To paraphrase a famous rapper: Mo’ money, Moana, mo’ problems. And Moana 2, a sequel to Disney’s 2016 musical animation, seems to be delivering on both counts.
Released in cinemas last week, the film – which reunites daring seafarer Moana (Auli‘i Cravalho) with puckish demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) – has been a fast hit; its opening-weekend box office of $386m (£303m) has set new records for a Disney animation. After the doldrums of Covid, it’s been easy to get behind success stories such as Moana 2, to brush aside any minor gripes and cherish the fact that people are keeping the cinematic experience alive. But the issues are real, and deep-rooted, and tug at something bigger: American animation is in the throes of an identity crisis.
