“Raya and the Last Dragon” Review: Another Excellent Film From Disney Animation Studios

Raya and the Last Dragon is directed by Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada and is the lastest film to come from Walt Disney Animation Studios. The film takes place in a fictional world known as Kumandra, where humans and dragons lived together in harmony. However, when monsters known as the Druun threatened the land, the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. 500 years later, those same monsters have returned, and it's up to a warrior named Raya to track down the last dragon and stop the Druun for good. The film features the voices of Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Daniel Dae Kim, Sandra Oh, Benedict Wong, and Gemma Chan.

Perhaps one of the greatest things about this film is the storytelling. The script is incredibly well written, and while the plot may feel a little predictable at certain times, the film as a whole is incredibly entertaining, emotional, and uplifting. Also to no one's surprise, the animation on display here is phenomenal. With every single film Disney makes, the animation just keeps getting better and better, and this is no exception. Similar to that of Moana, the way that the fire and water are animated is just an absolute sight to behold and every single frame of this film is breathtaking and jaw-dropping. The score by James Newton Howard is also quite good, as I felt it added a strong upbeat and euphoric feeling to the entire film.

The voice cast also does a fantastic job in this film. Kelly Marie Tran does an excellent job voicing Raya, and is able to add a lot of depth and convey a ton of emotion. Awkwafina's voice performance as Sisu is also rather incredible, as I felt that her character was up there with Robin Williams' genie and Eddie Murphy's Mushu as one of the best supporting characters in a Disney film. Every single voice actor does stellar work with their roles and not a single one felt phoned in or dull.

Something else I really loved about this film is the world-building, which is something I really love about the majority of Disney and Pixar's films including the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The world that these characters explore throughout this film is not only a visual feast due to Disney's extraordinary animation, but is a world that I would love to spend more time in perhaps with a sequel or spin-off series. I also really appreciated that this is one of the few Disney Animation Films that isn't a musical. While I do quite enjoy the musicals, after hearing the songs over and over again on the radio they start to simply annoy me. However, with this film nobody bursts out into song at all, instead we get incredibly well choreographed and framed action sequences, which I feel added a lot of intensity to the film as a whole.

All in all I feel that this is another marvelous film from Walt Disney Animation Studios. The animation is terrific as usual, the voice cast is excellent, and the storytelling and worldbuilding on display is quite remarkable. I cannot recommend this film enough and I can’t wait to see what's next from Disney Animation.

Final Grade: A

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Raya and the Last Dragon is Now Playing in Theaters and is available on Disney+ for a $29.99 fee until June 4th, when it will be available for no extra cost.