More than 150 square feet of crisp animation and dimmed lights are the centerpiece for 100 minutes – 130 including ads – of my day on Nov. 27. This is time invested in my enjoyment and well-being, and I expected high returns from my decision to watch Moana 2.
Unfortunately, my investment fell flat.
The original Moana was a perfectly crafted hero’s journey: a complex character called to an urgent quest, facing trials along the way but, with perseverance, overcoming her struggles and finding the strength to pursue her dreams. The sequel, on the other hand, piggybacks off of what had already been done, a less compelling, paraphrased version of the original.
A common phenomenon in the film industry, producers that are too afraid for their ideas to backfire protect themselves from losses by creating dummy versions of successful movies.Take the endless sequels of Fast and Furious, Despicable Me, Kung Fu Panda, Mission Impossible and Disney’s recent pattern of sequels and live action remakes: filmmakers and companies recycle popular storylines with familiar characters to maximize their audience potential and profit.
These spinoffs feature everyone’s favorite characters going on the same quest as they did in the previous movie, with the same character arc, implying previous development regressed to its original state. Their journey concludes with the happy ending existing in the previous movie. We leave the theater learning nothing new about the character and unclear on their new motivations.
Since the sequels are predicated on already exceptional storylines, they have glaring plot holes. For example, in Moana 2, Moana has no pressing reason to go on a quest, but seemingly follows through just for the thrill of it. Directors bet on the idea that audience nostalgia covers up bad stories, but considering the target audience is eight years older than when the first movie released, they fail to account for the change in their original fans’ interests.
To restore audience interest in current movies, producers must create original content or change the target audience. By pivoting their consumer base to accommodate for the growth of their original viewers, the character automatically has new challenges to differentiate the spinoff from its source.
A good example is “The Legend of Korra,” the spinoff to “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” The story still follows element benders, but the target audience and intensity of the storyline aged with the viewers.
Imagine this strategy applied to Moana 2, where Moana is a young adult dealing with the great responsibilities of being the chief of her tribe. This position would resonate with the grown audience, and would give her different problems from the first movie. Or, to relate to the younger generation, this movie could focus on Moana’s younger sister living in the shadow of her older sister’s accomplishments.
Original content enhances the impact of a movie and as consumers, it is up to us to show filmmakers we enjoy new and innovative content. In addition to the numerous remakes of original movies, invest your time in original stories like Disney’s upcoming original film Elio, along with movies made by non-mainstream companies.
Follow @CHSCampusNews on X.
