After eight years, Dwayne Johnson, Auli’i Cravalho, and Hei Hei the Chicken return to the big screen with a second Moana film. With new monsters, returning coconuts, and lots of jokes, this movie was exactly what I hoped for. 

Moana 2 follows the young girl destined for the seas as she resumes her role as a wayfinder for her people. With help from her demi-god friend Maui and others from her home island of Motunui, she embarks on a quest to find a missing island, Motufetu. This island is guarded by the power-hungry god Nalo and is essential for connecting all the other islands and their people. Moana’s goal is to restore the balance between the distant lands by finding the island and pulling it from the depths of the ocean. 

 I saw the first Moana in theaters when it came out and I loved everything from the characters to the music. This movie stuck with me as one of my favorite Disney movies. However, historically the second film is never as good as the first. Because of that, I went into this movie with low expectations. In addition, the promotional videos I saw on Instagram and while watching TV did not give a clearer understanding of the plot. I was worried that the film would not have a good storyline and the characters would not develop as well as the first, but I was pleasantly surprised after watching it. While all the original characters reprised their roles, a few were added. Moana has a little sister who is so cute and adds the emotional layer that the first film missed. In addition, Moana brings three members from her island along for the ride giving a different perspective rather than just Maui and making the voyage even funnier. 

In an interview with The Disney Company, Artistic Director Dana Miller assured fans, “We worked really hard to make sure she has an adventure that lives up to her growth and pushes her beyond anything she’s ever done before.” In this movie, Moana is thrown into more dangerous situations and faces a monster, Nalo, far worse than Te Kā, the lava monster and villain in the first Moana. Director Miller definitely accomplished her mission of adding adventure into the film. 

While no song is quite as iconic as You’re Welcome sung by Dwane Johnson as Maui in the first film, Lin Manuel Miranda created some new songs that have been stuck in my head for days. Miranda orchestrated songs like We’re Back, which continue to have a Caribbean island feel with the drums while adding some pop. On the other hand, Can I Get a Chee Hoo is very similar to the song You’re Welcome, as it is solely pop and very repetitive, making it hard to forget. With rhyming lyrics like, You’re gonna, you’re gonna a-make some history Come on-a, Moana, go get your destiny, this song, in particular, was my favorite and musically was amazing.

The movie was originally set to premiere on November 22. However, that was the same day as the new Wicked movie, and after the Barbenheimer debacle (when Barbie and Oppenheimer were released on the same day), the producers decided to move the date back five days to Thanksgiving, November 27. Obviously, that was the right decision, since it has already passed Wicked at the box office and has so far brought in a whopping $221 million. 

While the ending left it open to a third film, nothing is reported yet. However, the Moana Live-Action movie is in the process of being filmed and is set to be released in 2026. I highly recommend this movie no matter your age. From the visuals to the vocals, this movie is fun for everyone.