Title: RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON
Director: Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada
Starring: Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Izaac Wang, Gemma Chan, Daniel Dae Kim, Benedict Wong, Sandra Oh, Thalia Tran, Lucille Soong, and Alan Tudyk
Movie length: 1 hour 47 minutes
RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON is one of the best movies I have seen this year!
Am I just trying to get my quote on the back or the front of the Blu-ray? Perhaps, but I really do think this is a really good movie.
What is impressive about this movie is that it was made solely in people’s houses. Even the voice recording was done in people’s closets and or regular rooms. Not a recording studio or anything fancy. And we all know how challenging it is to be proactive when you have family, pets, and roommates right next to you. I also want to give this movie credit for being an original movie and not just a reboot or a cash grab, this is the Disney we were all missing.
Now on to the review, this movie is not without its flaws, it’s very predictable at times and the conflict is quickly resolved, which makes you scratch your head. The people tried to kill you and you’re going to have lunch with them and become friends and act like nothing happened? What is this FAST & FURIOUS 7? It also feels like a lot of scenes were cut out due to run time which makes the movie feel uneven at times. Like one of the main characters would say I have a plan and we never see what the plan was. Which makes you think what was the plan? Was that the plan? Or was that plan B. But it doesn’t take away from the overall enjoyment you can have with this movie.
The main character Raya also keeps everything a secret, which doesn’t make sense because she’s trying to do something for the greater good, but she doesn’t tell anybody that what she is trying to do is for the greater good. Which makes other people confused As an example, I am pretty sure the person would have said sure here you go. Instead the main character goes around stealing, granted the items that she is stealing were hers to begin with but it does not come without any challenges, that could have easily been avoided if she was honest about her motives. I also like that this movie doesn’t really have any traditional villains that you could really hate, everybody has their own point of view and you understand where each person is coming from.
And I think that is this movies greatest strength, it does a great job explaining everything. This is also a tearjerker so be ready to cry or feel emotions, I didn’t cry but I definitely felt every scene and even though this was an animated movie it felt really realistic and relatable. Not the magic stuff of course, but the human emotions and what the characters went through and their motivations. You really feel for this characters and that says a lot for an animated movie.
In conclusion RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON is a great movie to watch by yourself or with a family and friends. It does have a bit of a generic ending but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I give this movie an A for Asia.
RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON is now streaming on Disney+ Premier Access.
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