure to restore prosperity to her people.
Director: Thomas Kail
Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Catherine Laga'aia, Rena Owen, John Tui, Frankie Adams, Jemaine Clement
Release Date: July 1, 2026
Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Musical
Rated PG for action/peril, some scary images, rude humor and brief thematic elements
Runtime: 1h 56m
Review:
The live action remake of Moana feels like one of the more cynical cash grabs from Disney as the film is virtually a shot for shot remake of the 2016 original animated film, wasting the big screen debut of Catherine Laga'aia displays real talent in the titular role. Theatre and television director, Thomas Kail, guides the film with capable ease since the film is more an exercise in mimicry as there’s nothing new being offered up. So much so, that it starts to feel like Gus Van Zant’s ill-advised Psycho remake from 1998 where they used the original film onset to shoot the remake. There are some very minor changes that don’t amount to anything substantial which is likely to leave plenty of people scratching their head, especially when the “live action” is filled rather drab CGI especially comparted to the original animated films. The songs do manage to perk up the energy, mainly because they’re so infectiously and catchy that you can’t help getting caught up in the moments especially since Laga'aia is more than capable of singing the signature songs, Auliʻi Cravalho made famous in the original film, and carrying a similar screen presence in the title role. She’s impressive throughout but there just isn’t much more she can bring to the screen that wasn’t done beforehand. Dwayne Johnson, sporting a distracting wig and body suit, delivers an oddly uneven performance as Maui with random bursts of energy interspersed with him going through the motions as he cosplays himself. Thankfully, he and Laga'aia share some noticeable chemistry together which makes it easier to get through this rather pointless remake. This live action redux of Moana leaves you wondering who this is for exactly, since the original film isn’t old enough to illicit any sort of nostalgic pull and everything thrown onscreen is less impressive than what offered up in the original.
C
