Raya and the Last Dragon (2021)

Released straight to Disney+ as a result of the pandemic, Raya And The Last Dragon has since been given a cinematic release. As a result of that belated release, I was able to see it on the big screen with my daughter; and boy, if you get the chance to do so, you need to take it. Raya And The Last Dragon is one of the best films of the year; a gorgeous tale of a young girl (Raya) and her quest to reunite the five warring factions of her world with the help of the last dragon, Sisu, who is supposedly hidden somewhere in Tail (one of the five provinces of the kingdom). In the opening sequence, Raya’s voiceover explains the history of the kingdom, briefly showing us clips of the five very different parts of the land (Heart, Tail, Spine, Fang and Talon) and I found myself hoping that we would get to travel each of those worlds with her as they looked stunning. I was not disappointed, Raya’s quest takes her through all five (Talon is especially sumptuous) and the animation and world building is astonishing, planting you into each of the worlds so effectively that you can almost inhale the atmosphere. The story is exciting and the characters even more so; each one brings their own distinct identity and several of them are very funny (especially Sisu herself, brilliantly voiced by Awkwafina). The message at the heart of the film is a good one, especially in the current climate; despite the differences between all five tribes, the world works better when they all combine together to fight the forces of genuine evil. Whether Raya can influence her own enemies into this way of thinking is the soul of the film, and it’s one of the best and most beautiful films of 2021 so far. A joy. 8.0/10