Movie Review: ‘Zootopia’ Spotlights Perseverance

As I was heading into the theatre to see Zootopia for the first time, I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect but I can say I was going in with a fresh mind on what I’d see on the big screen. Initially, the thought came to mind that this would be a kid-friendly film full of cute fuzzy animals that would have cool names that kids would remember but little did I know that it would be much more than that. This film captured their audience in more ways than one by making it extremely relatable for children, teens, and adults. No matter which character was being highlighted or what scene was showing you’ll find a hidden message or pop culture reference that you could laugh at or sympathise with. Overall, I’d say the Directors, Byron Howard, Rich Moore, and Jared Bush put a lot of thought and attention to detail into every aspect of the story and execution of this fun loved story.

Zootopia is based on a mammal metropolis where various animals live and thrive. The story is deeply rooted and revolves around the a springy rabbit named Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) who becomes the first rabbit to join the police force where she quickly learns how tough it is to enforce the law. Determined to prove herself, Judy jumps at the opportunity to solve a mysterious case. while working with a slick fox by the name of Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman), who makes her job even harder as they go on to solve a crime mystery in 48hours. This film made sure to pull in some big names to contribute to the voice acting as well including Idris Elba, Jason Bateman, Ginnifer Goodwin, Shakira, J.K. Simmons and more.

This story quickly takes shape and kept all of the views at the screening at bay as our eyes gazed towards the screen to see what would happen next or what creative way the Directors would use the characters to continue to tell the story. Compared to most of the films that are currently out in theatre and the ones we see over and over like the Marvel films, Batman remakes, and drunk college kid films this one actually made sure to tell an authentic yet true story we all live every day and that’s learning to live in a world full of ‘opinions’ that may or may not be valid for one reason or another.

The animation for this film was almost second to none as every fine and minute detail was left unturned. The Zootopia team made sure to carefully consider how each animal would play a huge role in being believable in a world for a personified animals. Some examples include the rabbits being great farmers by harvesting well-grown crops, elephants being ice cream parlour workers scooping ice cream with their snots, and sloths working in the DMV taking forever to get any task done. This added a beautiful touch to making each character believable above all things the level of detail being considered for everything was outstanding considering that even the telephone service on Judy’s iPhone was PB&J vs. AT&T. Which leaves me to say, kudos to the animation team who worked endlessly to make this story and piece come to life.

The music for this film was also quite fitting as they managed to play the fine line of making sure the music was enjoyable for the children and adults in the theatre. The film’s main song, Try Everything by Shakira, served as a feel good anthem to motivate everyone to get out there and try everything without having doubts or be deterred by defeat or failure. This was extremely fitting as the movie is full of situations where perseverance was the key component in making sure the dreams of Judy were fulfilled. Although she was just a bunny from a country farm town she never let anything stop her from accomplishing her goals and so this was on point. There were also other great songs in this film but since not all of them were memorable I wouldn’t say the soundtrack was outstanding but definitely good.

Overall, this was a great film and I can’t wait for others to have the opportunity to check it out when it hits theatres next Friday, March 4th, 2016. I’d definitely recommend this for animation film lovers, families, and even an alternative to a date night if you’re out with bae. If you enjoy the film definitely be sure to comment and share.