Polynesian culture is rarely portrayed in movies in the U.S. However, it’s important to have representation of every culture in popular media such as films. Polynesia is a region in the Pacific Ocean consisting of many islands such as Tonga, Hawaii, and New Zealand. The movie Moana by John Musker and Ron Clements is an animated children’s film. The movie is about a girl from a fictional Polynesian island that goes on a quest to save their island. The movie accurately portrays Polynesian culture because it was carefully researched and made to be as accurate as possible, to the small details.
As previously stated, the movie makes sure the details are correct and accurate. A detail the movie accurately portrays is the islander’s lifestyle
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This is strikingly similar to real life, as shown in our Polynesian Culture slides. The slides state, “Due to the isolation of island living, Polynesians developed a culture of Community Living. They share resources, food, taking care of each other's children and work. This was essential to survival but Polynesians still hold tight to these values today.” This shows that the movie makers made sure that the community living of the islanders was accurate to real life. Another theme of culture that Moana portrayed well was religious beliefs. In the movie, Moana is able to talk to the spirit of her deceased grandmother, and the islanders’ religion is polytheistic. In real life, Polynesians do indeed practice spiritual beliefs, and their religion is polytheistic. On our Google Slides, it says, “Before Western contact, Polynesians [sic] religion consisted of Gods and local and family spirits that were said to be involved in daily life … Relationships with the dead are a huge strength to Polynesian culture, as revered family members can be transformed into family gods.” This evidence proves that Moana portrayed the Polynesian religion accurately. Another cultural aspect the film portrayed well is the