Hoppers

{Hoppers}, the newest original Pixar movie before Toy Story 5 lands in theaters in June, comes from the mind of director Daniel Chong, best known for his work on the Cartoon Network show We Bare Bears and its follow up movie in 2020. While not all of Pixar's latest movies have enjoyed the same level of success and critical appreciation, it is noticeable the effort put in by the studio to diversify the portfolio of authors coming from different backgrounds and bringing new and original ideas, like Domee Shi's Turning Red, Enrico Casarosa's Luca or Adrian Molina's Elio, alternating between safe sequels and risky ideas. Hoppers is a great example that proves that the Pixar project still works, producing quality movies that continue to surprise us.

{Hoppers} tells the story of Mabel, a teenager who fights against the construction of a highway that would destroy a glade filled with all kinds of animals. Her last chance to stop the works is proving that it is still inhabited by beavers, and while investigating, she finds out about a program which allows humans to enter their consciousness into a robotic beaver. Transformed into a beaver, she befriends the animals in the forest and tries to come up with a plan to stop the construction... but a lot of things not deserving to be spoiled happen that alter completely her plans, and our expectations watching a Pixar movie.

The biggest virtue of {Hoppers} is how unpredictable it is and how unapologetically it aims to surprise and amuse the viewer at every turn, even at the cost of sometimes feeling contradictory with itself. Mabel's goal is to stop the construction of the highway, but after a few crazy turns, her motivations shift quite drastically, and the film moves in another direction that is funnier, but makes the moral of the story lose focus. The mandatory quiet and reflective moments between the second and third act don't feel earned and lack the emotional weight intended, especially for what we come to expect from Pixar. The film is, or course, very sweet, putting much of its heart in a relationship between Mabel and a real beaver, but it is not as emotionally manipulative as most of Pixar's films: you'll probably save the tears for Toy Story 5 later this year.

I won't lie, it is a relief to watch a Pixar movie without weird conceptual ideas packed with layers and symbolism that sometimes get in the way of the fun, and with a clearer plot and villain that doesn't come from introspection of the main characters. The environmental lesson is unmistakable and not very deep, and reminiscent of the oddly similar The Wild Robot, which felt more like a Pixar movie than {Hoppers}. Actually, because of the greater focus on action, wacky humour and plenty of absurd situations, {Hoppers} feels closer to movies from competitor studios like {Sony Pictures}, {DreamWorks} or {Illumination} (although certainly better than anything from the Minions studio).

And for the most part it works: {Hoppers} is the funniest Pixar movie in a while, and it even dares to play with the animation a little bit more for comedic and stylistic effects. The cost for that is that it lacks the finesse that other Pixar movies. More specifically, the growth and evolution of Mabel as a character is a bit contradictory and the story sometimes feels like it is improvising as it goes without really knowing where it wants to land. In other words, the thing that makes it so special (how weird and unique it feels) also prevents it from reaching greater heights.

{Hoppers} is not a Pixar masterpiece, but it is one of the freshest movies from the studio, and I dare to say it will end up being one of the most memorable movies from the modern Pixar. It is funny, very entertaining, surprises you at every turn, and even if sometimes feel like a bunch of ideas fighting between them, it is undoubtedly sweet and leaves a really good taste in our mouths.