Finding 'Ohana may be a critical hit, but its barrage of pop culture references are a modern example of nostalgia-themed filmmaking gone wrong. The 2021 family movie uses The Goonies' entire premise and narrative structure, which detracts from its story about Hawaiian culture. Finding 'Ohana also references numerous movies and TV shows, however, the character dialogue often doesn't feel organic. To its credit, the Netflix film is indeed entertaining and was clearly built for maximum global exposure.
As a whole, Finding 'Ohana is a modern update of The Goonies, albeit with a slight narrative twist. Both movies follow young protagonists who seek treasure to help their families financially. In addition, Finding 'Ohana's young adult romance between Ioane (Alex Aiono) and Hana (Lindsay Watson) thematically parallels that of Brand Walsh (Josh Brolin) and Andy Carmichael (Kerri Green) in The Goonies. There's nothing wrong with Finding 'Ohana paying homage to an '80s classic, but the film loses its identity by prioritizing the Netflix algorithm over originality.
Charming as Finding 'Ohana may be, screenwriter Christina Strain and director Jude Weng go too far with Steven Spielberg-themed nostalgia. As previously mentioned, they essentially lift the entire narrative structure of The Goonies - an original Spielberg story - but switch the location from Oregon to Hawaii, and swap the gender of the main protagonists. From beginning to end, Finding 'Ohana is very clearly "Goonies in Hawaii," which at once makes the film accessible but also painfully predictable. Rather than veering away from Spielbergian nostalgia, Finding 'Ohana doubles down by recreating The Goonies' cave sequence in the second half and copying the story all the way to the end. Still, the upside is that Finding 'Ohana may inspire young moviegoers to learn about Spielberg's filmography.
Finding 'Ohana's pop culture nods, unfortunately, also lead to some clunky dialogue. For example, Owen Vaccaro's Casper provides cultural commentaries about Hawaii and the TV show Lost, but the dialogue doesn't really work for the character's age. Instead, it feels more the young actor is merely reciting the screenwriter's opinions. When all of these awkward moments add up, Finding 'Ohana loses that organic feel that makes The Goonies so special. Kea Peahu provides an endearing performance as the young protagonist Pili, but even some of her pop culture slang feels painfully scripted and too on-the-nose for the sake of accessibility.
Overall, Finding 'Ohana includes some fascinating visual homages to The Goonies, and the collective performances are indeed strong. However, a more in-depth exploration of Hawaiian culture would've made the film far more than just a 123-minute, nostalgia-themed ode to Steven Spielberg. Characters like Hana, Casper, and Kimo (Branscombe Richmond) often speak about Hawaiian culture, but their voices are ironically drowned out by a heavy dose of pop culture, which results in plenty of popcorn thrills but also a somewhat underwhelming second half. For those who are unfamiliar with Spielberg and The Goonies, however, Finding 'Ohana may feel exhilarating and fresh. If '80s nostalgia continues to be a trend, let's hope that filmmakers will prioritize original storytelling over the Netflix algorithm.