“Zootopia” (2016)

Zootopia

Also known as: Zootropolis / Zoomania

Brief Description: 

In a city of anthropomorphic animals, a rookie bunny cop and a cynical con artist fox must work together to uncover a conspiracy.

(via IMDb)

Date: 2016

Genre: American animated action comedy

Running time: 1 hour 48 minutes

Cast: 

Ginnifer Goodwin (Judy)

Della Saba (young Judy)

Jason Bateman (Nick)

Kath Soucie (young Nick)

Idris Elba (Chief Bogo)

Jenny Slate (Ms. Bellwether)

Nate Torrence (Clawhauser)

Bonnie Hunt (Mrs. Hopps)

Don Lake (Mr. Hopps)

Tommy Chong (Yax)

J.K. Simmons (Mayor Lionheart)

Octavia Spencer (Mrs. Otterton)

Alan Tudyk (Duke Weaselton)

Shakira (Gazelle)

Raymond S. Persi (Flash / Officer Higgins)

Maurice LaMarche (Mr. Big)

Phil Johnston (Gideon Grey)

Fuschia! (Polar bear drill instructor)

John DiMaggio (ice cream parlour owner / Doug's assistants)

Katie Lowes (Dr. Badger)

Gita Reddy (Nangi)

Jesse Corti (Manchas)

Tom Lister Jr. (Finnick)

Josh Dallas (pig)

Leah Latham (Fru Fru)

Rich Moore (Doug / Larry)

Fabienne Rawley & Peter Mansbridge (news anchors)

Jared Bush & Byron Howard (Judy’s neighbours)

Mark Rhino Smith (Officer McHorn)

Josie Trinidad (Mrs. Armadillo)

Kristen Bell (Priscilla)

Director: Byron Howard & Rich Moore

Production company: Walt Disney Pictures & Walt Disney Animation Studios

Wikipedia page

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Setting/Aesthetic/Feel: 5/5

I fell in love with the idea of Zootopia when I first saw it in “movie clip” videos online. Anthropomorphic animal cities are so fun! I really like how the city had the different zones—tundra, ice, desert, and rainforest—and how the different animals coexist, with all the pros and cons that takes :) Also, seeing things like iPhones and modern whatnot is pretty cool ;P

Characters: 5/5

I love Judy! She’s smart, tactful, super hardworking and driven, loyal and loving and so passionate for justice and equality. Nick is also pretty awesome. He’s cynical, but super softie, and a pretty hardworking guy as well. I hated Chief Bogo, but I couldn’t help liking Mayor Lionheart… he’s such an amiable guy after all. ;P And I felt sorry for Ms. Bellwether… she was so cute and mistreated! Clawhauser is super cute/sweet/fun, and Judy’s parents are adorable in their hardworking backcountry stereotypes. Gideon Grey might be offensive to some people, but I loved his warm southern accent and his redemption arc (A REAL HEARTFELT APOLOGY, Y’ALL!!). Mr. Big & Fru Fru were hilarious and adorable. I mean, everyone here was so vivid and fun!

Plot: 5/5

Okay, so I love stories of young adults coming of age and all that stuff. So inspiring. And Judy is nothing if not inspiring! The plot starts with her as a kid, announcing her desire to be a police officer and defending friends against bullies. Jumping ahead, it shows all her struggles in training. Once she finally enters the force, she’s assigned parking duty, which destroys her—instead of being a hero, she’s a villain. Chief Bogo does all he can to keep her there, but with Mayoral Assistant Bellwether, Judy manages to get permission to crack a missing persons case in 48 hours. The only lead she encounters is Nick, whom she has to blackmail into helping her. Their adventures all over the city as they peel back the layers of the case… it’s awesome. Then there’s the climax with all the city in an uproar and predators being shunned & victimized… breaking up Nick & Judy’s awesome friendship thanks to her unthinking words… and then… well, I don’t want to spoil the ending, but it is truly EPIC. I didn’t want to stop watching, even as the credits rolled by!

Theme/Message/Topics: 5/5

It’s a comedy, but there are some real good and deep themes. 

- Believing in yourself and chasing your dreams instead of settling down out of fear of the unknown, or disrupting your current comfort zone. (Judy’s whole storyline is epic and super inspiring.)

- Being unmerciful/too quick to act, shown in Judy’s disastrous run as a “meter maid.” 

- Humility, and apologizing properly. 

- Prejudice, justice, & equality, in how the predators are treated by the prey and how the “little folks” are treated by the big animals, as well as stereotypes about foxes & bunnies damaging life for Nick and Judy respectively. Great simple little reminders about diversity and non-diveristy.

- The cons of living an ideal that “anyone can be anything.”

- The villain’s motive & arc are very thought-provoking & super well done, with all the bitterness, narrow-mindedness, and callousness it holds.

- Self-sacrifice, loyalty, & love. 

- And while I don’t like the music of “Try Everything,” I LOVE THE LYRICS!!!

Content: 3/5 (medium)

I alluded to the cons of “anyone can be anything.” There’s a scene where to get more info about the missing person she’s investigating, Judy is taken to a naturist club. The scene doesn’t last too long, but you have all these unclothed animals running around doing various activities… I don’t watch and listen instead because it’s pretty uncomfortable.

Also, when checking the character list it seems Judy’s neighbours are a homosexual couple?? It doesn’t say so in the film and I thought they were friends. 

Gazelle, the pop star, does a show at the end of the film. Lots of dancing by her in a miniskirt and crop-top and shirtless tigers, as well as the whole audience. And the music is definitely not something I’d listen to.

Mild euphemisms; “like the devil.”

Violence: 5/5 (low)

Non-graphic fighting; a scene where [MAJOR SPOILER] Nick “goes wild” and stalks Judy, and she pretends to die and screams a death scream that is brief but kinda disturbing haha. [END OF MAJOR SPOILER] 

Overall: 4.5/5

Overall, I really, really enjoyed this. It had a lot of my favourite things in films all rolled up into one, and I wish I could find a good cover of Try Everything…