Review of Zootopia (2016) by Phillip D — 06 Oct 2016

In retrospect, it's rather incredible that Zootopia currently stands as the number two box office film of 2016 with over a billion dollars in ticket sales. Frankly, a movie this on the nose about hard hitting political topics shouldn't have even been able to make it out of the gates, much less into family audiences but somehow, Zootopia cracked every nut.

I know hardcore conservative families and everyone in between and they have all loved this film. And don't get me wrong, Zootopia is charming, funny and well made with a bevy of hilarious pop culture references that are expertly crafted.

However, at the same time, Zootopia is a straight up cultural critique, both of the blatant racism of the right and the delusional talk only attitude of the left. Get past the cute fuzziness and this movie is a savage, incredibly clever and exceptionally well timed critique aimed at voters and party bigwigs on both sides right as we nosed into election year.

Incredibly, in a rare testament to corporate Disney's brainchild, the movie is original, enjoyable and a thinker all at the same time. I won't poke too hard at the analogy or read too much into Disney's ulterior motives because ultimately, I think this movie really needed to be made regardless.

In a rapidly shifting culture where our youngest members are increasingly our most tolerant, it seems only fitting that our most accessible theater content would also reflect that progressive nature. Bravo Hollywood, bravo.