Movie Breakdown: Zootopia

Pre-Screening Stance:

Everything I’ve seen in regards to Zootopia has been oddly off-putting.  The whole thing seems like it’s one big obnoxious wink at its audience (just look at the the name of the film, that sloth bit and so on), and I’m admittedly not particularly excited about it.

Post-Screening Ramble:

Zootopia is such a great film.  I went in thinking it was going to be a collection of lame “hey look, these animals are like people” jokes, but what I actually got was a film that’s clever, adorable and funny.  Essentially, it’s a piece of crime fiction that takes place in fully realized world that’s populated by animals who walk up right, talk and wear clothes.  And when I say fully realized, I very much mean it.  While the population is pretty much divided into two categories – predators and prey – the world itself is wonderfully layered, and as the film progresses along you get to see how creatures of various shapes and sizes co-exist in the city of Zootopia.  It’s all pretty damn neat, and I often found myself wanting to see more.  The film isn’t just fun to look at though, it’s also immensely smart and features some of the most daring social commentary I’ve seen in a “kids” movie in … well, maybe forever.  You have to see it.  And so do your kids.  If you don’t have kids, borrow one or two from someone else.  Or just go by yourself.  Either way, run out and jump into a screening of Zootopia immediately.

One Last Thought:

I’m not usually one to immediately yell for sequels, but I liked Zootopia so much that I want more entries and I want them now.  Hell, I’d even take an animated series.  Or at least a really well done set of coloring books.