In terms of children’s movies, it seems that 2016 looks set to belong entirely to Disney Animation. Having already released Zootopia to enormous box office success, the studio is gearing up to book-end the year with Moana, releasing in the fall.
Promising a female-led tale of uplifting adventure amid the beautiful waves of the South Pacific, this first trailer indicates a family film mixing legend, history and destiny, with a sprinkle of humour, and a dash of visual mastery.
At the helm are Academy Award nominees Ron Clements and John Musker, and it is difficult to imagine a more experienced pair in terms of delivering great animated tales. With a resume crammed full of The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Hercules, and The Princess And The Frog, these two directors have more than proved their mettle when it comes to storytelling for children. They are also among those credited with writing the script – along with Jared Bush (Zootopia), Pamela Ribon (Samantha Who?), and Taika Waititi (What We Do In The Shadows).
The trailer contains little in the way of plot details, but instead focuses on providing a clip of Dwayne Johnson performing vocals as the demi-god Maui. He dominates this preview footage, which seems a little odd, given that the film is titled Moana, and she is the lead character (voiced by Auli’i Cravalho). However, it does imply that we can look forward to plenty of thrills, action and wonderful animation, when the film arrives in cinemas on November 23rd, 2016.
