Raya and the Last Dragon (2021)

Stars	User	Rating
7	Leonardis	95 _86%
I loved it. The plotting is familiar if you've seen some of Disney's other animated films from the past ten years (and who hasn't?), but it still works really well with the characters and backdrop. I also appreciate Disney taking their storytelling to darker territory and some pretty mature themes with this. The animation and music is beautiful, the voice acting is great, and the film has plenty of humor and heart to keep everyone invested. It's also extremely well directed. Great stuff!
7	Okkervil	68 _63%
One of those films that gives the distinct feeling that there likely exists a much more daring, thoughtful version of the plot on a first draft storyboard somewhere. It’s never a great sign when the ‘story by’ section on the end-credits has a small army of writers credited for a story so simple. Whilst this is undoubtedly disappointingly watered down it’s still very well made, beautifully animated and has enough style and manipulative heart-tuggery to more than do its job.
5	nobamba	60 _61%
(Rewatch: still fine, nothing distinctive plot-wise though. I also liked Sisu being betrayed by the old lady but still keeping her faith in people.) Amazing water animation. Story and setting felt very similar to Avatar: The Last Airbender but I didn't pay enough attention to the dragon lore to totally get it. Cool sword design. Fav scene: Sisu comes in to rescue Raya from Namaari by blowing cold air everywhere, then Namarri watches with deep expression as Raya and the last dragon gets away.
4	Mentaculus	36 _11%
You may delude yourself into believing the story's beats hold their own, but that's because they've been diluted from better examples. It could have been just lazy, but a script this lazy is made shameful given its proposed principle: to trust one another. Not once did I trust this film gave its audience the chance to think for themselves, to come to their own conclusions. It's just a mess of cringe cliche and bizarre faux-anime flourishes, from ten (!) credited (!!) writers.
4	rihrey	53 _65%
why is Sisu literally Elsa but as a dragon though. Anyway, the film itself is incredibly generic tbh, but it looks gorgeous so there's certainly that.
4	Ytadel	6 _69%
Everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked - er, sorry, the Fang Nation. When the Fang Nation attacked
3	Quintonjamin	80 _79%
I was very surprised by this. Not all of the humor hit, but I thought the story was sufficient and the animation was absolutely beautiful. It also had some great music.
3	KasperL	55 _39%
That the script is formulaic is to be expected so my biggest gripe with the script is to do with characters making decisions that make absolutely no sense whatsoever. This being said I enjoyed Disney's latest for its energy and the fast pacing. It's also a feast for the eyes. Except for the dragon... Man, it's so damned ugly that it almost ruined the film for me.
3	ienjoycinema	50 _9%
Despite this being a complete visual spectacle, it's strong art direction only leaves you charmed and engaged for so long. There's an overwhelming dearth of originality, and it's absence absolutely suffocates the script of any life. The film is trite and formulaic. Raya's offensively generic journey does not leave you with any hint of nascent inspiration. Since it's Disney, it is held to the highest standards and unfortunately it falls far short of it's peers. Too shallow for it to be memorable.
2	Obdurate	85 _80%
There are moments where the formula feels just a little too familiar, a little too safe, which prevents it from reaching a 90. But aside from those moments, this is gorgeously animated with a lot of emotional resonance. nobamba mentioned a fave scene and I concur, that part is excellent. And when the door opens to reveal Raya before that. That's when Raya's at its best. Cool fight scenes too. Sometimes the humour is forced but sometimes it's really funny.
2	matthagen	60 _72%
The movie comes off as formulaic and playing it safe, with forced humor. But the third act nails it, with strong emotional payoffs. It's likeable, but far from Disney's upper echelon.
2	Jerky	65 _83%
I don't get the appeal of Awkwafina (Aquafina water?) She's the female equivalent of Chris Tucker. Loud and obnoxious and every time she speaks I just want to stab myself in the brain! If you wanted to torture someone, just lock them in a room and play her voice on a loop, they'll give up all their secrets in no time! I also love how there's the token white guy in the Asian cast. Movie was alright I guess
2	mattorama12	73 _71%
Really nicely done. It feels very of a piece with the recent Disney animated films, which is a compliment. I enjoyed the fantastic setting and its blend of different Asian cultures. Only minor complaint is that it leans a little heavy on comedy and I just didn't find Awkwafina very funny in this.
2	Luna6ix	80 _73%
While "Raya and the Last Dragon" was just as entertaining and thrilling as anything Pixar has made, it fails to remain quite as memorable as the best kids movies of the last twenty years. Don't let that appraisal relegate this to an endorsement for people with kids only, though, it's still worth a watch for literally all ages.
2	amazedemon	66 _69%
There's much to like about Raya and the Last Dragon, but it falls short of being great. The setting is on the generic side of fantasy, but populating it with Southeast-Asian designs gives it a fresh feel. The animation is great, and the score works really well. Commendable as it had to be completed remotely. The film's downfall is its contrived screenplay. Raya's journey lacks distinction; the climax is predictable and emotionally toying; and Awkwafina's contemporary dialogue was distracting.
1	morphinapg	84 _80%
I really loved this movie. The animation is gorgeous, and the worldbuilding is really fascinating. As much as the story on its own might sound fairly straightforward, the execution of that story, world and characters felt very unique, and kept me drawn in the entire time. I would love for Disney to make a TV series about this world. Highly recommended! The HDR was also very good.
1	Iamdwg (Interpreting the Stars)	88 _82%
This is an absolutely solid Disney film that'll bring the likes of Mulan and Moana to the forefront of your memory. For me, I also saw Infinity War, as our heroes were searching for a number of magical stones, all of which have their own magical properties that when combined, do something even more magical. And they're trying to avoid other people turning to dust...or something
1	inzzzomnia	2 _18%
It only takes 10 minutes before you get the first morale lesson written on your nose and then it kind of continues that way. Great visually though.
1	PianoSama	70 _81%
I yearn for a world where Disney actually buys what they're selling in their movies & does something- anything, literally anything- to help fix the very broken Kumandra that we live in. Anyway, this is a super solid action-adventure animation with great voice performances, stunning visuals, & a fun if familiar plot featuring all of the stock House of Mouse personalities we know & love with a fresh coat of paint applied. It never becomes great, though, & a lot of that is because it's so familiar.
1	mustafatanis	75 _42%
Good movie to take a nice time
1	ADragon91	60 _49%
Paint-by-numbers Dragon Chick Flick. Very underwhelming. There's nothing really outright bad about it per se. Most of the characters are so bland that I can't remember their names. Sisu the Dragon is alright in small doses as I didn't find her too annoying. Some dumb and contrived things happen. It becomes predictable and kind of lazy. To give the writers some credit near the end it gets a bit better as the themes and emotional moments come together, but it's mostly mediocre-passable.
1	backwardsuit	44 _9%
The more Disney movies I see (especially modern ones) the less willing I become to view their formulaic underpinnings as simply creative lazyness or market-driven decision making. As Mentaculus proposed in his review, I too feel there's some kind of ominous implication here about the agency of thought. I guess it's a more "out there" topic wider than any single movie but that being said, I also found this boring, disjointed and ugly to look at.
1	JanaMarie	10 _89%
This movie is beautiful. I truly hope that when my stepson gets old enough to understand it, this becomes a whole-family favorite. The message is just a bit on the nose, but hey, it's a kids' movie. There's only one thing that sticks out to me as a negative (just by personal preference), and that's the whole fighting con-baby thing. Can't REALLY fault them for trying to put in something for everybody though, right?
1	CStewart64	16 _89%
W4E2P2S1V2M1A2R2. Another great kids movie with healthy and uplifting roles for girls. And even better, it doesn't make their gender a central part of the plot at all--they're just girls who happen to be the main characters because, why not? Not as emotionally wrenching as many of the best animated films of the past, but really solid.
1	Corbad	85 _90%
Gorgeously animated and lovingly crafted. Reconciliation always gets me, and so do found family antics and romantic tension between warrior women, so this really had it all - though Noi the con-baby is as often uncanny as amusing.
1	KeyUtkan	76 _81%
Moral Lesson is obvious. The plot is formulaic and nothing unique about character designs. This is basically Mulan + Moana mash-up. BUT ! The delivery about "what matters most" or "what makes you feel in a certain way" is kinda spot on imo. I really sensed the soul of this story. Great world-building and fantastic art design. Raya is a bit boring and that 3 Monkey+ Baby thing was super annoying and unnecessarily bland comical relief. But Raya Vs Namari stuff was good and Sisu was just amazing.
1	aross	65 _65%
Modern Disney movies are so formulaic, but they are so well done it is hard to complain. You've seen all this before plot-wise, but it at least the world/setting was interesting. Voice acting was good except Awkwafina who I find extremely annoying outside of her Crazy Rich Asians role.
1	magdabag	93 _89%
Though the structure and recipe are very familiar, especially with Disney's other recent films, this movie is still SUPER solid. The animation is always something to write home about, and I loved some new and fresh representation. Yes martial arts movies have been done before and It's nothing too original, It's still nice to see Disney bringing other cultures to light and popularizing them with the newer generation. I'm sure I will watch this movie at least 10 more times and it won't grow old.
1	thorn969	69 _69%
A beautifully animated movie. The colors and water and people looked excellent. I think the cast did a great job. I don't think it's going to be remembered among the greatest Disney movies without songs, but it was a very pretty movie.
1	Letterdief	80 _66%
The baby is the best.
1	Alan_Laidlaw	78 _62%
Whilst I understand there were many plot elements which felt shoe-horned in, I couldn't help but find myself shed a tear at the strength of the message the film emparts on its audience. The water and character animation will go down as landmarks in the development of the medium.
1	bentien	53 _35%
Mediocre Disney. Nice visuals as always, but forgotten after the end credits.
1	msprague	80 _84%
Solid animation, good story. Worth a look with the kiddies.
1	Filmphil	67 _13%
Vaiana is much better. Still great Moments and Action but rushed and the Message isn't working that much. Pretty entertaining for a Watch

Average Percentile 50.11% from 712 Ratings