Raya and the Last Dragon is an exciting, breathtaking adventure set in a brilliantly realized world with engaging lore, and a story with important values that doesn’t talk down to its audience. It’s one of those Disney animation productions that feel like a triumph of filmmaking, where the product of all the elements is definitely more than the sum of its parts.
Raya (Kelly Marie Tran) is training to be the guardian of the Dragon Gem, just like her father, chief Benja (Daniel Dae Kim). She listens closely as he narrates the tale of how the Gem came to be. Five hundred years ago, sinister invaders called the Druun ravaged the land, turning every living creature to stone. The dragons, who helped humanity with their powers, made a last stand and entrusted their power to Sisu (Awkwafina), who used the dragon gem to defeat the Druun and revive the golemized people across the land. However, the dragons don’t come back to live, and Sisu herself disappears.
In the present, disaster strikes again as Benja’s attempt at uniting the different human tribes falls apart as the princess from the Fang tribe, Namaari (Gemma Chan) makes an attempt to steal the gem, causing all the other tribes to scramble for it and break it in the process. This releases the Druun back into the world and thousands of people are turned into stone, including Chief Benja. Raya sets off with her trusty pet, Tuk Tuk, to find Sisu and gather all the Dragon Gem pieces so that she can save the world again. After six years, she finally finds Sisu, who is a good-natured, trusting dragon who always prefers giving people gifts to appease them instead of fighting them.
The influence of properties like Avatar: The Last Airbender is apparent in the film, but it takes it all and creates its own story, although elements like an important Zuko-like rival to Raya do occasionally remind you of its influences. The film also introduces a growing party to accompany Raya, from the fast-talking Boun (Izaac Wang) and weathered warrior Tong (Benedict Wong) to the absurdly resourceful con baby, who has a troop of monkey-like animals called Onjis helping her scam unsuspecting tourists.
The design and animation is perhaps the most detailed yet by Disney Animation Studio.
The dragon designs, for instance, are distinctly South-East Asian, differing from Chinese dragons as they have horns on their foreheads. They travel through the air by jumping on rain drops, and each dragon has a unique magic power of its own. Even Raya’s hair is clumped realistically, like you would expect from an Asian woman who doesn’t always get to brush her long hair.
The cast is excellent, especially Kelly Marie Tran and Awkwafina. You can genuinely feel Raya’s distrust and Sisu’s sincere belief in the goodness of others, and how these two interact with each other, leading to the climax where Raya finally decides to trust in others, especially Namaari, who betrayed her all those years ago. It’s a character arc that stands apart from the usual hero’s journey you see in the case of Moana or Elsa from Frozen.
As good as the film is, it skims through Raya’s journey through the lands of the four tribes. Also, it’s not as heartfelt or soulful as Pixar films like Soul (pun intended), but then that might be a tall order for any non Pixar film to overcome.
Like Moana before it, Raya and the Last Dragon sports a familiar narrative but succeeds because of its immersion into South-East Asian culture and great character dynamics.
I can’t help but wonder how great it could have been if this wasn’t a film but a fleshed out animated series. It could probably exceed the magic of even The Dragon Prince on Netflix, which is somewhat of a spiritual sequel to Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nevertheless, it’s a fine film as it is, and you should definitely see it if you love fantasy and adventure stories.
