I expect a lot more from Disney now

luminesce

score 10/10

Walking into the theatre, I expected to at least be entertained by Disney's 55th animated movie, after the crazy streak that is Tangled, Wreck-It Ralph, Big Hero 6 and Inside Out. Thank you Disney, for taking my expectations, crushing them so hard and renewing my faith that Disney is still steadily improving. (However, I am likely to be disappointed after this movie, just goes to show how much this movie elevated my expectations. It's that good, to me at least).

Why do I like this movie so much? That is because within its entertaining buddy cop facade, it shows a lot more and has a lot of relevant messages to tell. It unfolds at an engaging pace and will manage to surprise viewers.

Protagonist Judy Hopps (voiced by the bubbly Ginnifer Goodwin) has big dreams and wants to prove the world wrong - that a tiny bunny can take on the big mammal job of a police officer. This is certainly something that connects well with the audience. She wants to break the small-animals-can't-do-tough-mammal-job stereotype. Ironically, she is eventually roped into a battle with her own subconscious stereotypes of others. Meanwhile, you have the flip side in Nick Wilde (voiced by Jason Bateman, who has no problem playing an animated version of himself), who succumbs to his stereotype. What seemed to be a message that "you can be anything" slowly turns into a (surprisingly) timely lesson on tolerance in diversity, discrimination and racial politics.

The two lead characters Judy and Nick, have great chemistry and you'll find yourself rooting for them throughout (some even want more chemistry *ahem*. A lot more). Chief Bogo (voiced by Idris Elba) and Ben Clawhauser (voiced by Nate Torrence) were nice additions to the cast, though the lack of focus on them is understandable. J.K. Simmons and Jenny Slate also lends their unique voices to Mayor Lionheart and Asst Mayor Bellweather, both of which are remarkably well-suited.

To make it more fun, the movie is also riddled with references (both in pop culture and biological), hidden jokes and easter eggs. However, adults will probably have a lot more fun with these as they cater to the older audiences, like with the Godfather reference.

Last but not least, the animation is beautiful. Everything, from characters to architecture to effects, looks spot on.

All in all, this movie was awesome. It is guaranteed fun for the whole family (though kids might be a little scared at certain points). I enjoyed it thoroughly (maybe even felt close to crying) and I certainly would like to see more, sequels or series, just please keep the voice actors. Kudos to Disney once again.

*Fair warning though, be careful with Google*

10/10

luminesce 17 April 2016

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3453115/