binary solo said:
The Polynesian voice actor for Maui
The animated image of Maui
Why couldn't that have simply mo-capped The Rock?
If Polynesian characters of all shapes and sizes were present a lot on movie and TV screens this would be a non-issue. But the fact that Polynesian characters are so rarely represented and even more rarely the central heroes of movies and TV puts it in a different context.
Also, pre-colonial polynesians were not fat, obesity only became significant in polynesians after western diets were introduced. So any traditional image of Maui in polynesian culture would not be of a big fat dude. So it's not historically or mythologically accurate. Obesity in the Polynesian community is a major problem. The Polynesian community doesn't need a fat archetype of it created in popular culture. Outside of Australia, New Zealand and Polynesia itself, how many people have actually met or know any Polynesians? How many people even know Khaal Drogo and the Rock are Polynesian?
If anyone has a right to be offended at the fictional portyrayal of a culture in popular entertainment it's the people of that culture. They are the ones who are most interested and concerned about the health and development of their people.
It might be minor to you, but to some Polynesian people this stuff matters.
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The only reason I can see people raising an eyebrow about this is that the Maui from the polynesian stories is not said to be fat, so it was Disney's decision to make him so... it'd be a bit like having a film of Paul Bunyan or John Henry and making him obese, as that really doesn't make sense.
Still, to be angry about this is silly. First, the man is hardly "fat" in the traditional sense, as he's positively strapped; really, he's more like a force of nature which, I imagine, is what they're going for. He looks a LOT more like "The Mountain" of GoT or other top weightlifters than he does some average obese person, and he's about as agile as a superhero (which, as a demi-god, makes sense). This man, in just about every way that matters, is not your typical overweight person.
Aside from that, round characters simply look the part better for humor, and kids love them. The main protagonist of this movie isn't overweight, and Maui does not appear to have even the slightest shred of discomfort about his own body... the guy wears his pride on his face. I just can't find enough here to be upset about that would make those who are seem the slightest bit reasonable... He's just got a Gears of War/Warcraft body lol
