A RABBIT, A FOX, AND A CITY by Mo Shaunette
Above:
a scene from “Zootopia.” Photo ©Walt
Disney Studios Motion Pictures.
In 1988, the Walt Disney Company
released “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?,” a decidedly off-beat kids feature that cast
the Disney brand in an unusual light. It was hit with audiences and
critics and helped kick start what is today known as the Disney Renaissance: a
period lasting through the 1900s, during which the House of Mouse turned their
animated film production into a finely-tuned machine, cranking out blockbusters
annually and pulling from unusual sources like Arabic folktales, Chinese
history, and Greek mythology.
Today, audiences find themselves
in a resurgence of the Disney Renaissance. Not only does Disney now own
two of the biggest movie franchises of our time (“Star Wars” and the ongoing
Marvel superhero saga), but it is also creating strong animated features
again—award-winning hits like “Wreck-It Ralph,” “Frozen,” and “Big Hero 6.”
Their latest, “Zootopia,” continues the trend with a funny, poignant, and
decidedly modern take on anthropomorphic animals.
The world of “Zootopia” is less
an animal kingdom than an animal democracy, where mammals of all shapes and
sizes have evolved to match modern humans in intelligence. Their crowning
achievement is the titular city: a teaming, technologically-advanced metropolis
that’s equal parts New York, Los Angeles, Dubai, and Disneyland. There,
eager young bunny Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) becomes the first rabbit to
join Zootopia’s Police Department, but soon finds that she’s underestimated by
her more physically powerful colleagues, who don’t think a bunny can make it as
a cop.
Their adventure molds “Zootopia”
into a mishmash of several different film styles. The film certainly has
roots in earlier Disney hits (it’s inspired by talking animal features like
1973’s “Robin Hood”). Yet it also features “Shrek”-style pop culture
shout outs and clever moral lessons that echo the films of Laika (“Coraline,”
ParaNorman,” etc.).
Still, “Zootopia” has a
conceptual audacity all its own. Halfway through the movie, the film’s
extended tour of the city ends and the plot shifts to the missing animals
mystery. It’s here that “Zootopia” truly defines itself. The film’s
theme of characters overcoming prejudice and stereotypes takes center stage
here, as the distrust between animals who were historically predators and their
former prey takes center stage.
While Judy herself fights
against the expectations of her peers, Nick also reveals that he took up the life
of a shyster because that’s what everyone expected of him. It’s a surprisingly
poignant revelation because it forces the characters not only to overcome
others' prejudices against them, but to acknowledge and own up to their own
flawed beliefs (e.g. despite Judy's progressive idealism, upon meeting Nick she
compliments him by calling him “articulate”).
Unfortunately, not all of the
movie’s elements mesh well—viewers may find themselves getting whiplash as the
film goes from playful animal jokes to “kid’s first noir” and lessons about
racism. This may be evidence of changes to plot and story that occurred
partway through production (early press releases and trailers highlighted Nick
as our main character, while the finished product has Judy front and center).
Yet “Zootopia” is still a
triumph: fast-paced, energetic, glorious to look at, funny, sharp, and
timely. Its message of setting asides prejudices to create a better world
may seem obvious or schmaltzy to some. But
since certain presidential candidates I could name haven’t internalized that
message, it’s vital that we remind ourselves that at the end of the day, we’re
all animals who have to share this world with each other.
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