Five stars. Rated PG, and needlessly, for mild rude humor
By Derrick Bang • Originally published in The Davis Enterprise, 3.4.16
I’ve said it before: Many of the
best scripts these days are attached to animated films.
Disney’s Zootopia is work of
subversive genius: an enormously clever project that functions both as a
charming, suspenseful and even exciting adventure, and as a compelling parable
of tolerance and inclusion. Its arrival in theaters today could not be more
perfectly timed, given the current state of this country’s social fabric.
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| Hoping to track down a license plate that'll lead to a key suspect, and with time of the essence, Officer Judy Hopps is forced to deal with a sluggish DMV clerk misleadingly named Flash, much to the amusement of the foxy Nick Wilde. |
Pixar’s Wall-E was pretty
sneaky, in a similar vein, with respect to its strong environmental message
about the need to be better stewards of planet Earth. But Zootopia is even
more pointed, without really seeming that way. Rarely has a moral gone down
more easily, or more enjoyably.
I’m reflexively wary of
screenplays that credit multiple writers, since too many cooks generally spoil
the soup. But executive producer John Lasseter’s success in fine-tuning by committee
definitely pays off here: This film’s eight (!) credited writers have delivered
a savvy, witty narrative that flows smoothly from one scene to the next,
carefully developing numerous character dynamics, and building to a
delightfully satisfying conclusion.
Even the small stuff is handled
well. Following Chekhov’s maxim that every memorable element in a story must be
necessary and irreplaceable, we get a thoroughly satisfying payoff — during
this film’s climax — to a cute bit in the first few minutes: something that
you’re likely to dismiss as a throwaway giggle, until its resurrection. That’s
the hallmark of skillful scripting, and an excellent indication of the
meticulously crafted care that has gone into this project.
Better still, all these elements
are chaperoned with similar skill by co-directors Byron Howard, Rich Moore and
Jared Bush.
Our saga takes place in an
alternate universe where all the other members of God’s mammalian kingdom have
evolved to control their world. (In other words, no people.) As explained
during a school play prologue featuring a young and irrepressible bunny named
Judy Hopps, their society has evolved beyond the traditional roles of predator
and prey, so that all animals co-exist peacefully, and with the belief that no
matter what your species — from the largest elephant to the tiniest shrew — you
can become anything your heart and dedication desire.
Even so, the unspoken reality is
that larger and more powerful animals (“predators”) generally are viewed as
higher-class, and possess esteemed and politically controlling careers.
Lower-ranking mammals — particularly smaller herbivores (“prey”) — remain a
lesser group, consigned to farming or blue-collar livelihoods, and often are
looked down upon ... despite being the majority of the overall population.
