Sly fox. Dumb bunny.

Rating: 8/10 (19 June 2016)

The few apparent critical lapses in Zootopia range around the fact that its satirical segments are less accurate and immediate than Disney would have liked them to be. This film, even with the universal motivational message, is very much a product of its time, hitting areas like prejudice, gender (animal) roles and stereotyping at a period where they are all the rage - and that includes the backlash that inevitably comes with them. Some are of the opinion that Zootopia's parallels are unfounded and its pre-conceived notions of its predators justified; after all carnivores must eat other animals to survive - it is, like Judy says, within their biology. And others have lambasted the film for attacking prejudiced yet benefiting from those very stereotypes they admonish for a quick laugh; lemmings as the desk workers, wolves unable to resist a howl, bunnies multiply like mad. But by the end of the film it has been established that this is an advanced society - they all walk on two legs, and predators don't eat others anymore, and it was all a big scare so that the prey proletariat could rise up and take over the remaining of Zootopia. And it is easy enough to realise that the core of the film's message doesn't attack stereotyping altogether, but rather the prejudice that leads to little bunnies and foxes being compartmentalised and told off for straying from their pre-determined path.
Zootopia is of course visually stunning. I am continually impressed by how much each major animation studio continues to push the boundaries of what can be put onto the screen for audiences to marvel at; Pixar led the way with Sully's individually rendered hairs and it has been improved here so much so that the main characters are remarkably expressive. A twitch of the nose, a droop in the ears, the raising and lowering of eyebrows - the animators have complete control of the facial expression and therefore the emotions that are created from them (a key moment being Judy welling up in tears as well as Goodwin emotionally breaking down - so effective because there is no dramatic or clever speech, no easy way out but to simply admit her wrong and ask for forgiveness). The world of Zootopia has been crafted with great detail and care. The film's most effective scene is something that must be experienced on the big screen - Judy's first entry into the wide world away from the modest BunnyBurrow, as she experiences each unique environment with its own animal settlers from a train zooming across wide swathes of desert, a frosty snowtown, a multi-layered treetop village and finally the glittery urban metropolis where "anyone can be anything". Even in the briefest of glimpses we experienced so much of the world because the animators have crammed in so much life into the frame: the varied-sized doors of the train, the little ice float transports, the water-way for hippos, the hamster tunnels that snake in and out of the environment. A delightful chase sequence in Little Rodentia features a mini-sized version of the same town, delicately tilt-shifted to magnify its effect.
The script doesn't manage to complete outrun the clichés that come with the mish-mash of the detective mystery and kids animation. There's the expected failures that confront the bright-eyed, optimistic protagonist that wants to change the world. The policemen inevitably is asked to hand in her badge, but of course conducts her own investigation afterwards. At times the film easily betrays its existence as a mass-marketed story that must be appropriately packaged for children, who will drag their parents and their wallets to the theatre - the bully comes pre-packaged with a neat little apology, and there is no escaping from the celebrity voice cast or obligatory upbeat pop song with its vaguely cheery message. But in many ways it brings new life to the genre. It isn't as insightful as Inside Out, perhaps because humans are a little more relatable than the multitude of animals on display here, but the message is nevertheless a relevant and inspiring one. For years children's films have increasingly moved away from those happy, neatly closed off endings that are so predictable. We ask more varied and interesting challenges and questions of our protagonists, but they are not solved in the conventional way. For the adults, they will appreciate all the throwaway lines that remind us of all the silliness and exhaustion that goes into maintaining these stereotypes in our own lives. And for the kids, they hopefully walk away confident that they no longer need to listen to the voices that tell them they aren't good enough to walk one path.