Moana's Character Arc
I know it's just a kid's movie, but I thought Moana's character arc was rather unsatisfying. Compared to someone like Aladdin, who has a core character flaw that he must overcome to become the true hero of the story, Moana's journey as a character seemed rather uneventful, AFTER the first act of the film. Personally, I thought the first act was great. After she meets Maui, though, I feel like the writers started to make decisions that quite weakened Moana's development and the film. One of the biggest overarching examples is her relationship with Maui. Oddly, Moana becomes the mentor character FOR MAUI, helping him grow in deeper ways than she ever does after that first act. This could work, possibly, but then at the end of the film it's still Moana who makes the true revelation about Te Fiti, in essence fixing Maui's past mistake for him. It just seems like incongruent storytelling. For the record, I liked a lot of the film, and, again, loved the first act.
Strangely enough, a great counter-example is the development of Max and Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road. Each of them has their own journeys, and their roles in the story reflects and informs their growth as characters. SPOILERS Even though Max is the titular hero, it's Furiosa who defeats Immortan Joe because it's more important for her character. In that vein, Maui ought to have accomplished something a bit more significant after losing his hook, and/or have made the realization about Te Fiti; it's simply more important for his character. Based on everything presented, what's important for Moana's character is leaving her island and voyaging the sea, which she does. She also learns navigation, which she will then presumably teach to her tribe since she has helped free the seas from Te Fiti's curse. These actions are what are important to her, not Te Fiti's heart.