Disney's 'dismal' live-action Moana panned by critics

Disney's 'dismal' live-action Moana panned by criticsImage source, Walt DisneyImage caption, Dwayne Johnson reprises his role as demigod Maui in the live-action remake of MoanaByAnnabel RackhamCulture reporterPublished1 minute agoDisney has once again taken one of its biggest animated hits of recent years and turned it into a live-action remake - but the new take on 2016's Moana has been panned by most critics.Dwayne Johnson reprises his role as demigod Maui, with 19-year-old Australian-Samoan newcomer Catherine Laga'aia playing Moana, the teen daughter of a Polynesian chief.However, the movie, which was released on Friday, has been described in reviews as "flat", "dull" and "dismal".There were some more positive voices, including Variety's Owen Gleiberman, external, who said it "escapes the remake blues - in fact it soars above them".Image source, Walt DisneyImage caption, Catherine Laga'aia takes on the lead of Moana in the live-action filmGleiberman added that the film "truly delivers 'Moana' - the beauty, the comic personality, the fairy-tale enchantment", and described Johnson's "fit" for the film as "perfect".Peter Bradshaw is disagreed in The Guardian, external, calling the film a "competent but pointless and unexciting back-to-basics live-action remake" in his two-star review.He said Johnson's performance was "on autopilot, like a piece of software" and criticised the use of CGI, which he said was "so deeply embedded" it feels like "another animation".Bradshaw ended his review by saying it "feels like a superfluous piece of monetisable content".The Independent's Clarisse Loughrey, external called Moana "a waste of everyone's time and talent" in her one-star review."Is the situation really so dire that we'll now accept Dwayne Johnson repeating the exact same...