#chief tui

howdy! i recently attended a convention in michigan and had the honor of getting my art signed by temuera 🥺 i am so full of joy

This isn't going to be long, because I'm feeling pretty crappy from my chronic health issues, but I want to share a few of my favorite things from the new live action Moana:

The first has to be the cultural representation. They truly went above and beyond in making sure every single detail is culturally authentic. If you're interested in this, I highly recommend checking out some of the promo interviews - not only was Dana Ledoux Miller involved in writing the screenplay, but many members of the Cultural Trust, like Tiana Nonosina Liufau, also worked on this film. Here is one good article about it.

Stemming from that, while there are no new big plot points, we do have several new scenes and new dialogue with Moana's parents and the villagers of Motonui at the beginning and end of the film, and we also get a brief scene with Tui while she's gone. They all get fleshed out into more nuanced supporting characters.

Maui. I know it's weird seeing The Rock with hair, but I loved the character choices made for this version of Maui. I've never really connected with him in the OG film because, to me, he feels like a 19 year old comic relief character instead of a 3000 year old demigod. He's still funny, cocky, and charismatic; but he's allowed to be genuinely frustrated with Moana in this version, and his passive-aggressive jabs at her are allowed to sting. It made his backstory, for me, hit even harder - because I could genuinely believe this is a guy who's been around for 3000 years.

Moana. Where can I even start? Catherine Lagaʻaia is phenomenal in this. Like Halle Bailey's Ariel and Lily James' Ella, Catherine doesn't just play Moana - she embodies her. Both her singing and her acting are off the charts. I could go on about her forever, but the character choice I liked the most was the extra emphasis on Moana's intelligence. Moana frequently gets treated by people as being just an Action Girl - and her athletic feats are great! - but it's her combination of heart and intelligence that makes her a hero. Also, while she was strong-willed and brave, this Moana is allowed to have brief moments of fear (like before fighting the Kakamora). This makes her bravery and success even more impactful, because she isn't being 'a reckless teenager'. She knows the risks and she takes action anyway.

The new end credits song. Hearing Auli'i and Catherine sing together brought tears to my eyes!

There are a few Moana 2 easter eggs! For example, we see a little more of Tautai Vasa than in the OG, and his name is said (which it isn't in the OG film).

The progression from ultra-realism to fantasy film. "You're Welcome" is the sequence that needs to make this transition work, and they did it really well.

More Pua! He's always been my favorite.

A Very Legendary & Remarkablely Talented Polynesian New Zealand 🇳🇿 Actor🧑🏽‍🦲 & The Legendary Infamous Galactic Ruthless, But Merciless Bounty Hunter 🔫 Of The Star Wars 🌟 Universe 🌌

Born On December 28th, 1960

Hailing all the way from New Zealand 🇳🇿 & Is Born Of The Maori Society. He is known for starring in various roles throughout his career mostly Pacific islander films.

He is a New Zealand actor who first gained recognition in his home country for playing Dr. Hone Ropata on the soap opera Shortland Street. He garnered critical acclaim for starring as Jake "The Muss" Heke in the 1994 film Once Were Warriors and its 1999 sequel What Becomes of the Broken Hearted?.

Outside of New Zealand, Morrison is best known for his work in the Star Wars multimedia franchise, playing the roles of Jango Fett and his many genetic clones, including the clone troopers and Jango's clone son Boba Fett. He originated the role of Jango in the 2002 film Attack of the Clones. Morrison voiced Boba Fett in the 2004 re-release of The Empire Strikes Back, various Star Wars video games, and portrayed Boba fully in the second season of The Mandalorian (2019–present) and the spin-off show The Book of Boba Fett (2021–2022). In 2022, he had a recurring role in the black ops thriller series Echo 3. Morrison is known for voicing Chief Tui, the father of the Moana in Disney's Moana (2016), and for playing Arthur Curry's father Tom Curry in the DCEU films Aquaman (2018), The Flash (2023), and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023).

Please Wish This Legendary & Remarkablely Talented Polynesian New Zealand 🇳🇿 Actor🧑🏽‍🦲 & The Legendary Infamous Galactic Ruthless, But Merciless Bounty Hunter 🔫 Of The Star Wars 🌟 Universe 🌌

A Very Happy Belated Birthday 🎂 🥳 🎉 🎈 🎁 🎊

YOU ALL SHOULD KNOW HIM FROM EARLIER WORK BACK IN THE DAYS, BEFORE HIS RISE TO FAME FROM 2002 IN A GALAXY, FAR FAR AWAY 🌌

HE HAS BECOME A ICON & NOW HAS BECOME A LEGEND IN REPRESENTATION FOR THE POLYNESIAN COMMUNITIES IN ACTING & MOVIES 🎥

& WE LOVE HIS STRONG COMMITMENT TO ALWAYS DOING THIS KIND OF WORK FOR HIS MANY FANS WORLDWIDE 🌐

THE 1

& THE ONLY

MR. TEMUERA MORRISON🧑🏽‍🦲 🏝🇵🇫🇳🇿🌌🔫

AKA JANGO FETT & BOBA FETT OF THE STAR WARS 🌟 UNIVERSE

HAPPY BELATED 65TH BIRTHDAY 🎂 🥳 🎉 🎈 🎁 🎊 TO YOU MR . MORRISON 🧑🏽‍🦲 🏝🇵🇫🇳🇿🌌🔫 & HERE'S TO MANY MORE YEARS TO COME

#TemueraMorrison #StarWarsEpisodeIIAttackOfTheClones #Moana #Aquaman #TheMandalorian #TheBookOfBobaFett #AquamanAndTheLostKingdom #Moana2

Moni tells the "God of Storm.and the" he talks to the story about "God of Storm" Monana family. Disney Thinking 🤔 Moni love to..... Moana 🥰🥰🥰 the getting the green flag to.... Moana 2 on "she needs a chew!"

Over and over again, he denied her the chance to sail on the ocean, and considering how dangerous that was, I could call that reasonable. But he repeatedly invalidated her and essentially shat on her dreams. When the blight (or whatever) started to threaten the island and made the fish disappear, and she suggested going out to sea to deal with the problem, he got pissed at her and lashed out. The second time she suggested sailing out to return the heart, he threw it away, raised his voice at her, and made to burn the boats she clearly valued deeply. This is full-on asshole behaviour, and arguably abuse. (And like, people might argue "they just have a feisty family," but the movie never shows Moana treating him anything like the way he treats her, so I have to assume she never directs her anger at him the way he does to her.)

So then she took off.

Then she came back and proved him wrong. She showed him that she became a competent sailor and went "a liiittle past the reef." And all he said was "It suits you." Which, like... okay yeah it's nice that you at least acknowledge that she was right about pursuing her destiny, but maybe you could apologize for treating your daughter like total shit the last time you saw her? Say it, you damned coward! Say "I treated you badly because of ego and my fears. I was wrong; the way I treated you was wrong, and I'm sorry." Be a fucking man. Be a leader.

But no. All Moana and the viewers get is "It suits you."

Bullshit.

I know it's Disney and we can't really expect much from them. But god, I want movies (especially movies aimed at young audiences) to do a better job of showing what truly good parenting looks like. People need to know that if you fuck up and do your kid(s) wrong, the right thing to do is apologize to them. Show them what healthy and respectful relationships look like.