‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ REVIEW: A sweet potpourri of Asian cultures
‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ REVIEW: A sweet potpourri of Asian cultures
Kelly Marie Tran is the eponymous hero of Raya and the Last Dragon (2021).
The world is changing, and the animation industry is no exception. As the society grows more inclusive and appreciative of different races, it is no surprise that Disney would make a film celebrating it. After 2019’s Frozen II comes their 59th feature film Raya and the Last Dragon, promoted as a story inspired by Southeast Asian cultures with an Asian-American ensemble led by Kelly Marie Tran as Raya. She is the fearless princess of the Heart Tribe who epitomizes the relentless, an addition to Disney’s roster of empowering women. Set in the fictional land of Kumandra, the animated movie promotes cultural diversity in this epic tale of forgotten dragons and spontaneous heroes.
The story is told through Raya’s narration who introduces the land of Kumandra and its history as in Moana’s first few minutes. Like in Avatar: The Last Airbender—another Asian-inspired work—Kumandra used to be a unified land. The people lived harmoniously alongside dragons until these frightsome creatures called Druuns came and wreaked havoc on their land. It’s something that has been done before, but the twist is this: the world as they knew it changed before their eyes, one stone-turned person at a time. Sisudata, also known as Sisu, being the last dragon, used up her remaining energy and concentrated it into a gem whose light deflected the evil Druuns.
500 years later and it’s obvious that Kumandra and its people have changed since Sisu’s sacrifice. As the heroic dragon went missing, the people fought over the gem. As Raya put it, “people being people” divided their land further. It is currently being protected by the Heart Tribe, which our fierce protagonist is a part of and has been for many generations. The audience is then introduced to the various tribes that simply shows how divided the people are in Raya’s time. There’s the Tail Tribe or the desert mercenaries, the Talon Tribe who take pride in their market, the fierce warriors of the Spine Tribe who reside in the bamboo forest, and the angry assassins of the Fang Tribe.
A divided Kumandra which serves as the setting of the movie. The bodies of water are shaped like a dragon.
The message of the movie is clear as it is emphasized by Chief Benja, Sisu, and ultimately Raya towards the end. Trust is the foundation of unity. Since the Heart Tribe has had the upper hand for being the guardians of the gem for so long, tension and jealousy among the neighboring tribes was inevitable. There was an unspoken distrust among the people of Kumandra which just perpetuated their centuries-long divide. It went on for so long that they just accepted it, and as Raya explained to a dismayed Sisu, “I’m sorry, but that’s what the world is now. You can’t trust anyone.”
It’s a resounding idea in the movie to initiate the rebuilding of trust by swallowing one’s pride, or as some people say, “being the change.” Sisu kept on persuading Raya to trust Namaari because the dragon believes her. Another message that the movie wants to get across is to never lose hope, as losing it is even worse as losing the fight itself. At least with hope, there’s still a will to challenge the status quo, to deal with the oppressive forces that attempt to fill hearts with despair. Hope is what drove Raya to seek out Sisu in order to bring back the peace in their land.
The adorable duo, Raya and Sisu. The water dragon is voiced by Awkwafina.
Although the movie’s messages are inspiring, the execution wasn’t really done well. It’s obvious that the movie’s target audience is children, but Raya and the Last Dragon’s world is an ideal one. It is not practical to trust easily as Sisu preaches, and as the movie emphasizes, the world has changed. It’s such a shame that they didn’t slam Sisu’s traditional and optimistic ideology. It would’ve been nice to see Raya and her team retaliate against the Fang Tribe until the end, but maybe crushing the dragon’s feeble heart is too dark for Disney.
To be honest, the story felt so rushed. For a movie that promotes itself as a milestone of diversity and representation in animation, it deserved more. More on the origin of the land could have been nice, and Raya’s struggle in those 6 years all by herself could have been a great way to give depth to her character. That time jump just doesn’t make sense. There should have been some parts wherein they explain some of the traditions incorporated in the movie like the gesture of clasping one’s hands when greeting another. The stakes aren’t also that high in the story since no one really dies as the disaster can easily be reversed if they only “trust” each other. One can’t even call the climax a deus ex machina since it was bound to happen that way.
Some tropes that we are already acquainted with from former Disney endeavors are used again in this story. It’s not a bad thing though, but it does not make the movie more unique and refreshing than it’s supposed to be. The first is the protector trope, where the protagonist is in charge of protecting some sacred object that ends up getting stolen or destroyed. This one is actually understandable as it is a common behavior in Asians to pass along traditions that they hold in high regard to the next generations. The second being the savior trope where our loving daughter’s eyes are fixed on saving her father and the world. Another one is the animal companion trope that the adorable armadillo Tuk Tuk embodies. And last is the guide trope where we see Sisu helping out Raya in her objective.
Raya’s father, Chief Benja of the Heart Tribe, addresses the four tribes. He is voiced by Daniel Dae Kim.
What Raya and the Last Dragon lacked in its story it made up for in its astounding visuals. The vibrant colors stand out in each scene, and the comics-style of storytelling is really enjoyable. The cast was also tremendous in lending their voices, but the controversy concerning the lack of Southeast Asian voices is agreeable. The representation of countries is still praiseworthy as it’s a thrill to spot some references to one’s own customs from scene to scene. It’s in their food (notable one is the rambutan), their architecture and design, their awesome martial arts that hyped up the fighting scenes, and their music like Raya’s chant and the folk sounding, “Lead the Way”. Everything tied up more wondrously than expected as it could easily be messy incorporating the heritage of different countries.
Raya and the Last Dragon is a potpourri of Asian traditions and cultures, and unexpectedly a good one at that. The movie might be lacking plot-wise, but it’s still a Disney movie that demands to be seen. It tells a story of trust, unity, and hope for the light at the end of the tunnel which are timely and relevant messages as the world is still far from reaching that so-called glow. Raya’s world might be fictional, but the challenges she faces in the movie are as real as they can get. There are discouraging Druuns that roam around in this world, and it’s only through unity that we can achieve peace and victory.
Raya and the Last Dragon is now available on Disney+ for $29.99 on Premiere Access and will be free to stream on June 4.
