Raya and The Last Dragon hits Disney+ this Friday, and it's the Mouse House's most purely enjoyable animated adventures in quite some time.
Set in the fragmented fantasy world of Kumandra, the movie follows a young warrior named Raya as she attempts to track down Sisu (the titular last dragon) in order to free her father by vanquishing evil creatures known as Druun who have turned most of the land's inhabitants into stone.
We're not exactly breaking new ground here from a story standpoint, but to criticise a Disney movie for being a little formulaic almost feels redundant at this point, and what Raya lacks in originality it more than makes up for with gorgeous animation, engaging characters and a strong emotional core.
Disney rarely disappoints when it comes to visuals, but what's on display here is genuinely stunning to behold, as Raya and her crew travel to various immersive, Asian-influenced locations. Under normal circumstances RATLD would be a must-watch on the big screen, and if you can (safely) catch it in a theater, it is highly recommended that you do so.
The action sequences are also top notch, with some surprisingly impactful martial arts-inspired encounters. The stakes are never particularly high, but directors Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada and the writing team of Adele Lim and Qui Nguyen do just enough to inject a bit of weight to the drama, and there are a couple of pretty tense moments.
Raya (voiced by Star Wars: The Last Jedi's Kelly Marie Tran) is Disney's first Southeast Asian lead, but she stands apart in another intriguing way. Following a six-year time-jump, we catch up with our young protagonist as a world-weary warrior of the wasteland, who has abandoned all hope of uniting her people and is only concerned with saving her own father. She's no Mad Max, but our hero is a tad more cynical than the average Disney "Princess," and it gives her a unique edge.
By contrast, Sisu (Awkwafina) is a delightfully (naively?) optimistic creature, who believes placing trust in people is the only way to hold back the darkness.
It's a little on the nose, and one might argue that Sisu's insistence that Raya forgive and trust the person who betrayed her (Gemma Chan's Namaari) lacks nuance. But, again, subtlety has never been Disney's forte, and the characters' dynamics still feel believable.
It helps that they are such a likeable bunch. Disney has been guilty of overestimating how invested audiences will be in its characters in the past, but that never becomes a problem here, and we are with Raya, Sisu and their makeshift family every step of the way.
Raya is a charming, captivating tale with outstanding visuals and a terrific voice cast. Its themes of championing hope and unity over fear and dissension may seem simplistic, but strong, well-defined characters ensure that the the message is no less powerfully delivered.