Despite being a college freshman, I am still an ardent Disney fan, and as such I was excited to see their new release, "Zootopia." After gathering a group of friends and piling into the theater, I watched as a rabbit, and a fox, made some phenomenal points that pertain to society today. I will try to keep the spoilers to a minimum, but if you haven't seen this film yet, I encourage you to do so.
"Zootopia" prides itself on being a city where predator and prey can live in harmony, but despite this there are obvious divisions and discrimination. The main character, Judy Hopps, longs to become a police officer and make a difference in a world that has told her she could never accomplish her dream. She experiences countless struggles - many having to do with her species and the fact there has never been a rabbit cop. No one believes a cute, little, bunny has what it takes to fight crime and stand for justice, especially when the police force is made up of bison, polar bears, wolves, and tigers.
Early on Judy meets Nick - the sly fox - who is more than he seems. As a fox, society wants to paint Nick and his species as thieves, tricksters, and criminals. After a traumatizing experience, Nick submits to these stereotypes with a mindset that he cannot overcome what society thinks of him and takes to conning others. Judy does a little conning of her own in order to gain Nick's help in a mysterious, and nearly impossible, case of a missing predator.
*spoiler warning* As the movie continues to delve into a society of stereotypes, discrimination, drugs, and crime, Judy and Nick discover a plot to overthrow the society as it is by framing predatory animals as "savage". Acts of savagery shown by the media cause predatory animals across Zootopia to be demoted, denied jobs, and treated like criminals. The minority - the predators - is being discriminated against based on a handful of cases against the majority - the prey which makes up 90 percent of "Zootopia."
In the end, Judy and Nick crack the case and bring about an end to the wide spread terror. *spoilers* They discover a drug that had been making predatory animals "go savage" was being administered without the knowledge of the animals in order to cause fear and gain control over the city. With the panic over, the society learns from its previous mistakes and several common stereotypes are broken.
"Zootopia" is a lovely movie for anyone but some of the subtle messages are aimed more for adults than kids. The deep issues such as racism, discrimination, stereotypes, drugs, political corruptness, and intentionally causing fear to gain power, are themes we see in our own society on a daily basis - one can even relate this zoo to the American presidential race right now. It is not hard to qualify this as Disney's most politically charged film, but politics aside, I believe everyone could learn a thing or two from a bunny, and a fox, and the society in which they live.
