Zootopia

Whenever we think of Disney’s animated films, we typically envision them as set in a more fantastical realm, where heroes confront monsters, witches, or other such enemies, only to overcome their foes and live happily ever after. Right?

Well, when we think of Disney’s attempts to step outside their comfort zone and try something unprecedented, they can either make or break the movie. Sometimes, they’ve tried that a bit, like with The Black Cauldron in their attempt to present a much darker animated feature film. You also have films like Atlantis: The Lost Empire and Treasure Planet, which introduce more steampunk elements into each film. However, they all regrettably suffered from some creative sidesteps that hurt their chances as movies.

However, there would be one that comes rolling along and tries something new that not only feels like Disney but pushes the envelope regarding what kind of applicability and values would resonate with today’s audiences. The movie I decided to pay attention to that fits the bill ideally would be Zootopia.

Now, this film came out in 2016, and is it just me, or has it been one of Disney’s strongest years ever? Get a load of what Disney released within that year besides Zootopia: Moana, Finding Dory (considered by many to be a strong sequel to an acclaimed masterpiece), Captain America: Civil War, Doctor Strange, The BFG, the underrated sports cult classic Queen of Katwe, Rogue One (the closest that Disney-operated Star Wars ever came to recapturing the pure essences of the originals), and finally, The Jungle Book and Pete’s Dragon – that’s another story –  two of what many declare as the cream of the crop of Disney’s live-action remakes. Despite the controversial reputation Disney left behind over the past decade and a half, with the questionable live-action remakes I mentioned and a tendency to prioritize sequels over original animated films, this kind of lineup still speaks for itself.

Zootopia also had to have been a blessing for Disney’s animated front because, while Moana succeeded in reigniting and revitalizing the familiar storytelling techniques that Disney had mastered, this film perfected the urge for Disney to step outside its comfort zone with a more modern approach to its storytelling.

In this movie, the inhabitants were anthropomorphic animals that functioned as their own societies, and the story is about a young bunny named Judy Hopps, whose dream was to become a police officer in Zootopia. Zootopia was said by many to be the pinnacle of animal development, where they could have gotten together and prospered as a more widespread society. Hence, the classic motto, ‘anyone can be anything.’ However, naysayers, including her parents, told her that a bunny would have had nothing of value to help her become a police officer. Needless to say, Judy, determined as ever and confident in ensuring peace in the streets of what she considered the most fabulous city to be alive in, decided to keep on going and prove her worth until she rose to the top of her class, in which case she became one of the first bunny cops of Zootopia. However, her qualifications, though undeniable, left her to be met with doubtful responses from her colleagues, who viewed her as just a dumb bunny as she started her job in the police force as a parking enforcement officer.

Then one day, she ran into a crafty fox named Nick Wilde, who conned people with red ice pops that he made from the ginormous red pops that he bought for $20 and sold them off as miniature ice pops for $3 each. Later, Judy’s supervisor, the water buffalo Chief Bogo, reluctantly assigned Judy her first case to solve, preferably within 48 hours, as she was assigned to find a missing otter who had suddenly regressed into his primitive stage, or, as Judy called it, gone savage. And it just so happened that Nick Wilde was the key witness in this disappearance. So, Judy entrusted - or rather, blackmailed - Nick to help her with the case before she could’ve turned him in for his con artistry. With his help, along with fellow mayor assistant, Dawn Bellwether, and despite Chief Bogo’s hesitation, Judy eventually dug up one clue after another. She confronted one suspect after the next as she dove headfirst into a potential conspiracy circulating Zootopia that had caused the predatory animals, and not just the otter, to regress to their natural stages and become savage beasts.

Meanwhile, Nick began to let his guard down and appreciate not only Judy as a friend but also what it meant to have a good friend who saw him for who he was instead of what he was automatically perceived to be. Would Nick have had the same issues as the other affected predators? Could Judy have gotten to the bottom of the mystery and crack the case? And above all, would this have allowed Judy to prove that she had what it took to be an efficient Zootopia cop? And what did Nick have up his sleeve that not even Judy or everyone else would have seen coming?

I am ashamed to admit that I did not see this when it first hit theaters in 2016. On the surface, I thought it looked like a nicely animated movie about anthropomorphic animals that could easily have been passed off as just being for children, but that was it. But it was not until I heard all the ecstatic responses toward this film that I felt compelled to give this a watch and see precisely what it was about the film that’s been sending people into a frenzy. One point of interest that sealed the deal for me was that when it first came out, and as of today, it became the highest-grossing original movie ever made, period, not just from Disney, but in general. So there had to have been something this movie had done to have sent so many people flocking to see this film.

So, what did this movie have compared to all the original films that drew so many people in when it first came out? As I get to the bottom of that, let’s talk about some aspects of this movie that hit bullseyes.

Let’s start with Zootopia itself. Outside of it looking like a very dazzling city – if this was a real city, I can see this being one of the more stylish of its kind ever to exist – everything about this city was filled to the brim with creative interweaving society branches that composed of different species of animals living in designated environments, whether it be the rainforest section, the tundra section, the desert section, or even just the plain central district. Every time we hopped between them, we’d find ourselves immersed in what kind of agricultural aspects each district embodied and what animals would have lived there, whether it be jaguars in the rainforest district, polar bears in the tundra section, or camels in the desert section. There’s even a charming district small enough for small rodents, hamsters, and mice to live in. Judy ran through it once upon a time, and it made her and the criminal she was chasing, Duke Weaselton, look like giants in this neighborhood. And each biological function within the district homes aligned perfectly with the idea that any animal could have lived in Zootopia and proven themselves the best they could have been. Zootopia, the city, was just a glamorous experience, both in its visuals and its functionalities.

Elemental would later have done the same thing with elemental beings, but Zootopia introduced that method of world-building and was more groundbreaking in its efforts.

But it wasn’t just the look and general atmosphere of Zootopia that took my breath away. The strong visual appeal was also noticeable in the animation in general. Besides nailing down every animal’s general anatomy in this film, one of the most significant accomplishments this movie achieved was to hone the realism of their skin and hair, particularly the fur of such animals as rabbits, foxes, and sheep. Looking closely at them, you can tell how soft they were from the details alone. After pushing the envelope on 3D animation with Rapunzel and Merida’s hair, the hair and fur on the animals were given the same amount of love and care as Disney had achieved beforehand. Even with the sloths, while their hair felt most precise in their detail, the way each sloth was animated as they did their regular activities in a far slower pace than everyone else had to have required an extensive amount of frames and subtly in movement from the other characters while all of this was going on. It all felt seamless and made the general look of the movie feel even more like a feast for the eyes.

But now, let’s look at the voice performances. The actors who were roped in for this movie all gave their all to convey their characters with evident commitment.

Jennifer Goodwin perfectly expressed Judy Hopps’ optimism and anticipation as she prepared to prove her worth in the police department while abiding by her unwavering faith in her potential as a future Zootopian police officer. At the same time, though, the quickness in Goodwin’s voice as Judy relayed all the details in her reports and know-how of certain crimes and statistics told me right away that for all of Judy’s optimism and potential naïveté, she had not risen to the top of her class for nothing. Of course, there were more than plenty of moments where her more down-to-earth, dispirited, or relaxed vocal exposure highlighted just what she landed herself in and what worth she turned out to have demonstrated as a police officer of Zootopia. Even during her more emotional moments, for example, you can feel her pain when she was stuck or trying to make amends with someone. So Jennifer Goodman hit all the right notes with Judy Hopps.

Also hitting all the right notes was Jason Bateman as Nick Wilde. Something about his smart-alecky, sarcastic, and seemingly all-knowing attitude seemed to befit Nick’s sly demeanor, especially since he was a fox. But Bateman’s performance worked for more than just his vocal and articulate slithers. Outside of him owning his savvier demeanor every time he spoke, he was also terrific at sneaking in moments of confusion, frustration, and regret as Nick elaborated on his past and current predicaments, which only demonstrated what depths Nick carried with him that he, at first, was not willing to show to the rest of the world. That’s when you hear Nick’s inner, well, humanity starting to seep through after years of experience upholding his image as a conniving fox. In short, Jason Bateman went to town with this character.

Idris Elba as Chief Bogo highlighted his character’s no-nonsense attitude when it came to being a police chief. And at first, his roughness made me think that perhaps he was only that, the kind where he was not bothered or didn’t care very much about what he considered more naïve interpretations. But when Elba wasn’t busy being all hard or challenging, he expressed some hidden sensibilities with Chief Bogo that highlighted how he was not as unreasonable as he seemed and was committed to making Zootopia a better place as much as Judy was. It’s just that his years of experience hardened him along the way and that his commitment to making Zootopia a better place has never changed once.

Jenny Slate as Dawn Bellwether felt like she was having fun being as giddy as possible. Sometimes, it got to a point where her voice performance made the character seem sympathetic, especially when you have to look at the character being pushed around one too many times by her superiors. When confiding in Judy about her potential, her soft-spoken expressions demonstrated just what kind of friend she seemed to be becoming to Judy. As for how else Jenny Slate excelled in playing her character, I will explain that very soon.

I also like Tommy Chong, who voiced Yax from the Mystic Springs Oasis. Whenever he played this character, he played him like he was a genuine stoner, and his methods of delivering the character’s lines convinced me that Yax was more knowledgeable about certain people and scenarios than he was giving himself credit for. It’s as if he owned up to the characteristics of people who seemingly knew much of what was happening around town without them even knowing that.

On a side note, outside of the intricate mystery and the all the little details that would have flown over the younger children's heads, I personally think the biggest aspect of Zootopia that pushed it into a firm PG would be the quote unquote ‘naturalist’ group from the Mystic Springs Oasis. That section of the movie, with Judy and Nick wandering through the naked communities with Yak as Judy averted her eyes, felt like probably the most adult portion of Zootopia. I think this film got away with it because they were all animals, and we as humans are used to seeing animals au naturel, anyway. It just seems that such ideas from their end are different from ours.

Raymond S. Persi as Flash the Sloth was just a joy to hear. For all the characters’ slow deliveries, the way he delivered his lines seemed as regular and dignified as you would expect, except his delivery was way too slow and spread too far apart word for word to be taken seriously all the time. So, it only added some comedic flair to his character.

I’m also very fond of Nate Torrence, who played Benjamin Clawhauser. He sounded like he owned up to his character’s more excitable, innocent personality as he often got distracted by whatever appealed to him the most, especially, among other things, the Gazelle app that he had fun with on his phone. Torrence’s performance may carry familiar ethnic overtones, but because Torrence’s character was a cheetah who loved donuts, I still think that’s enough of a distinction for me to tell him apart from the others. So, Torrence did a terrific job with this character.

I remember Mrs. Otterton, the wife of the missing otter, Emmitt, who became more hopeful, despite her constant worries, to see her husband again after he went missing. The concern she expressed was strong enough as it was for me to remember her by, but what impressed me the most about her was the voice performance by Octavia Spencer. When I think of Spencer, I think of her as effectively portraying sassy, know-it-all characters, especially in The Help and Hidden Figures. But here, I wouldn’t have been able to tell. She just owned every instinct of this poor otter’s desperation to see her husband again, and I felt it all the way through.

Last but not least, you have Shakira, the famed singer, playing Gazelle. Every time Gazelle broke into song in this movie, you can feel Shakira’s longtime musical experience throughout this film, especially when you listen to her or see her in action. Whenever she spoke, you could sense her devotion to the Zootopian community and how respected she was, even outside of her musical field. I get the impression that what Shakira was to Zootopia, Tevin Campbell was to A Goofy Movie when he played Powerline. If A Goofy Movie expressed more of Powerline when he wasn’t performing, chances are that his demeanor would have been more along the lines of how Gazelle was portrayed in this movie. Regardless, Shakira played Gazelle with genuine talent and an evident commitment to her craft.

Speaking of which, let’s pay attention to the movie’s theme song, Try Everything. This song stood out because it established the values of trying your hardest no matter how many setbacks you’d have dealt with, and the key objective is to keep on going without letting your obstacles or failures overcome you. That’s an uplifting message to go by, and this song went all out as Shakira would have done most effectively with her style and music. It may have been more applicable to Judy than to everyone else in the movie, but with what the song established, it was still a fun, catchy song to listen to, especially while on the radio. It’s one of those songs you can enjoy listening to as background music, but also appreciate on a deeper level when you listen to it closely.

But it’s not just the voice acting. Let’s also pay close attention to the characters themselves.

Starting with Judy Hopps, I like how committed she was to wanting to be the first police bunny officer of Zootopia. You can tell that after having had her share of being on the receiving end because of some of the predators in her hometown, like Gideon Gray, who was a fox himself, she became as committed as ever to proving her worth, even if she started as just the parking enforcement officer and sometimes went outside her line of duty to prove her worth. One of the primary aspects of her character that stood out more was how she still tried to approach people with as much open-mindedness as possible when she dealt with the innocent citizens and the culprits of Zootopia. But she was not entirely above flawed qualities or anticipating whatever roadblocks and setbacks she would have dealt with. Even she began to acknowledge that, partially due to her past experiences with Gideon Gray, Judy developed a slight bias against predators, mainly foxes, for their potential of being bloodthirsty monsters. And that spoke volumes about the integrity and quality of this movie. It’s engaging enough when you have the main hero be flawed enough to acknowledge that there were some areas in which she needed to better herself. But it’s even more daring, and refreshingly so, when you have one of the biggest objects of ridicule in the movie also be exhibited by the main character herself as a means of highlighting the universality of what this movie embodied. I will highlight that very soon.

Hopping over to Nick Wilde, he practically lived up to his species’ legacy of being crafty, sly, cunning, knowing his way with certain things and certain people, and outsmarting them every time. In human form, he would have been your everyday con man who’d known his way around the streets and knew what must have been done in town to get his way. In a way, that made him a flawed character, too, but more like Charlie from All Dogs Go to Heaven. And by the time he complied with Judy more and more, that’s when more of his history and personality began to be revealed, and we began to see Nick for who he was rather than what he was perceived to be. His dilemmas mainly stemmed from a horrific experience where he tried to be a Cub Scout, only to be discriminated against and even muzzled, all because the fellow prey cubs didn’t trust Nick, a fox, to join their group. Again, I’ll explain that soon. It exposed him with more tragedy and layers to his character than we would have anticipated.

Chief Bogo didn’t seem that interesting, aside from being a tough cop who wanted to see that his coworkers were committed to doing their jobs to make Zootopia a better place. But underneath his hard shell, there were moments where he was sometimes easygoing, which highlighted that he was more modest than he was letting on with his tough-as-nails exterior. You just knew that he’s had experience navigating the ins, outs, and rough lifestyles that ran rampant throughout Zootopia.

Bellwether, Mayor Lionheart’s assistant, seemed like a chipper and seemingly well-meaning sheep who wanted to do whatever it took to prove her worth, just like Judy, or rather, please her superiors. But as for what value she saw in Judy, I’ll elaborate on that very shortly, too.

Benjamin Clawhauser, the cheetah policeman, seemed as giddy and modest as you would imagine from an excitable police officer who enjoyed his donuts. Of course, even though it seemed like he was too easygoing and innocent to take his job seriously, there were times where his commitment to his profession was evident, like when he quickly reported to Chief Bogo about whatever details were unearthed of certain cases, as well as being compliant with fellow police officers like Judy in getting down to the bottom of such cases.

Mayor Lionheart seemed like a righteous and well-meaning lion who meant to prove his worth as the mayor of Zootopia. But when more details were revealed about what else he’d done while still in the mayor’s seat, it showed that he had a more complicated method of getting down to the bottom of whatever dilemmas were affecting Zootopia, even if they began to be seen in a more unethical light than you would think.

Flash the Sloth was not generally that interesting as a character, but what made him memorable, again, was his slow movements and Raymond S. Persi’s voice performance of this character. Everything about this character felt like a part of a big joke that was pulled off perfectly.

However, let’s move on to the movie’s most remarkable aspect: the societal discrimination the characters held against each other, with the highlight being between the prey and the predators.

When we look at predators, we automatically think of them as dangerous and willing to hurt those at their most defenseless, primarily for game. But as Nick Wilde, Benjamin Clawhauser, and the predatory characters have demonstrated, the predators could’ve meant well and would not have caught the prey and made lunch out of them on a whim. If anything, all the animals, prey and predators alike, were meant to coexist, for they had advanced far beyond how they used to function when predators hunted down their prey. Only this time, the cold shoulders were given more to the predators.

For such a seemingly simple conflict, why was this a big deal for Zootopia? Well, let me get into what I was building up to.

Because we see a lot of such discrimination everywhere, whether it’s in the news or real life, it’s evident that, for all our drive to coexist as one whole human race, there might always be some moments of friction between those of different ethnicities. Throughout history, we all know too well the vices of the ill will that can be traced from the whites towards the blacks. But let’s think of what other forms of discrimination are still around. The blacks against the whites, the whites against the Asians, the Asians against the whites, the whites against the natives, the natives against the whites, and so on, to a point where such grudges have become reciprocal and more widespread.

Imagine what kind of relationship the animals had in this movie that reflects what we’re dealing with in real life. What are the odds that the prey relates to the blacks and that the predators relate to the whites? Or is it the prey representing the whites and the predators representing the blacks? How about the prey being the natives while the predators are the whites, or is it that the predators are the natives while the prey is the whites?

Think about that. Every form of racism we can think of is reflected through the prey and predators’ moments of intolerance against each other in this movie. And no matter how one species thought of the other, they all tended to be bound by some innate distrust they harbored against the others. And as the movie demonstrated, this led to some subsequent problems that would have gotten the ball rolling with the case that Judy tried to solve.

Reflecting on the movie’s message with that in mind, it almost feels equivalent to the insult sequences delivered in Do the Right Thing. No matter who said what, their message was still the same and dripped with pure venom and outrage against whoever they addressed it to.

Some people, like Doug Walker (AKA The Nostalgia Critic), viewed this film as Disney’s own ‘In the Heat of the Night’ for that reason, which seems appropriate.

But think about this.

An allegory that touches upon real-world human issues with the facade of a society of civilized animals. Does that sound familiar? If not, this leads me to discuss another classic masterpiece I know of that skillfully utilized this formula: George Orwell’s Animal Farm.

I mentioned this to you before, but this was one of the classic books I recall reading in high school English. I remember what a compelling allegory it was for reflecting the issues of Stalinism and how harmful it was to society, and it was reflected as such through the actions and willingness of the animals who tried to figure out the next step after overthrowing their human owners.

While similar themes were present in Zootopia and contributed to its long-term prowess, what might have struck a chord with so many people who went to see it is how it touched upon modern dilemmas and issues. I’ve seen many people point to this movie as a portrait of racism in the form of predators versus prey and the other way around, and most of it stemmed from some semblance of racial discrimination that others harbored against someone else.

Animal Farm has become a classic for what it has told, and even then, the still-relevant topic it highlighted through its allegorical lens was modern back then, too. What Zootopia did in the form of racism was just as apt and powerful, in my opinion.

But I think it goes beyond merely racism. It can also be traced between political groups, which I won’t bother to bring into too much detail. In fact, in a broader sense, if Animal Farm condemns tyranny, then Zootopia condemns prejudice. The way it applied to all the animals in this movie helped strengthen its message every step of the way, and the film went all out in highlighting what’s wrong about prejudices against people who, despite their differences, were on the same boat as everyone else and thus as deserving of equal treatment as everyone else.

In addition, the mystery was also interesting and tied well into the film’s allegorical themes.

For example, all the animals that went missing were primarily predators – wolves, foxes, cheetahs, lions, tigers, bears, otters, etc. – who became subject to discrimination by the rest of their fellow citizens of Zootopia after they suddenly reverted to their primitive stages and became savage. But as Judy and Nick did a little more digging, they found themselves in a more complicated web of lies, connections, and red herrings that set them off on a course to deduce who the mastermind was behind this plot. Among Judy and Nick’s discoveries was that the predators who went savage had not regressed to their animalistic state out of instinct, and something went on with them that made them act this way. What was it that made the animals go savage? What would that have done to the Zootopian society and community?

And what I’m about to diverge into next is riddled with spoilers, so you’ve been warned.

SPOILER ALERT

After Judy almost gave up her position as the police officer out of remorse for not only disgracing Nick, but also in unintentionally jumpstarting a war between the prey and the predators throughout Zootopia, she ultimately discovered that what was turning the predators savage were Night Howler serums. At first, she and Nick thought the Night Howlers referred to a facility of wolves who guarded the Zootopia asylum, where the fourteen missing predators happened to be locked up by Lionheart. But thanks to the reformed Gideon Gray’s botanical knowhow, plus Judy’s family’s collaborations with him on it, she caught on that by ‘Night Howlers’, what she meant to look for were Night Howler flowers, and that they were used to make serums that caused the predators’ animalism. In other words, the predators went savage only because they were drugged. And just as Nick and Judy were on the brink of finally delivering the proof, they were cornered by Bellwether, who turned out to have been behind the whole machination and the urge to turn the prey against the predators all along.

I consider this turn of events both a blessing and a curse.

Let me start with why it’s a curse. At the time of its release, people had one common complaint with Disney’s animated films, and that’s how they banked on the twist villain trend. The films would have introduced seemingly normal characters who would later have revealed themselves as dastardly bad guys behind the general mystery or dilemma the heroes had to deal with. For the sake of not engaging in spoilers, it was common throughout most of Disney’s animated films, including Frozen and Coco. It didn’t matter back then how well executed they were; it made this movie look like it was part of a trend that many moviegoers agreed back then was starting to get old.

But this leads to why I consider it a blessing. Even if it was not released as part of this phase, it still tied splendidly into the movie’s mystery canvas. It was also perfect because it toyed with our expectations while playing into the notion of judging animals based on their instincts and primitive natures. When we think of more innocent animals, we’d usually think of them as mostly harmless, which ties me back to what I remember the most about Napoleon from Animal Farm. Because Animal Farm was an allegory, the idea of Napoleon being a pig was effective, but at the same time, it was also pretty obvious. But in Zootopia’s case, nothing would have caught me off guard more than the idea of the mastermind behind the plot being a sheep, the kind of animal we would see as docile and too modest to be suspected of any wrongdoing. Bellwether was the exact opposite of docile and modest; she practically engineered the whole mandate against predators throughout Zootopia and thus became a force to be reckoned with. In addition, Jenny Slate sounded effective in going from a mistreated, trustworthy buddy who’d have had someone’s back into an angry, conniving bigot who was desperate to achieve peace for those who she thought deserved it.

It played into the movie’s strengths and overall message about the dangers of stereotyping whoever we see based on our preconceptions, and it did so flawlessly. In this case, it showed how even predators, who seemed like they could have easily lunged out and torn people limb from limb, could’ve been nice and decent people. In contrast, the prey, who seemed very innocent and harmless, would have been just as capable of deceit and harm as those we would consider the likeliest enemies. That’s where the movie truly shone, especially in this day and age.

SPOILERS END

But that’s not all there is to report about why this movie worked so well. It was even nice enough to throw in a few winks at some artistic hallmarks while presenting them in its own Disney-like way.

For example, there was one instance where Nick and Judy were apprehended by a couple of polar bear bodyguards who were looking for Nick and brought over to his boss. And who was this boss?

It turned out that this boss, Mr. Big, was a mafia head who ran the shrew community. And if you think that’s standard enough, look at his posture and voice. I’ll get to that in a moment. The raspiness in his voice as he went into his monologues about what he expected to have upheld within his family and from Nick’s end of the bargain carried many resemblances to Marlon Brando’s performance as Don Vito Corleone in The Godfather movies. And the performance and animation of this character reflected that very well. Even his daughter, who was getting married and later became pregnant, I swear that she was modeled after Connie Corleone. So there were enough overtones for this community to stand out as its own thing, complete with foreign tendencies, while blending in seamlessly with the rest of the Zootopian society.

I also should give props to Maurice LaMarche, the voice actor who played Mr. Big. Whenever he played this character, he excelled in capturing the shrew-like qualities in his voice and the intimidating and iconic tenors that have become customary with Mafia elites ever since The Godfather came out. I’m convinced that LaMarche’s methods of emulating Marlon Brando for this performance strongly resembled how he emulated Orson Welles when he played Brain from Pinky and the Brain. He was that masterful in how he portrayed Mr. Big. 

And on the other end of the spectrum, as Judy and Nick got closer to cracking the case, they stumbled into what looked like a trailer that was converted into a lab. One of the characters working there, a sheep named Doug, wore a yellow outfit as he loaded the serum pellets into his guns. And during his phone call, he was about to meet up with a couple of characters named Woolter and Jesse – cute – who came to drop off a quick latte for him. Breaking Bad, anyone?

Admittedly, maybe Zootopia could have been a little more creative with its world-building in these circumstances. But you know what? I don’t mind these homages. The Godfather, as you may have seen me boast on The Screened Word, is a prestigious franchise of film and literature, and Breaking Bad is probably my all-time favorite TV show. In addition, as story narratives, they still played an appropriate role in Zootopia’s world-building because they revolved around Judy and Nick diving into the city’s dark underbelly, where it revolved around criminal activities and finding what and who they were looking for as they trekked upon seedier terrain.

Long story short, what may come across as just fluffy entertainment meant more for the younger crowd is also bound to get the older audiences roped in, hook, line, and sinker, because of what other tricks the film had up its sleeve. As I’m writing this, it will have been ten years next March since this movie came out, and its message of prejudice still rings true today. And is it any wonder that this movie did as well as it could have? However you perceive Zootopia, I’m sure anyone of any age who was watching this movie for the first time would have gotten a much-needed dosage of realism out of this movie without expecting to. Once we see Zootopia and what it has to offer, only then would we find ourselves walking out with a renewed understanding of some of the ongoing issues and vices that we, as human beings, have been struggling with for as long as we’ve been alive.

It became so successful that a sequel would have been greenlit. And considering what the sequel has in store, it seems like we’re just scratching the surface of what Zootopia could offer. What other ecosystems and neighborhoods are yet to be discovered in this city? I hope that whatever further explorations Disney has in store for Zootopia would amount to a more immersive and expansive experience that would make Zootopia just as believable, fresh, and all-encompassing as the neighborhoods and cities we stroll through. In the words of Samuel L. Jackson from Do the Right Thing, that’s the double truth, Ruth.

Hop on in and prepare to be amazed.

My Rating

A low A+