There was a time that Pixar could do no wrong. And while features like ‘Lightyear’, ‘Elio’ and ‘Luca’ are far from whiffs at the plate, they’re not the knockouts we used to expect from the studio. It’s not that those movies haven’t been loaded with talent or creativity, it’s just the bar was set so high, the results were….well…..meh.
Enter ”Hoppers’, less a sci-fi animated pleaser than a big ol’ hug to the animal kingdom and the environment they call home. Not earth shaking by any means, but….friendly. Accessible. Safe. Simplistic. And, most importantly, a pleasant transition into some (hopefully) bigger things to come.
In ‘Hopper’, a 19-year old animal lover named Mabel (Piper Curda) who, terrified by Mayor Jerry (Jon Hamm) and his plans to pave paradise, turns to her biology professor Dr. Sam Fairfax (Kathy Najimy) for assistance, only to encounter her latest invention; a device while allows human beings to ‘hop’ into small robotic animals (in Mabel’s case, a beaver) and use that to communicate with them.
From there, Mabel – taking the form of a robotic beaver – attempts to band together all creatures large and small to save the tranquil glade near her grandmother’s house. Familiar voices like Bobby Moynihan, Vanessa Bayer, Dave Franco and Meryl Streep are all involved in…let’s face it…what’s really a bit of a rip-off of ‘Avatar’, but c’mon….the animals are cute, no harm, no foul.
‘Hoppers’ is a pleasant, often very, very funny caper, nothing more, nothing less. For younger audiences who were perhaps too shy of ‘The Wild Robot’….admittedly, a brilliant ecologically friendly animated feature, but maybe a bit ‘much’ for the littles…..this one isn’t as great, but certainly more accessible. And with a ‘Toy Story’ sequel coming down the pike, it’s a nice reminder to everyone that, yes, Pixar is still here. And they’re still great.