‘Hoppers’ Review: Pixar At Its Finest
4.5/5 robot beavers
If you’re an animal lover or someone who wants to talk to their pets, beware. You will sob when watching Pixar’s new film Hoppers. Like ugly cry. You have been warned.
The Daniel Chong film follows Mabel (Piper Curda), a girl who has loved animals her entire life and who is dedicated to protecting them. But Mayor Jerry (Jon Hamm) makes that incredibly difficult. The film takes us into the world of the animal kingdom by quite literally putting Mabel in the thick of it. A new technology allows her mind to be placed into a robot beaver and the rest is history.
What makes Hoppers such a perfect Pixar film is that it has found the ideal balance between its message, the jokes for younger audiences, and poignant moments for the older fans watching. But it is one of those movies that will leave you both hopeful for the future as well as longing to talk to all animals. It’s giving the same energy that Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs for me. Where I cried and said I want to talk to my cat.
Hoppers gives an icon to the angry girls with Mabel. She’s young and dedicated to protecting animals and angry at the people who won’t let her do it. So her grandmother (Karen Huie) is the only one who is willing to listen to her and the two find her peaceful place. But when Mayor Jerry’s plan for a super highway takes her peace away, Mabel is willing to do whatever it takes to protect it.
A beautifully dedicated protagonist
Mabel is the kind of character that isn’t afraid to stick to her beliefs. She wants to save her oasis and that means bringing a beaver back to it. The problem is that she’s not supposed to interfere with the animal kingdom. Dr. Sam (Kathy Najimy) warns her of this but Mabel doesn’t listen. And when she becomes an unlikely ally for another beaver named King George (Bobby Moynihan), Mabel finds herself in too deep.
Mabel’s inability to stop what she is doing does make her a flawed protagonist and a great one at that. She isn’t thinking straight and she only has one mission in mind. In a lot of ways, that’s the same issue with Mayor Jerry. The two are both fighting for what they think is the “right” thing and not listening to the other at all.
It makes the tension throughout Hoppers work because neither is backing down, even when things go so off the rails that it feels like there is no way to get back to peace in the town of Beaverton.
For the animal lovers everywhere
Hoppers is for all those kids who see an animal and instantly want to pet it. The kind of kid who wants to make sure the fluffy bunny is safe or play with their dog instead of friends. But it also reminds us all that we’re not the only living things in this world. Often, people dismiss animals to protect themselves and don’t see the pain they’re causing.
These animals adapted and changed but they shouldn’t have to. We should look out for each other, human, fury, reptile, and everything in between. Hoppers shows us all why Pixar is still one of the best to do it in the animated world. Just bring a whole box of tissues.
(featured image: Pixar)
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