Long ago, in the fantasy world of Kumandra, humans and dragons lived together in harmony. However, when sinister monsters known as the Druun threatened the land, the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. Now, 500 years later, those same monsters have returned, and it's up to a lone warrior to track down the last dragon and stop the Druun for good.
Raya and the Last Dragon is one of Disney's latest films to be concurrently available on both their Disney+ streaming platform, alongside the cinema, however I chose the first option, opting for a quiet evening in! The film primarily focuses on Raya and her journey to reunite Kumandra with the support of the mystical dragon - Sisu and some additional characters we meet along the way. The film tells this story through a slightly different structure than we usually come to expect from Disney 'missionesque' films, and takes a slightly different approach when doing so. However, the question is, does the film deviate away from many of the successes Disney have had with similar films such as Moana or does it exceed expectations? Here are my thoughts.
I'll start with what I liked about the film, I think to sum up my review I would say that whereas initially I didn't expect to like the film, it really impressed me and left me enjoying the film much more than initially anticipated. Initially when the film began, we were greeted with a lengthy, yet interesting and insightful introduction into the 5 separate lands, Heart, Fang, Talon, Tail and Spine. It was a really impressive introduction for a variety of reasons, not only did it help to give the film a strong feeling of adventure, but it also gave a wild and creative introduction to the film that helped to set the scene well and introduce us to the backstory and the various land personalities. This introduction was beneficial throughout the remainder of the film though, with frequent references being made to the initial introduction, and being clear enough to easily interpret and understand.
The film also manages the themes of action, excitement and emotion well through quick and well executed transitions between them, resulting in genuine levels of surprise. These are present throughout the film and help to transform the emotions behind scenes very well, once executed though they are also very effective too and are helpful in creating an immersive experience. Scenes such as when Raya is reunited with her father are powerful because of how well the film manages these themes and emotions, sure it would be emotional regardless, but because of the themes of trust and betrayal, and the way in which the film relays the story helps to really make scenes engaging with audiences.
Alongside this, the film manages the themes of time progression very well too. It's basic but the inclusions of titles indicative of time passing and this being combined with new locations being shown helps to clearly detail changes in time and progression throughout the film. It also helps to keep the film flowing well too because it continues to progress with characters and their individual journeys whilst telling the story.
In terms of the quality of the story and it’s execution, this was also an aspect of the film I was really impressed with - unsurprisingly the film stays fresh by adding in twists and turns regularly, helping to keep it feeling exciting and enjoyable throughout. The plot is also easy enough to follow, it doesn’t delve into particularly complex territories with its plot and progression, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing though given that the film isn’t trying to be particularly complex. It’s simple, straightforward and easy to follow (with the help of exciting and valuable character interactions that help to reinforce the introduction throughout) and that’s what I like about the film, it stays fairly single track in terms of the plot and what the characters are trying to do, but the execution of this helps to make it feel much more tightly packed with action - resulting in a strong plot that is easy to follow.
Even for a demographic unlikely to be the specific target audience for this film, the characters really impressed me. Sure, they were a little alike what we have come to expect from a Disney film in terms of a lead character on a quest and meeting additional supporting characters along the way however what surprised me is how good the characters were as the film progressed on. This is largely due to the amount of time the film spends introducing us to the main and second level characters of the film through interactions we see between them.
Alongside this though the film balances a theme of trust/distrust and this also plays an important role in how we see the characters and their impacts on the film too, for example seeing characters being betrayed by others, or flashbacks to scarier times help to personify the emotions and rationales behind the characters actions, and because this is clearly communicated to us through the use of character interactions and flashbacks, this helps to make the characters feel multi dimensional and ones we genuinely care about. For example seeing the emotion on the faces of the characters when Sesu is hurt is multiplied for us because of the experiences and emotions we have seen the characters go through. Whilst the animation nature of the film results in no specific acting involved, the voiceovers were done well, with Awkwafina‘s voice being the most prevalent and memorable! However, on the whole, I was very surprised by how well the characters were portrayed, and it left them feeling genuinely exciting and enjoyable to watch.
It’s also worth noting that all good Disney films have an especially cute sidekick too for the main character, and this film is no exception, whilst Tuk Tuk (an armadillo) is incredibly cute as a small animal at the start, he maintains this even as a much larger, older character and evokes a series of both laughs and “awe” from the audience throughout. He’s not a main character here, but he does have an important role to play.
The film wasn’t perfect though, and whilst it is a notable and effective addition to Disney’s ever growing library of animation, a few points stuck out for me during my watch. Initially I wasn’t very impressed by humour from Sesu, sure the 21st century relatable jokes were probably relatable for most, they took away from the spiritual nature of the film, and just felt a little cringey. Thankfully however this was only for a few minutes, as the humour seemed to mature soon after, however it is worth noting due to the impression it left, that was difficult to shake off. Alongside this, where the usual recipe of having a single character finding accomplices on their mission to defeat a protagonist works well, I was just left wanting a bit more in this respect, I wanted somewhat of a more complex nature to the story and it’s progression - but maybe that’s the price I pay for being an indirect target audience member?
It’s also worth noting that whilst songs certainly aren’t a ‘be all and end all’ for me, these may be for some audiences, and therefore may be slated for not having an element of song to the film. Although the film lacked these typical songs, I found the soundtrack quite beautiful and atmospheric and didnt really end up missing that aspect to the film - although I’ve mentioned it here due to the importance this holds for some audiences.
Overall though, I would give this film an 8. It is a genuinely exciting and enjoyable film, and whilst the character stories don’t deviate massively away from what we have seen countless times before, I still feel that they felt exciting, enjoyable and multi dimensional. The film also covers a variety of powerful and effective themes such as trust and betrayal, and I think that was a good way to keep the film enjoyable and mature enough for many different audiences to enjoy. There are a few issues with the film, and I feel as though the nature of the plot following similar films caps the film at an 8, purely because it doesn’t feel brave enough to try something new. But what it does do is good, and enjoyable, so all is forgiven!
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