There’s a little bit of “Hamilton” in “Moana.”
Listen carefully and you’ll hear some of the beats that made Lin-Manuel Miranda the toast of Broadway and could net him an Oscar for the Disney film’s songs.
Possessing a driving beat (and a few rap moments), the score propels the story, just as an ambitious wave pushes Moana.
She’s a teenager living in the South Pacific who wants to help the people of her island. Food is drying up, fishing has gone bad and she thinks a visit to the demigod Maui could turn the tide.
Unfortunately, Maui (voiced by Dwayne Johnson) is more than a little full of himself. With the help of his tattoos (which are like a movie in themselves) he fills in the story started by Moana’s grandmother.
Bottom line: They’ve got to confront the goddess Te Fiti and somehow return her heart.
Directed by Ron Clements and John Musker (who know more than a little about plucky cartoon women), “Moana” has a couple of stray sidekicks and an ocean that’s practically a character. “If you wear a dress and you have animal sidekick, you are a princess,” Maui says. Quickly Moana (voiced by newcomer Auli’i Cravalho) disavows the notion and shows him just how strong she is. (Think: Merida in “Brave.”)
They bicker like siblings, make a boat seem like it’s a theme park ride and confront the evil that has overtaken Te Fiti. Like Chernabog in “Fantasia,” the creature rises from ashes and gives Maui plenty to ponder. By joining forces, the two get where they’re intended, but “Moana” has enough adventure to temper all the singing.
Miranda does earn his salary. “Moana” has more songs than most, a few that are unnecessary, a couple that could actually get Oscar nominations. While Moana’s “How Far I’ll Go” has that female empowerment vibe of “Frozen,” it’s “We Know the Way” that captures the momentum of a sea journey. “Shiny” (nicely done by Jemaine Clement as a fluorescent crab) doesn’t advance the story but it gives the audience a break from the two main characters.
They’re fine – even though you’ll wonder why there aren’t more voyagers to play off.
The visuals are stunning. Clements and Musker blend CGI and traditional animation techniques nicely and give water its best outing since the Seven Dwarfs scrubbed in in 1937.
Look closely and you’ll see cameos by several familiar Disney characters and a line or two that could have been dropped in the directors’ “Aladdin.”
While “Moana” gets a little touchy-feely in the end, it does say plenty about a girl’s need to forge her own way. Waiting for a prince to come is overrated; letting a man fight her battles is wholly unnecessary.
The message is a great one to send, even if it takes an epic journey to drive it home.
