Deep Dive Disney: Wes Looks at Raya & The Last Dragon

Welcome everyone to a very special edition of Deep Dive Disney. Today, we’re taking a break from our ongoing retrospective to take a special look at Disney’s newest animated feature, Raya & The Last Dragon. Since the movie only came out yesterday as I’m writing this, there’s obviously no nostalgic connection here. It also means that, regrettably, there will be spoilers in this article. Before we get into those, let me say this: this is an excellent and unique film that I highly recommend. If you don’t want this very good film spoiled for you, please watch the movie before reading the article. Everybody got that? Too bad, we’re pushing forward anyway. Long ago in the land of Kumandra, the people knew nothing but peace and prosperity thanks to the magic of the water dragons they shared their world with. That all changed when the Druun, a demonic plague born of human discord, arrived to devastate the land and turn all in their path to stone, humans and dragons alike. In a final act of desperation, Sisu, the last of the Dragons poured all of her magic into a single gem, vanquishing the Druun and restoring the lost humans, though not the Dragons. While the gem was intended to be a symbol of hope, it instead became coveted by the tribes of Kumandra for its power. All the fighting over the gem eventually caused the land to be divided into five warring nations, Tail, Fang, Talon, Spine and Heart, with Heart eventually winning possession of the Gem and hiding it for safekeeping. Centuries later, the idealistic chief of the Heart Tribe and father to our hero, Raya, decides to hold a peace summit in order to unite the tribes and once again become the long-forgotten nation of Kumandra. However, Namaari, a young girl from the Fang Tribe whom Raya had befriended tries to steal the gem and soon, all the tribes begin fighting for it. In the chaos, the gem is shattered and the Druun return to the land on the spot. In the ensuing Chaos, many are turned to stone, including Raya’s father. Six years later the Druun rome the land, the five tribes are still at each other’s throats and Raya, who rides the wastelands alone blaming herself for the state of the world since she trusted Namaari in the first place, has located Sisu, the last of the Water Dragons. Together the two must unite the shattered remains of the Dragon Gem and fix this broken world. Let us waste no further time and dive right into, Raya & The Last Dragon.

Main Character:

When we first see Raya, she’s someone who has led a life of privilege. As Heart was the most prosperous of the tribes, she didn’t really fully understand the extent to which the other tribes were suffering. Because of this, it’s easy for her to see the other tribes as her enemies and for her to be skeptical of her father’s idealistic dreams of a reunited Kumandra. This is important to note since as soon as she opened herself to friendship with a member of another tribe, she was stabbed in the back and her father paid the ultimate price. When we join Raya six years later, she no longer believes in the hope her father stood for. Reuniting Kumandra is nothing more than fairy tale and everyone is her enemy. It’s only through her interactions with Sisu that Raya starts to believe that it’s possible to trust others, but even then, she sees Sisu’s optimism as foolish most of the time. There’s this great scene later in the film where Sisu tries to broker peace between Raya and Namaari, and while at first it seems to be working, Raya simply cannot bring herself to trust Namaari after what she did and that lack of trust ends up costing Sisu her life, showing how it’s others who suffer when the world stands divided instead of united. What Raya doesn’t understand is that her inability to trust others is the same problem that the rest of her world has, and, as her father and Sisu both believed, it’s only when someone is willing to reach out and make the first step that we can truly start to heal this broken world. Is she my favorite female character in a Disney film, not quite, I still give that honor to characters like Megara or Judy Hopps, but she is much more complex than your average Disney princess and a great character in her own right. Kelly Marie Tran did a great job conveying how Raya is a broken soul without making it seem cliché. Good job.

Villain:

I’ll give a brief mention of the Druun, the shadowy creatures who devastated the land of the Kumandra. They’re certainly frightening but calling them villains isn’t really accurate. They’re pretty much what they’re described to be, a plague. There’s no malice in their actions, they’re just a force of nature.

Our actual main antagonist, Namaari, is honestly one of the most complex and unique such characters I’ve ever seen in a Disney movie ever. Namaari may be Raya’s enemy, but she is not a villain. All she really wants is what she feels is best for her people but much like Raya, her inherent mistrust of others prevents her from seeing the bigger picture. Despite seeming like a ruthless backstabber, Namaari is actually a caring person. When she and Raya first become friends as young children, she talks about how the fighting between the tribes has devastated Fang to the point where she’s never even had rice before. She probably wants to see the world restored just as much as anyone else but with the hardships she’s endured her whole life and the fact that a united world is something beyond the scope of possibility in her eyes she cannot trust the other tribes not to come after Fang if once everyone’s been brought back. and once she learns that Sisu has been found, she starts to feel hope again, making it all the more devastating for her when she inadvertently kills the last Dragon. However, the mistake both she and Raya make is blaming the other for Sisu’s death instead of putting their differences aside in order to accomplish Sisu’s goal of fixing the world. I actually really like that ultimately, it is Namaari who unites the Dragon Gem. Raya blamed her trust in Namaari for creating the broken world, so it’s fitting that she would then put her trust in her again in order to save it. With that act of trust and sacrifice, Namaari is made to understand that what’s best for her tribe is to stand with the others. I appreciate this as a great subversion of the increasingly irritating “Surprise Villain” trope that’s all over Disney Movies these days. Here, we have a character that starts off as a villain but turns out to have been one of the heroes the whole time. That’s actually really clever. In a different movie, Namaari would probably be the main protagonist. It’s all a matter of perspective, which is keeping with the films theme of mistrust and misunderstanding.

Side Characters:

There’s a lot to cover here so let’s get to it.

I actually really enjoyed Raya’s father and his idealistic optimism reminded me a lot of myself. He doesn’t want his daughter to grow up in a world torn apart by war. His goal of a united Kumandra may seem unrealistic but his belief in it is real.

Boun, the boy from Tail who runs the restaurant on the river boat is a ton of fun. His quick wit and money grubbing nature usually get a big laugh, but I also appreciate that this is clearly a front he’s putting up to hide how lost he is after having lost his family to the Druun.

Noi is a toddler con artist from Talon. She’s adorable and despite not having any dialogue, is an effective comic relief character.

Tong, the massive warrior from Spine, voiced by the awesome Benedict Wong, is your standard big tough guy with a heart of gold. I actually really liked how it hints that he was once a loving father without even having to say it out loud. All he does is look towards an empty crib and you immediately know what’s going on.

And finally, there’s Sisu, my favorite character. The idea of this legendary figure turning out to be a complete goofball is nothing new and even Disney has done it more than once in previous films. However, it’s still an idea I’ve always enjoyed. Something about a legend becoming bigger than the person, or dragon in this case, has always appealed to me. And as such, Sisu is nowhere near the legendary figure that the centuries have made her out to be. In fact, it wasn’t even her alone who forged the dragon gem but rather her and her brothers and sisters working in tandem. Sisu only got credit for it because she was the one who survived. I like the contrast between Sisu and Raya. While Raya believes that no one can be trusted, Sisu believes that trust can be earned with a gift. Sisu wants to believe in people’s better nature, which is why she tries to broker peace between Raya and Namaari. Raya sees her father's idealism in Sisu and perhaps that's why Sisu is able to instill hope where it was once thought to be lost within the hearts of both Raya and Namaari To Sisu, trust is precious. It was because her siblings trusted her to use the gem that the first Druun attack was repelled, which ties into the others putting their trust in Namaari at the end to do the same. She’s a great character with great comedic timing but can also be very serious when the moment calls for it.

Raya & The Last Dragon is not a musical so no songs to discuss.

Memorable Scenes:

Pretty much any time Raya and Namaari fight is awesome. The fight animation in this film is absolutely masterful and I appreciate that Raya’s weapon of choice is a segmented sword like the one used by Ivy in Soul Calibur.

There’s this really great scene where Sisu first reveals herself to Namaari. There isn’t even any dialogue, they just kind of stare one another in the eye. At first Sisu is all angry, but when she sees Namaari, her expression changes. She can see the hope in her eyes upon seeing a dragon. This not someone who should be our enemy, this is someone who wants a better world just as much as anyone else. All this emotion is conveyed in a short time with just a few subtle facial expressions.

There’s also this great scene right after Sisu is killed. Raya is on a warpath and is making a B line for Namaari so she can finally destroy her once and for all. She doesn’t even seem to care that the city is crawling with Druun, she’s too blinded by her rage. The fight that ensues is brutal but also one of the best in the entire movie.

Story:

First of all, the world building in this movie incredible. The story of this world is fascinating and the different kingdoms within feel fully fleshed out and alive. While there's definitely some inspiration taken from works like Avatar: The Last Airbender, the world still feels wholly unique. I would have been very interested in seeing more of this world and how it works.

I think at this point the themes of the movie should be fairly obvious. Optimism, trust and unity make a people strong while hatred and suspicion make a people weak. It’s not exactly subtly presented, but it’s still a nice message and one I feel the world could use. So many people think that all the world’s problems can be solved with violence, and while sometimes war and revolution can be necessary that should only ever be a last resort. Instead, when you invite people in with open arms and try to reach an understanding, you may be able to fix part of the world that’s broken. Sure, it could backfire on you. The person you’ve chosen to place your trust in may prove unworthy of that trust, but you never know one way or the other unless you’re willing to take that first step. It's an important lesson for children and adults, even if it the film is a little heavy handed when it comes to delivering it.

The Dark Disney Factor:

I mean, this film is set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland crawling with shadow creatures that turn people to stone on contact and everyone you meet may sooner stab you in the back than look at you. The Dark Disney Factor is all over this bad boy. This is not a happy fairytale setting with talking animals and singing princesses. This is world that has been drained of life and drained of hope. Throughout the film, we see characters, characters we’ve taken the time to get to know and come to like, are killed before our very eyes, be it by the Druun or by the hands of warring humans. Sure, everyone is brought back at the end but it’s done in a way that feels earned. The climax is especially dark as one by one our heroes, starting with Raya willingly allow themselves to be turned to stone by the Druun as a show of faith to Namaari. Namaari manages to re-assemble the Dragon Gem but ends up turning to stone herself and there’s this brief moment where you think all is lost, and even after the Druun vanish, you’re not totally sure that our heroes are coming back. There’s even a part of me that feels that the film may even have been more poignant if they didn’t. The world would have been saved, but at the cost of our heroes’ lives, just like the Dragons from centuries earlier. Would have been interesting, but I’m glad the film has a happy ending.

Final Thoughts:

Is this the greatest Disney film I've ever seen, not really but it is still a damn creative and exciting film with a powerful message. The look of the film is beautiful, the characters are likable and the setting is one of my favorites in any Disney film I've ever watched. See it for yourself, I guarantee you won't be disappointed. Well, I've put it off long enough. Next time, Deep Dive Disney finally looks at one of the most beloved Disney films of all time. Join us next time for Beauty & The Beast.