When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Disney was in a sticky situation regarding how they were going to release all the films they had on their slate. Being the biggest film production company on the planet, often with multiple releases in a month, comes with spending an awful lot of money on several things at once. If none of them can release, that’s a mighty big hole being burned in your finances. But with the release of Disney+ during 2020, Disney opted to try and release a lot of their films via the service with a ‘Premium Access’ barrier, meaning you needed to pay to watch the title on top of the subscription you were already paying for the service. Raya and the Last Dragon was one such title, and whilst it did get a theatrical release where possible, this was a film that many never got to see on the big screen. A shame too, as much like the majority of Disney’s Revival Era Animation’s, Raya is a very enjoyable film.
Five hundred years ago the land of Kumandra suffered the desolation of the evil spirits, the Druun. In a last-ditch attempt to stop the Druun, the dragon Sisu (Awkwafina) concentrates her magic into a gem that banishes the Druun and revives those who have suffered from its effects. With Sisu gone and only her gem remaining, the people of Kumandra battled over the powerful object and split into five tribes, Fang, Heart, Spine, Talon, and Tail.
Raya (Kelly Marie Tran), the daughter of Heart chieftain Benja (Daniel Dae Kim), is placed in charge of the care of Sisu’s gemstone. However, the other factions mount a coordinated attack, breaking the gem and each stealing a shard, once again releasing the Druun.
But when Raya discovers a way to revive Sisu, the two work together to reunite the gem shards so that the Druun can be imprisoned once again. However, Sisu also wants to reunite the clans and restore Kumandra, something Raya gave up hope on long ago.
Five hundred years ago the land of Kumandra suffered the desolation of the evil spirits, the Druun. In a last-ditch attempt to stop the Druun, the dragon Sisu (Awkwafina) concentrates her magic into a gem that banishes the Druun and revives those who have suffered from its effects. With Sisu gone and only her gem remaining, the people of Kumandra battled over the powerful object and split into five tribes, Fang, Heart, Spine, Talon, and Tail.
Raya (Kelly Marie Tran), the daughter of Heart chieftain Benja (Daniel Dae Kim), is placed in charge of the care of Sisu’s gemstone. However, the other factions mount a coordinated attack, breaking the gem and each stealing a shard, once again releasing the Druun.
But when Raya discovers a way to revive Sisu, the two work together to reunite the gem shards so that the Druun can be imprisoned once again. However, Sisu also wants to reunite the clans and restore Kumandra, something Raya gave up hope on long ago.
The most interesting aspect of Raya and the Last Dragon is the world of Kumandra. So much work has gone into making the history of this land as fascinating as possible, and it works both to the films aid and to its detriment. A good world always strengthens a good story because you enjoy occupying that space, but in the case of Raya the world is so much more interesting than the story of reuniting the gem fragments that it feels like a waste of potential.
The characters are also great; Raya, Sisu, and particularly antagonist Namaari (Gemma Chan) are all interesting characters with complex emotions and conflicting interests to achieve the same goal. The rivalry between Raya and Namaari is one of the films strongest aspects, and the resolution that story gets is truly excellent. But it’s all bogged down by this mundane fetch quest to collect the gem shards. The voice performances were also all excellent, even from Awkwafina who I’m not usually big fan of, but she manages to bring something really engaging to her performance of Sisu and I would argue it’s the best role she's ever done.
Raya looks and sounds stunning though, even when watching at home. I have the luxury of watching the film in 4K HDR with Dolby Vision & Atmos, so I’m getting about as close to a cinema experience as I can get from the comfort of my sofa. Starting off with character models, the detail is so minute that particularly in close-ups you can begin to see actual textured skin on the models. In terms of clothes, for some time Disney have really nailed the physics effects on clothing but in Raya I was finally able to notice the same detail in terms of stitching and individual fabric texture that I’ve been able to see from the likes of Pixar’s Toy Story 4.
Environments are borderline photorealistic at times, which combined with the stunning cinematography presents the world of Kumandra as a world that could very well be our own. There’s a decent range of environments too so the animation team could flex their muscles with water, desert, jungle, ice, and urban locales.
The cinematography and intricacy of character animation join together harmoniously in Raya’s multiple stunning combat sequences. Pulled straight from iconic martial arts films, the fights in Raya far exceed the quality of any kind of combat sequence seen in a Disney film before, which manage to thrill without overstepping those boundaries of what you would expect for a family friendly affair in a Disney Classic.
The score is also brilliant. Composed by James Newton Howard, the music of Raya gives Kumandra a huge amount of personality, and the combat sequences some real impact. Whilst there are no musical numbers in Raya, you’ll certainly remember what the film sounds like more than most other Disney Classics.
On the whole, Raya and the Last Dragon is a fantastic addition to the Disney Animated Classics line-up. It takes tropes from the likes of Mulan and updates them for modern audiences, whilst also presenting this unique and fascinating world which you can really get lost in. Whilst the main plot of the gems I found underwhelming, and there’s definitely too much exposition, Raya’s many strengths significantly outweigh the negatives.
A technical powerhouse with excellent performances, I would love to return to Kumandra again for more adventures with Raya, Sisu, and the rest of the gang so I can spend more time in their fascinating world.
The characters are also great; Raya, Sisu, and particularly antagonist Namaari (Gemma Chan) are all interesting characters with complex emotions and conflicting interests to achieve the same goal. The rivalry between Raya and Namaari is one of the films strongest aspects, and the resolution that story gets is truly excellent. But it’s all bogged down by this mundane fetch quest to collect the gem shards. The voice performances were also all excellent, even from Awkwafina who I’m not usually big fan of, but she manages to bring something really engaging to her performance of Sisu and I would argue it’s the best role she's ever done.
Raya looks and sounds stunning though, even when watching at home. I have the luxury of watching the film in 4K HDR with Dolby Vision & Atmos, so I’m getting about as close to a cinema experience as I can get from the comfort of my sofa. Starting off with character models, the detail is so minute that particularly in close-ups you can begin to see actual textured skin on the models. In terms of clothes, for some time Disney have really nailed the physics effects on clothing but in Raya I was finally able to notice the same detail in terms of stitching and individual fabric texture that I’ve been able to see from the likes of Pixar’s Toy Story 4.
Environments are borderline photorealistic at times, which combined with the stunning cinematography presents the world of Kumandra as a world that could very well be our own. There’s a decent range of environments too so the animation team could flex their muscles with water, desert, jungle, ice, and urban locales.
The cinematography and intricacy of character animation join together harmoniously in Raya’s multiple stunning combat sequences. Pulled straight from iconic martial arts films, the fights in Raya far exceed the quality of any kind of combat sequence seen in a Disney film before, which manage to thrill without overstepping those boundaries of what you would expect for a family friendly affair in a Disney Classic.
The score is also brilliant. Composed by James Newton Howard, the music of Raya gives Kumandra a huge amount of personality, and the combat sequences some real impact. Whilst there are no musical numbers in Raya, you’ll certainly remember what the film sounds like more than most other Disney Classics.
On the whole, Raya and the Last Dragon is a fantastic addition to the Disney Animated Classics line-up. It takes tropes from the likes of Mulan and updates them for modern audiences, whilst also presenting this unique and fascinating world which you can really get lost in. Whilst the main plot of the gems I found underwhelming, and there’s definitely too much exposition, Raya’s many strengths significantly outweigh the negatives.
A technical powerhouse with excellent performances, I would love to return to Kumandra again for more adventures with Raya, Sisu, and the rest of the gang so I can spend more time in their fascinating world.