Zootropolis, 2016

Disney is known for making great animated films, and until now, they have made over 58 films that they like to call “Disney Classics,” with films such as Aladdin, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and Cinderella in that category. Zootropolis is Disney's 55^th classic film, and since its first appearance in cinema, it has had critical acclaim from critics. But does it deserve all the compliments that the critics are giving it?

In this review, I will discuss the plot in general as well as the themes that the film discusses, analyze the main characters of the film, and discuss the animation style.

The Plot:

Zootropolis tells the story of Bunny Hops, who is one of the two main characters, as she dreams of becoming a police officer. After some time, she manages to become the first bunny officer, and through a series of events, she and Nick Wilde, a fox and the second main character, cooperate to solve a case that involves 14 missing predators.

The film succeeds in giving a family film with an interesting plot that mixes comedy, drama, and crime in a clever, fantastic way, as it manages to deliver good jokes and a good crime that is interesting even for adults. Unlike most Disney classics like Cinderella, Zootropolis goes against Disney's traditional fairy tale method of saying that dreams do come true and challenges them by saying that some dreams don't just come true, but you need to work for them to come true. And that is one of the things that makes the film interesting, as it is one of the films from Disney that takes this unique route.

The film discusses two ideas, the first is the idea of determination. The idea of determination has been discussed by Disney in the past, but in Zootropolis, it takes a more realistic route, in which Bunny Hops is challenged by almost every character in the film, including her parents. This makes us, as viewers, sympathize with the character more and makes some people actually relate to Bunny Hops. The idea of determination can be seen throughout the entire film.

The second idea that the film discusses is discrimination. The idea of discrimination has been discussed by almost every media that is known to man. From plays like William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Vince and Marvel comics' X-men series.  The film discusses this idea by making it a key part of the plot, in which the prey starts to riot against the predators and distance themselves from them. And while this isn't the first time that we see Disney having a serious theme in their films, as they once had religion as a theme in the 1996 film The Hunchback of Norte Dame, Zootropolis brilliantly manages to discuss a serious topic like discrimination while keeping the film's family oriented. And like determination, this idea can be seen throughout the entire film.

Character analyzation:

There are two important characters to analyze:

Bunny Hops: Bunny Hops is a character that represents one side of a coin. She is determined dreamy, a character that anyone can relate to. When she faces reality when she moves to Zootropolis, she tries her best to remain positive. By the end of the film, she becomes a character who strikes a balance between accepting reality and someone who wants to achieve her dreams.

Nick Wilde: Nick is on the other side of the coin, as he represents those who have come to accept reality due to his past and the fact that he is a fox. He is clever and funny. At the end of the film, he manages to see the bright side of life and reality.

Animation:

Zootropolis might be one of the most beautifully designed films in 2016, and this is mainly because Disney paid so much to details. Disney has focused on everything in the city of Zootropolis and created an environment for all kinds of animals, from small train doors for hamsters to a pipe that will deliver a drink to a giraffe. The colors are beautiful and balanced, not too bright and not too dark.

Final thoughts:

Zootropolis is a fantastic, clever film that manages to have many things, and all of them are done exactly as they should be done. With a good crime that will keep the viewers interested, a series of funny jokes that are fit for a family movie, and an excellent drama that manages to discuss serious themes that go against the fairy tale method of achieving your dreams, Zotropolis shows that it is worthy of all the praise that it has received from critics, as well as being the 55th classic Disney film.