Yes, My [Future] Children Will Watch Moana
- jordannswright
- Nov 8, 2021
- 6 min read

My husband and I went and saw Moana opening weekend after having been married about 8 months. My twenty-five year old heart was so excited not only for a new Disney Princess movie, but also for a full soundtrack by Lin-Manuel Miranda. We loved the movie immediately, both moved to tears at different points in the story, and I got a hold of the soundtrack as soon as I possibly could. Moana has elements of classic Disney Princess films that make it comfortable and familiar while at the same time adding in more modern elements that make it feel truly special.
Moana was released into movie theaters on November 23rd, 2016, about three years after predecessors Elsa & Anna and seventy-nine years after Snow White. The film is an original story focused on Moana and also draws heavy inspiration from Polynesian mythology as she meets various beings such as Maui the demigod, the Kakamora (coconut pirates), Tamatoa the crab, Te Kā the volcano demon, and Te Fiti the Mother Island. This movie did very well for itself, with praise for just its animation, music, and voice acting. With a budget of $150-$175 million, it earned a box office of $645 million. The movie was nominated for two Oscars and two Golden Globes in 2017, and won a Grammy in 2018 for Best Song Written for Visual Media for How Far I'll Go. With no official theatrical sequel planned as of yet, Moana will have a Disney+ animated series set to release in 2023. Moana is currently the only Polynesian Disney Princess, and she was the fifth woman of color to be a Disney Princess after Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, and Tiana.
Part of what I love about Moana is that her story arc is so relatable to so many people. No, we are not currently living in an ancient island culture where we're bound by our fear of losing our loved ones to the sea, but so many people out there today can relate to an overprotective and overbearing parent, or the grief of losing a grandparent you have a special relationship with, or constantly feeling like you aren't good enough or that something's wrong with you if you have a different plan for your life than the one your parents planned out for you. I also loved how realistic parts of Moana's personality seemed to be. Even in my favorite Princess movie Frozen, it's a little crazy that after not using her powers for close to 15 years Elsa is suddenly an expert at crafting things out of ice. For Moana, however, she desperately wants to sail and knows she's meant to be on the water, but for the vast majority of the movie she legitimately sucks at sailing and has to rely on someone else to teach her. She longs to be independent and be able to make her own choices from the time she's a small child, but learns that actions have consequences and they aren't always good - you have to consider other people besides yourself before rushing headfirst into what you think is the best option at the time. I also loved watching the relationship between Moana and Maui grow throughout the movie. I love watching the girls get a happy ending because they deserve it dang it, but Moana's story did not call for a romance and I loved watching her get a mentor/big brother/best friend out of Maui at the end. And oh boy, I LOVE the Te Kā/Te Fiti symbolism. Not only is it a metaphor for taking better care of the planet, but also shows how women can be demonized when they've been seriously hurt by someone and how anyone (not just women) can become so warped by their hurt that it changes them into something extremely toxic. All in all, Moana is a great watch for kids and parents with a lot of great lessons alongside fantastic visuals and incredible music.
The cast of Moana did such an amazing job making me care about these characters. Moana's voice actor Auli'i Cravalho was only 16 when the film premiered and voiced her both in the English and Hawaiian language versions of the movie. It's been documented that she was the last audition Disney saw for the part and they knew as soon as they saw her video that she would be perfect for the role. Dwayne Johnson was fabulous as Maui - he was super funny for most of the movie but when the time came to get serious, he delivered on that as well. Rachel House as Gramma Tala makes me laugh and cry multiple times while she's on screen, and she and Cravalho played off of each other really, really well. As a huge Star Wars fan, I loved hearing Temuera Morrison speaking for Moana's dad Chief Tui, and as a huge Hamilton fan I loved hearing Christopher Jackson singing for Moana's dad Chief Tui. Jermaine Clement as Tamatoa, Nicole Scherzinger as Moana's mom Chieftaness Sina, and Alan Tudyk as Hei Hei the chicken all shine through as well - I don't think there was anyone in the cast that I was disappointed with their performance.
As I said at the beginning, the music was a huge part of why I was so excited for this movie, and the music is a huge part of why I still love to watch this movie five years later. The composition team of Opetaia Foa'i, Mark Mancina, and Lin-Manuel Miranda did an incredible job creating the music to go with this world and this story, adding even more emotion to an already emotional story. This is a soundtrack I actively love listening to from start to finish, but nevertheless here are my Top 3.
How Far I'll Go by Auli'i Cravalho (written by L. Miranda)
Moana's signature song is without a doubt on this list. Even after five years, my music students still love to learn to play this song or sing it for performances, and I am happy to oblige them. Cravalho's vocals really shine on this piece, and it sets up her character journey really nicely right at the start of the movie.
I’ve been staring at the edge of the water long as I can remember/Never really knowing why/I wish I could be the perfect daughter, but I come back to the water/No matter how hard I try/Every turn I take, every trail I track/Every path I make, every road leads back/To the place I know where I cannot go/Where I long to be/See the line where the sky meets the sea, it calls me/And no one knows how far it goes/If the wind in my sail on the sea stays behind me/One day, I’ll know/If I go, there’s just no telling how far I’ll go
We Know the Way by Opetaia Foa'i & Lin-Manuel Miranda (written by L. Miranda, O. Foa'i)
I'll admit up front that when Lin started singing in verse two of this song in the theatre I started to cry because I didn't know his voice was going to be in the movie at all. Yes, I know he doesn't have the most perfect singing voice ever, but loving him and Hamilton as much as I do it was still really exciting. Foa'i, who is the founder and bandleader of the worldbeat music group Te Vaka, lends his voice to the first verse of the song in Samoan and Miranda comes in for the second half in English.
We read the wind and the sky when the sun is high/We sail the length of the seas on the ocean breeze/At night, we name every star, we know where we are/We know who we are, who we are/Aue, are, we set a course to find/A brand new island everywhere we roam/Aue, are, we keep our island in our mind/And when it’s time to find home, we know the way
Know Who You Are by Auli'i Cravalho, Vai Mahina, Olivia Foa'i, Opetaia Foa'i, & Matthew Ineleo (written by L. Miranda, M. Mancina, O. Foa'i)
This song goes with the pivotal climax of the movie, and the scene gives me chills every single time. Alternating between Olivia Foa'i's (I believe) Tuvalu lyrics and Cravalho's English, it wraps up a lot of the main themes of the film in a beautiful bow with a quiet power, and I just really, really love it.
Ou mata e matagi, I have crossed the horizon to find you/Ou loto mamaina toa, I know your name/Manatu atu, they have stolen the heart from inside you/Taku pelepele, but this does not define you/Manatunatu, this is not who you are/You know who you are
If it's been a while since you've seen it or if you're one of the few people who by now hasn't ever seen Moana, I highly recommend a watch because it's just great fun. Happy listening, and see ya'll next week1
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