Mabel Tanaka (Piper Curda’s voice) is on her laptop, hate watching Mayor Jerry Generazzo (Jon Hamm) on YouTube. He’s bragging about getting state permission to build a beltway in an animal preserve which no longer has animals. Coincidentally, she discovers the work of her professor, Dr. Sam (Kathy Najimy) and her assistant Nisha (Aparna Nancherla). That work is the film’s namesake where the human mind can enter an animal robot to infiltrate animal habitats. Mabel uses that work to convince the animals to return to the preserve to stop the beltway’s construction.

As a robot beaver, Mabel finds a large animal sanctuary ruled by a beaver named King George (Bobby Moynihan). He’s a benevolent ruler, making his makeshift sanctuary feel like a Beav-Chella, helping even the smaller animals. Learning that the sanctuary is in danger, George calls a council of monarchs like Insect Queen (Meryl Streep). Insect Queen orders to squish Jerry, and a physical fight between her and Mabel accidentally causes her untimely demise. The altercation also leads George to realize that Mabel isn’t a beaver but a robot disguising herself as one. But both have to set aside their grudges as the Insect Queen’s son, King Titus (Dave Franco), wants his revenge.

This is still a Pixar animation movie so as they say in the streets, they have to keep things cute and friendly. And this movie does just that even if it’s depicting a fictional war between animals and the human invaders. Daniel Chong’s Hoppers has a good enough script that considers every word that comes out of its characters’ mouths. I have an obsession with the way the animal characters use the word ‘squish’ after the movie’s halfway point. It does the job, and unlike Mabel, if Meryl Streep tells me to ‘squish’ someone, I’ll do it without any hesitation.

Hoppers, in visual sense, follows the 2020’s Pixar aesthetic while still being delightful enough for adults and children. This movie has its share of obligatory shots from Mabel’s perspective, which differs from when she’s a human or a beaver. It’s easier to take in nature when nothing is happening, but this movie requires some set pieces with big stakes. Those big set pieces are action-y enough while still bringing enough humour so it doesn’t alienate young viewers. Also, the scene when George makes that discovery is devastating without bringing down the movie’s joyful tone.

Mabel makes for an interesting protagonist in Hoppers and one can view her in different ways, depending on the viewer. Regardless of how anyone sees her, it seems like choosing Mabel means that Disney is standing up for something again. She brings the serious side in the film and balancing her out is George. He’s the kind of king who knows everyone’s name and is generally trusting of every creature, even the invasive humans. Of course all movie deserve a deeper look but the juxtaposition of these two characters enhances one’s enjoyment of this movie.

Hoppers is available to watch in a theatre near you.