Aside from the animation, the voice performances are the strongest aspect of Moana 2. Cravalho and Johnson are once again phenomenal as Moana and Maui, injecting the film with a much needed energy with every second of their performances. They’re both at their best when paired, working their magic to capture the spark the original film possessed thanks to their brilliant chemistry, even if no other aspect of it is able to do so. Alan Tudyk continues to have some wonderful and hilarious moments as Heihei, consistently stealing the show when on screen. The newcomers to the series are all great, giving splendid voice performances that match the standard set by Cravalho and Johnson, though it is Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda in her feature film debut who is the scene stealer as Moana’s younger sister Simea, who is without question going to become your new favourite character of the series.

Disney films have always served as an introduction to musicals for younger viewers, featuring songs from some of the great songwriters to grace the musical genre like The Sherman Brothers, Alan Menken and Howard Ashland, Stephen Schwartz, Kristin Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, and Lin-Manuel Miranda. For many, the songs are the highlight of a Disney film, and after the incredible songs from Miranda in the first film, the bar was set high for the sequel. With Miranda not returning for the sequel, the songwriting duties were taken over by Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear, best known for The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical on TikTok, and while they can write music, their songs don’t work in the film. Instead of the work of Miranda that infused Polynesian culture in his songs, Barlow and Bear’s songs feel like pop songs that don’t fit with the cultural setting of ancient Polynesian and what came before in the first film. They are lacking the emotional resonance of “How Far I’ll Go” and catchy lyrics that made “You’re Welcome” an ear worm, and despite the strong vocal work of Cravalho who knocks every song out of the park, there is little to remember about these songs. And even more concerning is the hip-hop song they wrote for Johnson’s Maui as it’s just downright bad and they should never attempt another song like it again. Johnson is truly blameless for that misfire. It can all be summarized perfectly by the simple statement that the best song of the film was a reprise of “We Know the Way” from the first film, indicating that it was the work of someone who was not involved in this film that was the standout musical moment.

From a critical standpoint, Moana 2 is lacking in every way imaginable, though from an entertainment point of view, there is a chance that young children will enjoy this film even if it is not going to be as memorable as the first film for them. While the ending lays the seeds for an exciting next chapter in Moana’s story, the entirety of the film is missing that Disney magic which made the first film a runaway success. While the re-teaming of Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson is an absolute delight, a poorly reworked episodic story and the forgettable original songs prevents Moana 2 from fairing well on its ocean bound adventure