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Zootopia [Spoilers]
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subego
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Mar 28, 2016, 01:59 AM
 
Any thoughts?

I enjoyed it... not that you'd be able to tell from anything I'm going to say in this thread.

The fundamental flaw is it's a movie about racism, but the writing is so lazy, the various "races" amount to little more than stereotypes.

Also from the laziness file... "the right place at the right time" can move the plot forward once or twice. When we get to five or six times, someone isn't doing their job.
     
subego  (op)
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Mar 28, 2016, 12:56 PM
 
Any furries here?

This movie needs a review from furries.
     
subego  (op)
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Mar 28, 2016, 04:05 PM
 
What did the predators eat exactly?
     
Hawkeye_a
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Mar 28, 2016, 04:16 PM
 
I was looking forward to the movie primarily because i really like the character modelling and animation. I watched a couple of reviews and decided to pass because i've grown tired of overtly "preachy" movies.

Regarding the 'racial' dynamic, you mentioned, i find it quite amusing that they are drawing an analogy with predator and prey in the animal kingdom. The predator-prey relationship being a completely natural, dare I say necessary, way to maintain balance in an ecosystem. what do you think?
     
subego  (op)
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Mar 28, 2016, 06:38 PM
 
Well, the movie posits a "post-food chain" society, so the predator-prey dynamic as it is in the wild is no longer part of the natural order.

How that works is unsatisfyingly addressed (as in, not at all), but I'm willing to play along. It's science fiction.

The remnants of that dynamic isn't the worst foundation upon which to build a racism story, but their world building relies too much on the stereotypes rooted in the current natural order. It ends up sending the opposite message. Animals follow their "natures", or more accurately, what we as humans anthropomorphize their natures to be.
     
mindwaves
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Mar 29, 2016, 11:13 AM
 
I'll probably see it today. Super mini review to follow.
     
subego  (op)
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Mar 29, 2016, 11:14 AM
 
Don't let me slagging it put you off. There is a lot of decent stuff in there.
     
subego  (op)
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Mar 31, 2016, 12:30 PM
 
You fur tease!
     
reader50
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Aug 11, 2016, 03:37 PM
 
I avoid theaters, so didn't see this until after video release. Thoughts:

Apparently the primate line died out in this world. That also nixes all the species we domesticated: no dogs or (domestic) cats. The horse did well with us, but wild horse species didn't. Only two made it into historical times, and only one survives today, through significant management efforts. You can see this in the movie: in the Natural History Museum. In the background, there is a horse statue. Presumably showing an extinct species. We aren't able to read the plaque.

Also in the museum, we see anthropomorphic rabbits treeing a non-anthropomorphic sabertooth tiger. It's reasonable to assume the four-legged mammals were wiped out by the tool-using ones.

Without a prey-predator balance, the high reproduction rates of rabbits is not explained. However predators have prospered too. While Zootopia has a 10:1 ratio of prey to predators, the ratio is far higher in nature. So apparently the predators are out breeding the rabbits.

High infant mortality rates might cover some of the gaps. At the train station going-away party, there was a bad shortage of adult-sized bunnies. Those pesky teenage years might be rebalancing things, as bunnies test if they really can cross ahead of the trains.

What do predators eat? I'd guess chicken and fish. Only other mammals are off-limits.

BTW, I do like the movie. The story is OK, the voice acting is good, and the visuals often approach photo-realism. There's a lot of background detail, which rewards multiple viewings. If you haven't seen it, give it a try. It's not just for kids.
     
subego  (op)
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Aug 11, 2016, 04:12 PM
 
I didn't notice the Easter eggs you mentioned, but that they were putting that much thought into it shows through.

Which is what I found so frustrating about them ducking some of the more obvious implications of the premise.

I complain because I love.
     
reader50
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Aug 11, 2016, 04:41 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Also from the laziness file... "the right place at the right time" can move the plot forward once or twice. When we get to five or six times, someone isn't doing their job.
I'm willing to disagree with this. The incidents are reasonable.
 
     
el chupacabra
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Aug 12, 2016, 01:32 PM
 
… .
( Last edited by el chupacabra; Jan 5, 2024 at 01:50 AM. )
     
osiris
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Aug 12, 2016, 01:45 PM
 
Jesus, this movie sounds horrible and full of cliches. I'll put it on my list though, for laughs.

CinemaSins has an opinion, as always (spoilers!):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvWjgp5c70A
"Faster, faster! 'Till the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death." - HST
     
andi*pandi
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Aug 13, 2016, 11:38 PM
 
had its moments, some good funny bits. I was annoyed by the sloppy police work, and the assumption that the first day on the job you get assigned to important high-level cases.
     
   
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