I’ve been heavily anticipating “Raya and the Last Dragon” ever since I saw the first trailer. As a half-Filipino woman, the Southeast Asian representation was very important to me, especially since Disney hadn’t done anything like it before. My sisters and I paid the premiere access fee on Disney+ to watch it the day it came out and we were definitely not disappointed!
Plot and Characters
I absolutely loved the plot in this movie! It’s set in Kumandra, a fantasy world that has been torn apart by human greed and mistrust and is being devastated by evil spirits called Druun. Raya, our main heroine, must go on a journey to find the last dragon, Sisu, and collect the broken pieces of the dragon gem in order to defeat the Druun once and for all. Each place Raya visits is filled with stunning visuals and I loved seeing how each land differed. My favorite visuals definitely came from the scenes set in Talon because I loved seeing the busy market. At each different land Raya and Sisu visit, we meet a new fun character, my favorite being Boun. There was also a fun rivalry between Raya and another girl named Namaari, and a lot of people are choosing to read them as lesbian love interests instead of just friends. There was a lot of tension between them. On top of that, the dragon element in the movie was perfect. I don’t think they could have picked a better voice actress for Sisu than Awkwafina. She brought something to the character that I don’t think anyone else could have.
Visuals and Music
The art styles in this movie are absolutely gorgeous! There were so many scenes where I wanted to pause and admire the beauty. Sometimes the animation would look so realistic, especially with the water scenes, and other times they did a very fun 2D comic book-looking art style. I actually sat and watched the credits because of the beautiful animation art at the end of the movie. The soundtrack is also unforgettable and at several points in the movie, I remember bopping my head to the beat of the song. When there was a sad moment, the music also perfectly complemented the mood and made the scenes more impactful.
All of these elements created a remarkable movie with a great message: despite our differences, we need to come together and trust each other for the greater good. I can see anyone from young children to parents to college students enjoying this movie and I’d definitely recommend it! It exceeded all of my expectations.