Well Developed Story and Characters

Rating: 9/10 (6 March 2016)

The people developing stories for Disney films have got it down to a science. Zootopia opens with a sequence designed to make you love its heroine right from the beginning and moves through the beats of the hero's journey so dexterously, it's over before you realize how it happened. Like Big Hero 6 and Wreck-It Ralph, it differs from the traditional content of Disney classics, taking us on an emotional journey through a completely unique sort of world rather than one from European fairy tales. The setting and characters are strong points--much of the comedy comes from the viewer's understanding of Judy and Nick's personalities rather than setting up and paying off gags. The plot is more like the complicated, twisting scripts we usually get from Pixar films, and like the best Pixar movies, everything ties together and fits logically (BH6 and WIR were able to do that notably well, also). There isn't a strong, memorable villain, but it probably didn't need one with two lead characters as likable as Judy and Nick. There weren't many songs, and it might not have a prince and princess, but I expect people will want to visit Zootopia again and again.