What’s it about?

A young woman obsessed with saving and protecting animals has her consciousness placed into a robotic animal beaver body and discovers she can communicate with the creatures of the forest.

What did we think?

Anthony Sherratt says: Pixar at its best is storytelling that taps into emotions and weaves a tale with a moral or two and Hoppers is a return to that high standard. While the story isn’t as polished as some of its predecessors, the slight messiness of character interactions is actually a more accurate representation of the greys of human connection.

And connection is what Hoppers is all about. Whether it be humans connecting with nature, people connecting with family members or humans realizing they have more in common than they initially realised, the film has the layers we’ve come to expect from Pixar.

The main focus is of course Mabel communicating with animals and attempting to unite them to rise against humanity. Solemnity and laughs are meted out in equal measure and it’s even self-aware enough to openly claim it’s “not Avatar” (despite clearly being like Avatar).

Her interactions (as a beaver) with the other denizens of the woods produce some of the best laughs but also focus on friendship and belief and some interesting philosophical questions that may start some interesting discussions with kids.

At the end of the day despite a slightly uneven story, it’s warm, witty and full of heart.