The last movie of my personal 2025 movie marathon last week was Zootopia 2. even though my kids are no longer little, I honestly wanted to see this one for my own enjoyment... but it didn't hurt that my college aged daughter was willing to go see it with her old man. This was very special because I saw the first one with her nearly 10 years ago.
I loved the first Zootopia movie. At the time, I was really impressed by the rather through, yet accessible, mystery the writers created.I thought it was incredibly clever how they got little kids to play along with the characters as they tried to solve the mystery of why the animals had become so aggressive and to find the missing mammals. Although it didn't need to be as intelligent as it was, Byron Howard, Rich Moore, and Jared Bush showed respect for their young audience members and decided not to treat them like morons. There were also plenty of laughs and great animation along the way.
Zootopia 2 continues to have really great characters. In addition to the main characters of Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) two really fun ones were added. I for one have been thrilled with the renaissance of Ke Huy Quan's career. That continues with his portrayal of Gary De'Snake, a very likable and funny new character. But my favorite new character by far is Nibbles Maplestick voiced by Fortune Feimster. Both my daughter and I were very pleasantly surprised that we really enjoyed this new character. While she could have easily been a throwaway character who just fit the role of "the funny Southern one" Nibbles was an essential part of the team and was probably the funniest character in teh movie.
The animation continues to dazzle. It isn't just the main characters and action, the backgrounds are so rich with amazing and often funny little things that I will probably need to watch it again just to take in all the scenes. I think I have become spoiled by just how perfect animation has become. The voices and mouths match so well that I sometimes forget I am watching a cartoon.
Although I laughed a lot, loved the characters, and enjoyed the animation, Zootopia 2 does fall short in one area when compared to the original. The story. While the first one was a very clever mystery, this one is far more simple. The heroes are basically chasing a piece a paper while the villains try to stop them. Don't get me wrong, as far as McGuffin chasing movies go, this one is pretty good... especially for a kids movie. But it was not as much fun as the first. The plot of this movie is 100% just a vehicle for the characters to be cute and crack jokes.
Below the surface, both movies have awesome life lessons. This one was especially poignant right now as it had to do with combating ignorance about beings who are different from you. I loved that it didn't make any group "the bad guys" but rather showed that anyone can be good if they open their heart. Don't get me wrong, there are definitely bad guys. But they are only looking out for their own selfish benefits. It is not an entire group being painted that way.
Even as an adult I could appreciate the art and humor of Zootopia 2... I think all of us can benefit from slipping into the shoes of their younger self every now and again.
