• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Is Moana the best animated film Disney has ever made?

Status
Not open for further replies.

Osahi

Member
I haven't seen Frozen or Zootopia (no desire to change that), but none of the other movies from Tangled on struck me as true classics.

Me neither. Though Zootopia is great (and I love Tangled which i do consider classic) I planned to go deeper into Moana in the "renaissance topic". On mobile now.
 

Takuan

Member
I watched it tonight. Fun flick, but doesn't beat Aladdin, The Lion King, or Jungle Book.

The songs were its weakest point, imo. I can't remember how any of them went right now, not even Jemaine Clement's.
 

Osahi

Member
Read the thread. Read the article from The Verge. It's not just me.

It doesn't hold up to The Lion King for instance. I didn't enjoy it as much as Tangled and Zootopia. It is beautiful animated and the songs are great, but there are some screenwriting issues (I adressed som of them in the OT) which had the effect that me (and my wife) weren't emotionaly invested in the characters or story at all. It also falls in the 'we need a spectaculair set piece!' trap a lot of animated movies fall into these days. Like they fear kids will lose interest if there isn't an action scene every couple of sequences. Stuff like the
coconut pirates
serve no narrative point whatsoever and are just there to keep attention. Well, good character building scenes keep atention too...

Compare this to a close to perfect movie like The Lion King, which has great songs, beautiful animation, an incredible screenplay which makes you feel for it's characters and has almost every scene driving the arc of the main characters, and my personal conclusion is: it's you OP, with some others in this topic.
 

Peccavi

Member
Eh....

I think Prince of Egypt did it better, if I'm thinking of the same scene you are.

Please don't get me wrong. I LOVE Moana. FANTASTIC visuals. I now have an unhealthy crush on an animated character.

But man. Please keep in mind that this is from the house that made The Lion King. And Aladdin. And Tangled. And Beauty and the Beast. And Big Hero 6. And the Little Mermaid.

Technically Prince of Egypt is DreamWorks, not Disney.
 
It doesn't hold up to The Lion King for instance. I didn't enjoy it as much as Tangled and Zootopia. It is beautiful animated and the songs are great, but there are some screenwriting issues (I adressed som of them in the OT) which had the effect that me (and my wife) weren't emotionaly invested in the characters or story at all. It also falls in the 'we need a spectaculair set piece!' trap a lot of animated movies fall into these days. Like they fear kids will lose interest if there isn't an action scene every couple of sequences. Stuff like the
coconut pirates
serve no narrative point whatsoever and are just there to keep attention. Well, good character building scenes keep atention too...

Compare this to a close to perfect movie like The Lion King, which has great songs, beautiful animation, an incredible screenplay which makes you feel for it's characters and has almost every scene driving the arc of the main characters, and my personal conclusion is: it's you OP, with some others in this topic.

It's fine that you have your opinions, I just took issue with you saying it was just me when it clearly is not.
 

Dirca

Member
no-hell-no.gif

Not. Even. Close.
I'd rank it with Ratatouille. It can't hold a candle to any classic Disney animated movie, and is light years behind the beauty of Up, Nemo, or Inside Out.
 

tcrunch

Member
It's pretty but it's not a classic or anything, there's some weird stuff like she has 2 animal sidekicks to begin with but then one disappears for most of the movie, Maui has no particular character arc beyond "is reluctant to be a hero, then not so much, likes his hook", it doesn't feel very collected.

It's more like an old Harryhausen Sinbad movie than anything, which doesn't mean it's bad but it's far from "best animated film Disney has ever made".

It's better than Big Hero 6 and Wreck-It Ralph as far as the new Renaissance films go.
 

Osahi

Member
What? Once again, you literally said "Yes, it's just you.". I'm just telling you that that's factually untrue.

And I just told you I jokingly said 'just you' because of the title.

I have no idea why you are taking offence with this.

And yes, offcourse I know you aren't the only one with this opinion. But i'd rather have you debating the merits of the film against my grievences with it, then you taking a joke literaly and keep going on about it.
 
I think it's up there for sure!!

Also, Disney Animation from 2010 onwards has just been incredible, and several notches above Pixar imo.

Disney's output since 2010:
Tangled
Wreck-It Ralph
Frozen
Big Hero 6
Zootopia
Moana

Pixar's since 2010:
Toy Story 3
Cars 2
Brave
Monster's University
Inside Out
The Good Dinosaur
Finding Dory
 
Now that I've seen Moana, I feel like the OP was smoking crack or something. Jesus christ, it's not even the best animated Disney film *this year* let alone of all time.

It didn't exhibity the story, characters, soundtrack, message, cultural relevance, or emotional impact to compare to *any* Disney classic I can think of. Zooptopia was about twice the film Moana was in my estimation, and that came out 9 short months ago. Sorry.
 

Nepenthe

Member
I know I'm late, but are we really shitting on the actual character animation work of some the Nine Old Men, including Milt Goddamn-Fucking-Legendary Kahl, because 90s Disney animated films used an ink and paint style again? Robin Hood's character work is amazing.

Fuck me, this thread is offensive to my very soul. Why don't we just up and say that Johnny Test is amazing because it's made on a computer and thus the lines don't wiggle?
 
I know I'm late, but are we really shitting on the actual character animation work of some the Nine Old Men, including Milt Goddamn-Fucking-Legendary Kahl, because 90s Disney animated films used an ink and paint style again? Robin Hood's character work is amazing.

Fuck me, this thread is offensive to my very soul. Why don't we just up and say that Johnny Test is amazing because it's made on a computer and thus the lines don't wiggle?
Nothing against the character animation in Robin Hood (at least when it was actually originally animated for Robin Hood - that film pilfers from previous Disney movies more than any other) but as a whole it kind of doesn't work?

Re: the animation it's also from the xerox era which left the pencil tracings. Some people might find this charming, I don't - and while it doesn't take away from the craft itself, it's certainly an offputting stylistic aesthetic.

Now a lot of people casually go with "bad animation" to mean "this isn't pleasing to my eyeballs," but them's the breaks.

I watched Tarzan again recently and Jesus Christ I'm jonesing so hard for another decade or so of hand drawn Disney. Just make them look amazing and expensive like their 90s films did and I think they could overcome the "hand-drawn? Old hat" stigma. Alas, John Lasseter has stamped that out - Frozen and Moana both started production as 2D films that got turned into CG after Princess and the Frog flopped.
 

Osahi

Member
I think it's up there for sure!!

Also, Disney Animation from 2010 onwards has just been incredible, and several notches above Pixar imo.

Disney's output since 2010:
Tangled
Wreck-It Ralph
Frozen
Big Hero 6
Zootopia
Moana

Pixar's since 2010:
Toy Story 3
Cars 2
Brave
Monster's University
Inside Out
The Good Dinosaur
Finding Dory

None of the movies in the Disney list can hold a candle to Toy Story 3 and especially Inside Out. Pixar had some lesser ones the last six years and Disney a more consequently qualitative output in comparison. But the Disney stuf doesn't have a standout masterpiece either, which Pixar's does. (Also, a lot of the lesser Pixar stuff (MU, Brave, ...) is qualitivaly on par with the good but not great Disney stuff like WIR, Frozen or Moana imo. Having similar flaws even)
 

Nepenthe

Member
I much prefer the Xerox process to any other in Disney's history. I've never seen an ink and paint crew able to perfectly capture the nuances of the animators' work- the real stars at the end of the day- and frankly I don't think it's possible. The more you splash on color and gradients and erase all but one line, and all other manner of nonsense, you lose the implied energy and weight in the pencil line quality and negative space. To me, ink and paint inherently denigrates the essence of character animation to some degree, and Walt was good to apologize to his animators for shitting on the process before he died.
 
I much prefer the Xerox process to any other in Disney's history. I've never seen an ink and paint crew able to perfectly capture the nuances of the animators' work- the real stars at the end of the day- and frankly I don't think it's possible. The more you splash on color and gradients and erase all but one line, and all other manner of nonsense, you lose the implied energy and weight in the pencil line quality and negative space. To me, ink and paint inherently denigrates the essence of character animation to some degree, and Walt was good to apologize to his animators for shitting on the process before he died.
To each their own. Like I said I don't think this detracts at all from the quality of the character animation, I just feel the whole aesthetic looks very cheap. The 90s stuff looks significantly better to my eyes.
 

MIMIC

Banned
I took the family to see it on Black Friday.

Enjoyable enough, but I'd put it behind Zootopia and Frozen as far as Disney movies go. Inside Out was also a bit better.

Beautiful movie, though.

I have seen none of these 😫
 

Jex

Member
It's not even in the top 5 animated movies I've seen this year.

It is, however, very slick and entertaining. I'm sure that nearly everyone who goes to see it will have a good time, but its rather too thin to be considered a classic.
 
Saw it this weekend with my girlfriend. It was a solid movie but no where near the best Disney's ever done...Or even close. Like others have said I thought Zootopia was better.
 

Finaika

Member
It's not even in the top 5 animated movies I've seen this year.

It is, however, very slick and entertaining. I'm sure that nearly everyone who goes to see it will have a good time, but its rather too thin to be considered a classic.

What 5 animated movies this year that are better than Moana?
 

Malyse

Member
It's not even in the top 5 animated movies I've seen this year.

It is, however, very slick and entertaining. I'm sure that nearly everyone who goes to see it will have a good time, but its rather too thin to be considered a classic.

I don't even remotely believe you.
 

Quonny

Member
It's not even in the top 5 animated movies I've seen this year.

It is, however, very slick and entertaining. I'm sure that nearly everyone who goes to see it will have a good time, but its rather too thin to be considered a classic.

receipts.gif
 
What 5 animated movies this year that are better than Moana?

I don't even remotely believe you.

receipts.gif

There have been a LOT of great animation movies this year.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1313328

Kubo, The Little Prince, Zootopia, The Red Turtle, My Life as a Zucchini and Your Name could all be contenders. And even then there are more decent animated movies there.

EDIT: Okay, and we could put Finding Dory in that list too. Also, he doesn't specify whether they are movies that released this year.
 

Malyse

Member
There have been a LOT of great animation movies this year.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1313328

Kubo, The Little Prince, Zootopia, The Red Turtle, My Life as a Zucchini and Your Name could all be contenders. And even then there are more decent animated movies there.

EDIT: Okay, and we could put Finding Dory in that list too. Also, he doesn't specify whether they are movies that released this year.

image.php


Moana is much better than people are giving it credit. I loved a lot of animated film this year too.
 
I think it's up there for sure!!

Also, Disney Animation from 2010 onwards has just been incredible, and several notches above Pixar imo.

Disney's output since 2010:
Tangled
Wreck-It Ralph
Frozen
Big Hero 6
Zootopia
Moana

Pixar's since 2010:
Toy Story 3
Cars 2
Brave
Monster's University
Inside Out
The Good Dinosaur
Finding Dory

For my money Inside Out is the top of both lists, here. It's just not close.
I agree that Pixar's lists has more weak entries in it (Cars 2, Brave, MU). Dino's the best looking boring movie I've seen in several years. Disney's recent output is more consistent for sure. I think more time needs to pass before we pop off about ranking them on a spectrum spanning nearly a century.
 
From the animated movies I've seen so far this year, it goes.

Zootopia >> Moana >>>>>>>>> Secret Life of Pets (Which that I wouldn't even call "bad")

Frozen is two notches behind Moana.

Yeah, I know I have a lot to see still. (Kubo, Dory, Inside-Out)
 

Calamari41

41 > 38
I'm pretty sure you're joking, but A Goofy Movie is fucking great.

A Goofy Movie changed my relationship with my dad. He worked long hours and I acted bratty and whiny like Max when he would have time to do things like take us on road trips. When I was finally able to see things from my dad's perspective through this movie, it hit me very deeply and from that day forward I truly appreciated him and valued the time we spent together.

A Goofy Movie definitely belongs near the top of the Disney pile as far as I'm concerned.
 

Osahi

Member
There have been a LOT of great animation movies this year.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1313328

Kubo, The Little Prince, Zootopia, The Red Turtle, My Life as a Zucchini and Your Name could all be contenders. And even then there are more decent animated movies there.

EDIT: Okay, and we could put Finding Dory in that list too. Also, he doesn't specify whether they are movies that released this year.

I agree with this man.

Kubo, Zootopia, The Red Turtle, My Life as Zucchini (which is a brilliant, brilliant movie which will go largely unoticed) are all better then Moana. Haven't seen Petit Prince or Your Name.

I actual even enjoyed Finding Dory more, though that one, just like Moana, has it's issues.
 

UrokeJoe

Member
Watched it this weekend with my wife and daughter. I thought it was pretty incredible. But I'm no expert, I just kind of get dragged to these movies. Was pretty blown away though at points... We've come a long way from Toy Story.

The music had me as well.
 
Not just you, OP.

Yes, yes, yes.

Beauty and The Beast used to be my absolute favorite, but now it's second to Moana.

What a masterpiece the film was. I cried at least thrice because of how epic so many scenes were but at the same time hit the right emotional beats that really made you root for Moana.
 
None of the movies in the Disney list can hold a candle to Toy Story 3 and especially Inside Out. Pixar had some lesser ones the last six years and Disney a more consequently qualitative output in comparison. But the Disney stuf doesn't have a standout masterpiece either, which Pixar's does. (Also, a lot of the lesser Pixar stuff (MU, Brave, ...) is qualitivaly on par with the good but not great Disney stuff like WIR, Frozen or Moana imo. Having similar flaws even)

I'd put Tangled, Frozen and Moana all above Toy Story 3 and Inside Out. Everyone knows that Disney in the king of animation now. Get with the program. :p
 
Wasn't bad. Right now Zootopia was far more enjoyable.

I didn't think this movie had very memorable songs... Until I woke up the next morning humming You're Welcome!! I didn't like many songs in it, though. The non-English one was great, I forget the name.
 

Osahi

Member
I'd put Tangled, Frozen and Moana all above Toy Story 3 and Inside Out. Everyone knows that Disney in the king of animation now. Get with the program. :p

I plea insanity! (On your behalf!)

Toy Story 3 and Inside Out are two close to perfect films. First one is the perfect send-of for beloved characters. A fun ride, with brilliant animation, a good story without a single dull moment and an ending that pulls the heartstrings without feeling cheap at all (and as I said, perfect send-of).

Inside Out is a masterclass in story telling and animation. It's one of the few animated flicks I cried my heart out. It handles a heavy theme in a beautiful, heartfelt way. Again without a dull moment, and without forgetting the necessairy humor. To me Inside Out wasn't only the best animated movie of 2015, it was maybe even the best movie of that year (and I see over 50 films in cinema's a year, so it's not like I only saw that one and Force Awakens)

Tangled, nor Moana and definitely nor Frozen can hold a candle to those two. Tangled is great, I'll admit. It's fun, has a good pacing and a nice story. Compared to TS3 and Inside Out you don't really give a damn about it's main characters though. It's a fun film, but doesn't rise above itself, meaning you'll forget what you saw pretty quick.

I've dug into Moana allready in the OT. It's a good film with quite some flaws, especially regarding the dramatic need of the main character and the conflicts surrounding it. I often felt motivations came from the screenwriters who needed to get somewhere in stead of from the characters. Moana also barely has an arc. You also have sequences that can be lifted out of the movie without narrative consequence and who only serve to keep the attention of kids. A good action scene drives the character forward, makes him or her adres an internal conflict. The
coconut pirate
sequence for instance only serves to have some ADD action to keep kid's eyes to the screen (it's also a sequence that completely feels off in the world presented to us, like it's from another film)

Frozen has moments of brilliants, but is overall a bit of a mess. You feel they turned around the screenplay mid-production. It's pacing is often of, with some duller moments spread troughout. There is an arbitrary badguy who seemed to be pushed in just for the sake of it, because they needed one to make act III work, etc. It's a good film, just like Moana, but it has severe flaws.

Disney's recent output is often very good, and I'm a longtime fan of their work. But it is in no way as good as the 90ies renaissance stuff, nor is it as good as the best output of Pixar or Laika.
 
Not just you, OP.

Yes, yes, yes.

Beauty and The Beast used to be my absolute favorite, but now it's second to Moana.

What a masterpiece the film was. I cried at least thrice because of how epic so many scenes were but at the same time hit the right emotional beats that really made you root for Moana.

Yes! My wife teared up several times throughout the film. We've seen it twice as a family now. My daughter's obsessed.
 

Arynio

Member
I just saw the movie and I 100% agree with the OP. I wasn't expecting anything at all but the movie is gorgeous and hits all the right notes at all the right times. Definitely one of Disney's best ever.
 
There have been a LOT of great animation movies this year.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1313328

Kubo, The Little Prince, Zootopia, The Red Turtle, My Life as a Zucchini and Your Name could all be contenders. And even then there are more decent animated movies there.

EDIT: Okay, and we could put Finding Dory in that list too. Also, he doesn't specify whether they are movies that released this year.
Psychonauts: The Forgotten Children, and A Silent Voice, too.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom