Walt Disney Animation Studios has produced 56 feature films with their most recent being Moana. This new Disney film was directed by Ron Clements and John Musker. Clements and Musker have previously directed The Great Mouse Detective, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Hercules, Treasure Planet and The Princess and the Frog. For this specific film, both men had went on research trips to Fiji, Samoa, and Tahiti in 2012. The purpose of these trips were to meet the people of the South Pacific and learn about their culture. Throughout creating this film, they had taken on experts from across the South Pacific to check out the accuracy of movie in comparison with their culture and to prevent crossing any lines of something that may be perceived as rude or a touchy topic in their culture.

Moana has broken some previous traditional aspects of Disney films. First of all, this movie isn’t the storytelling of a typical princess who falls in love with a prince. There actually isn’t the slightest bit of romance for the main character, Moana. Moana is her own unique, driven and ambitious individual who has the viewers automatically falling in love with her from the beginning of the movie as her adorable baby stage is watched by the audience.

Auli’i Cravalho plays the voice of Moana Waialiki. Moana’s singing voice is performed by Louise Bush. Dwayne Johnson is the voice Maui, the beloved demigod who assist Moana. Rachel House plays the voice Gramma Tala, Moana’s grandmother who shares a special bond with her granddaughter and is an ultimate inspiration for Moana. Temuera Morrison is the voice of Chief Tui Waialiki and Nicole Scherzinger as Sina Waialiki, Moana’s father and mother.

A millennium prior to the birth of little Moana, an island goddess named Te Fiti created life with the power of a pounamu stone. Maui, a demigod, had stolen the stone but only to impress the people because he was constantly searching for praise due to the abandonment issues he encountered when given away by his parents at birth. But, Te Kā, the lava demon, had attacked Maui and the stone was lost in the ocean, as well as Maui’s magical fishhook and Maui himself.

To start the plot of the movie off, Moana is drawn to the ocean and longs to enter the waters. But, she is forbidden by her father, who is also the chief of Motunui Island, because of a travesty he encountered out on the waters when he was younger which led him to lose a best friend.

Moana and her grandmother had constantly shared a bond over their love for the ocean, as they were seen as outsiders from their people. The island is found to be slowly dying due to the stone still being lost from Te Fiti. When Moana is older, her grandmother hands her the stone that was found by Moana as a child when the ocean had “chosen” her by allowing her to walk into the water to retrieve the stone. This process was interrupted by her father calling out for her and now, years later, it is her grandmother’s dying wish for Moana to go out onto the water and find Maui and have him return the stone to restore the island’s life and beauty.

A stunning quality to this film is its soundtrack filled with uplifting, gifted and heart-warming lyrics. The film’s soundtrack was released by Walt Disney Records and songs are written by Opetaia Foa’i, Mark Mancina, and Lin-Manuel Miranda. A unique aspect to the musical side of this film is that the lyrics are in both English and the Tokelauan language.

This uniquely inspirational film has already been seen and loved by millions. It made $15.5 million on its opening day, breaking Walt Disney Animation Studios’ record for the biggest opening day ever for a film released on the day before Thanksgiving. Watching this movie is a great way to spend your time during the upcoming holiday seasons since it truly is a movie for all ages with all different interests. Moana is for sure a movie to remember, for both the genius plot and the catchy songs that you will, no doubt, be singing for days.