Today we’re talking about the 2025 film Zootopia 2.
Story
The movie pulls from the buddy cop tropes but like the first, it infuses it with heart, empathy, and more than a dash of political commentary.
Score: 1
Characters
Making the main conflict between the main characters be fear of losing each other was not only sweet but a great continuation of their dynamic from the first movie.
The new characters fit well into the found family? pack? Fluffle!
Score: 1
Dialogue
There were a lot of good lines and callbacks to the first movie. The dry sarcasm and loving jibes never felt overdone.
Score: 1
Visuals and Music
I was amazed by the snow and water. Disney has come a long way with its digital animation. The framing and cinematography were great.
The music was almost as epic as the first one.
Score: 1
Fun
This felt like coming back to a great story and not like a disconnected sequel. I had a lot of fun and the rest of the family loved it.
I really appreciated the social commentary and jabs at modern politics.
Score: 1
Overall
All the charm of the first movie with a whole new adventure. This feels like a perfect continuation and was done with respect and empathy.
Final Score: 5 Stars out of 5*
*A 5 star review doesn’t mean the movie was perfect nor that it is perfect for everyone but it is a movie I believe is as close to perfect as possible.
Estranged siblings, crime syndicates, and lots of violence. It was ridiculously formulaic with little new added.
Score: 0
Characters
I think Momoa and Bautista could make any character likeable. They are naturally charismatic. I wish the movie leaned more into their humour and dynamic.
The rest of the cast was great and they all did a wonderful job making a family dynamic.
The British villain with a French name was ridiculously boring though.
Score: 0.5
Dialogue
The exposition was delivered in small bits between action scenes and fun quips, perfect for this type of movie. When the mains actually opened up, it was very well done.
Score: 1
Visuals and Music
I found the fights focused a lot on shock instead of cool choreography but they didn’t use shaky cam.
The music was great.
Score: 0.5
Fun
The movie was fun but it’s definitely not for the faint of heart or kids. Both the 9yo and the 6yo were a little freaked out by the cheese grater incident. (We spent a lot of time talking through the stunts afterwards, which they loved.)
The adults liked it well enough but not sure we’d want to rewatch it.
Score: 1
Overall
A predictable action movie that relies solely on the charisma of its cast. Even though that charisma is massive, its still just an okay action movie.
A sweet take on the next door neighbour as a love interest trope. They played it very low angst and with lots of humour. The overall mystery story was okay but felt too simple. Loved the reveal of who the clerk was at the end. (Although Jen called it almost right away.)
Having worked in a store, that storeroom with all the receipts was way too small.
Score: 0.5
Characters
Lots of characters are thrown at you quickly, which makes the large family/community feel more realistic (even though it’s not that big). I like that these movies aren’t centred around the football players but instead the fans. The chemistry between the leads felt realistic and cute.
Score: 1
Dialogue
The banter and jokes were well done and most of the dialogue was great.
Score: 1
Visuals and Music
The visuals were basic but well done.
The music was okay.
Score: 0.5
Fun
I was thrown by the mix of accents and the idea that a store would keep receipts from decades past but overall I enjoyed this. The rest of the family liked the low angst feel and cute couple.
Score: 1
Overall
This is a Hallmark romance that celebrates both the holidays and the football fans equally. There’s love and family in both the love story and the crafting of the film.
I like the fantasy aspects of it, and despite being utterly predictable for the time travel, it was a fun story overall. I found it interesting and a little odd that things disappeared but no one’s memories of those things disappeared.
Score: 0.5
Characters
The main character and love interest were a fun “light” version of grumpy/sunshine. I find the age and timeline a little off and a little sanitized, but they were fun and had chemistry.
I was a little annoyed that they introduced a “genre savvy” character and didn’t use him most of the movie.
Score: 0.5
Dialogue
The dialogue was mostly good; cheesy with some very sweet moments.
Score: 1
Visuals and Music
The visuals were good but felt a little too set-like. At times, everything felt like a filmed play.
The music was lovely.
Score: 0.5
Fun
Other than guessing the ending when reading the movie description, I really enjoyed the movie. The rest of the family including the 9yo also loved it. The 6yo was bored during some of the longer talking sequences.
Score: 1
Overall
A nice addition to the Christmas fantasies from Hallmark. The acting is decent and the time travel gimmick doesn’t get in the way of the love story.
It has been a year… Lots of good and lots of bad. Let’s get on with this review and see if I succeeded at my goals.
1. Write The Hounds of Bakerville(Failed)
I’ve written the first three and a half chapters along with the prologue. I need to step up my game this coming year. I kinda lost steam on writing the novel with some behind the scenes drama that’s been stressing me out.
2. Write a serial story (Succeeded)
I really enjoyed last year’s serial story and I can’t wait to find out what I do for this year. Go read it now: The Scarlet Thread Irregulars
3. Master 1 song on the ukulele and record it. (Failed)
The shoulder injury really put a dent in my playing and then life happened. I’ve still been practicing but didn’t manage to record or master the song.
4. Read at least 12 books (Succeeded)
I read 19 books this year, which is pretty good considering I’m not commuting or waiting long hours in doctors’ offices as much.
5. Build my new book nook and Lego (Partially Succeeded)
I built the book nook and loved it. I started the Lego but got distracted by other things and kinda stopped half way. I’ll try to finish it this year.
6. Feel less guilty (Succeeded)
I’m giving myself more grace and letting myself enjoy things to relax. I think it’s going well. Yay me.
7. Design and deploy a new coffee flavour for Ottawa Comic Con in September (Succeeded)
Second breakfast brew is a delightful medium roast with English toffee flavouring.
8. Plan and plot out the first in a cozy mystery series (Succeeded)
I’ve planned the series, I’ve planned the setting, and I have a basic template outline for each book. I’m still super excited for this one.
9. Organize a massive birthday party and book release (Succeeded)
This happened during the summer. If you want to watch our Q&A, here it is on YouTube:
10. Keep fighting to learn more about myself and how to make my life easier (Succeeded)
Oh my goodness! I didn’t realize what a Gordian Knot of interconnectedness it is. The best example I can give is that as I work toward unmasking my ADHD and Autism (letting myself be myself without stressing about being “normal”), I’m starting to notice and be affected more by certain sense sensitivities (especially to light and smell) and it feels like they are triggering my migraines more. Or I just didn’t notice before.
Anyway, I’m learning a lot about myself, and even going to therapy. It’s obviously going to be a lifelong discovery and that’s okay.
Wow, that’s 7.5/10. I think that might be one of the highest success scores I’ve had. Now does this mean I worked my ass off and succeeded or that I didn’t give myself enough challenge?
I’ll take the win. This coming year will have new goals and challenges. I hate to say it, but we live in interesting times.
The hospital setting for a Hallmark style romance was a little jarring at first. Being used to medical dramas, I had to remind myself that no one was going to die. Once I got over that, I found the story a great twist on the holiday formula.
Score: 1
Characters
For once, the female lead wasn’t the one moving in from the big city and no one had to give up their careers or lives. The two mains were played with more honest emotion than I’m used to from this genre, and the community a great addition.
The acting still felt a little rushed, like the actors hadn’t had the time to fully process the material, and there were a few odd things for a hospital staff.
Score: 0.5
Dialogue
The dialogue was fairly witty and I really liked the faster pace of dialogue between the leads.
Score: 1
Visuals and Music
The snow storm measured in “feet instead of inches” didn’t look that bad. Other than that, the sets were pretty and the camera work was solid.
The music was unremarkable but in this case that’s a good thing.
Score: 0.5
Fun
It was a lot of fun. Very festive and happy with the babies, and the whole family liked it.
Score: 1
Overall
A nice twist on the Hallmark formula that will leave you smilling.
Once of the most formulaic Christmas romances I’ve watched this year. It was extremely predictable.
Score: 0
Characters
The characters were cute. The male lead was charismatic and came off as a sweetheart. The main girl was mostly just lost and confused. Both were played well.
The animals really stole the show.
Score: 0.5
Dialogue
It shows how fast it was written that the dialogue felt unpolished. Almost overly scripted.
Score: 0.5
Visuals and Music
The location was great and decorating was amazing.
The music was lovely and nicely instrumental.
Score: 1
Fun
I really enjoyed this. It’s cute cats and cute people. The whole family seemed to enjoy it. The only issues I had were technical and can be attributed to Hallmark rushing these movies instead of talking the time to do it right.
Score: 1
Overall
A cute and formulaic holiday romance but let’s be honest, we’re watching for the cats.
