ZOOTOPIA 2. Brisk Buddy-cop Adventure [REVIEW]

The buddy film (from the English “buddy movie”) has been doing quite well in recent years. The Bad Boys returned to cinemas after a long break, Ryan Reynolds teamed up with Hugh Jackman in Deadpool & Wolverine, productions from this genre keep landing on streaming platforms—sometimes more, sometimes less successfully—and from time to time its characteristic motifs pop up in films where we wouldn’t expect them at all (this year’s Predator: Badlands). Animation creators also frequently reach for this appealing concept, pairing up heroes who seem completely mismatched at first—characters who may initially dislike each other but, over the course of solving a mystery, grow into devoted companions. Rarely, however, does it work as well as in Zootopia, where the duo consists of the idealistic and slightly hyperactive rabbit Judy and the charming rogue with a heart of gold, the sly fox Nick.

The first Zootopia turned out to be a pleasant surprise and terrific entertainment for the whole family. It was a huge success, so a sequel was only a matter of time. But the creators didn’t want to take the easy way out, and they made audiences wait nine years for Judy and Nick’s next adventure. What’s more, Disney hadn’t exactly been on a winning streak when it came to sequels—neither Frozen 2, nor Moana 2, nor the Lion King prequel delivered spectacles that matched the originals. Fortunately, Zootopia escapes the so-called “second-installment curse.” On the contrary, the “two” is a natural extension of the ideas presented in its predecessor—both in terms of character relationships and story. And, it must be said, a very successful extension.

Narratively speaking, there’s nothing groundbreaking here. It’s a painfully typical, trope-filled story of the kind you can find by the dozen among buddy cop comedies. The screenwriters dutifully check off every box expected in such a film—from a dynamic opening sequence that also sets up the main plot, through the investigation conducted by the two friends (who, of course, manage to quarrel along the way), all the way to a spectacular finale, with a few surprising twists sprinkled in. But everything is served so charmingly, and filtered so skillfully through the film’s world-building, that it’s impossible not to smile from the opening scene to the end credits. And besides—according to engineer Mamoń’s famous claim—we like best what we already know. The creators understand this perfectly, and they pour nearly all their creativity into the gags and into shaping the titular world, rather than into crafting a complex plot. And that’s a good thing! Thanks to it we get a classic, almost model buddy-cop comedy wrapped in an unusual setting. And “classic” here means exactly the kind of movie you want to watch.

That world-building is precisely Zootopia’s greatest strength—all those inventive ideas behind the film’s universe. The concept isn’t limited to “animals hold the same roles as humans in our world” with nothing meaningful resulting from that premise. Here, someone genuinely thought things through and created an internally coherent universe, which is not an easy task—as evidenced by the countless weak, derivative fantasy works out there. The main plot, both in the first and the second part, is directly tied to the specifics of the titular world; it wouldn’t work nearly as well if transplanted into another film without major changes. What’s more, this universe offers enormous storytelling potential that, although already tapped into, is far from exhausted.

Animated films often fall into heavy-handed moralizing, usually via speeches forced into the characters’ dialogue. Zootopia 2 also contains a fairly standard “message”: that differences in character are a strength, not a weakness. The film also radiates an enthusiastic glorification of friendship. And while it may border on cliché, nothing deeper is needed here. These narrative devices always work—and in Zootopia 2, they come with plenty of additional delights: clever jokes (the Bavarian ibexes!) from the very first minute, a cast of immensely likeable characters, a wealth of pop-culture references for eagle-eyed viewers, and wonderfully creative action sequences. Joining Judy and Nick on their investigation leaves no room for boredom, and leaving the cinema in a good mood is practically guaranteed.

Zootopia 2 is thus excellent fun and a perfect choice for a family screening. It’s a convention-savvy, brisk buddy-cop adventure with no slow spots, set in a fascinating world and led by a wonderful duo of protagonists—one that, as the post-credits scene suggests, I hope will return. Finally, a fully successful Disney animated film, with no “buts.”