Disney's new animated movie Zootopia got some great reviews so I decided to see it on opening weekend. In our PC world, the reviewers decided to overlook the obvious message that gays are a persecuted minority who are no different than anyone else and that those who are concerned with how gays are perceived as normal in modern society are bad.
This essay has spoilers.
The knee jerk reaction to my view on the movie may be "Get serious. This is only a movie." "You're over-analyzing it." "The message could mean lots of things. It could be anti-racist." "This is just a homophobic rant."
Movies have messages.There is a clear pro-gay, anti-Christian values message in this movie. It is not about racism, which I will clearly show.
There is a culture war that those with traditional values may be losing, but giving up should not be an option. Traditional values are superior to those advocated by many in the LGBT community. This is not hate. Societies that embrace traditional values are healthier than those who embrace hedonism.
Christians are familiar with parables with meaning beyond just the story. Characters and actions in the parables of Jesus represent things. Jesus picked the elements of his parables on purpose to get his point across. The writers of Zootopia have done the same thing.
Zootopia is written by a team of eight writers. They include many who worked on Frozen. Frozen has been embraced by the LGBT community for having a heroine who is different, has a secret others don't understand, and isn't interested in men. Many see "Let It Go" as a gay anthem.
One of the story writers on Zootopia is Phil Johnston whose credits include a raunchy comedy named Cedar Rapids, a curious pedigree for a Disney movie. I haven't seen the movie, but I have read that it is sympathetic to gays.
I recognize that the gay acceptance message is not the only message of the movie. There is also the message that you should reach for your goals and not give up. Nevertheless, notice how much of the movie advances the pro-gay agenda:
- The villain in the movie is a sheep. Why pick a sheep? The sheep is an animal associated with Christians. Jesus referred to his followers as his sheep. Jesus is called the lamb of God. The sheep is selected as the villain because in the LGBT world view, it is Christians who are the enemy because they condemn LGBT sexual practices as sinful.
- In the world of Zootopia, predators and their prey now live together in peace. They are the same. They are equal.To believe ugly things about predator behavior based on what was once believed by society is wrong. There is nothing wrong with predators. They won't eat you. This is the message of the modern LGBT community. Past generation may have treated gays as wicked and evil, but they were wrong. Today, everyone should recognize that gays are perfectly normal like everyone else. They won't eat any of your children.
- Judy Hops, the main character bunny, is counselled by her traditionalist parents not to trust foxes, because they are predators by nature. They give her fox spray she can use to keep herself safe from foxes. The message here is that the values of parents are dated and bigoted.
- Nick Wilde, the main character fox, relates a traumatic experience as a young child where he was kicked out of a scout troop for being a predator. This is an blatant swipe at the Boy Scouts for their position on excluding gays. This is not the first time Disney animators have poked fun at the Boy Scouts. In The Emperor's New Groove, Kronk, the party hosting, treat baking, apron wearing, body builder who is in touch with his emotions ends up being a scout leader.
- Why pick the name Nick Wilde for the fox? Oscar Wilde was a famous homosexual writer and was condemned by society for his behavior.
- As the movie progresses, Judy Hops's parents have reformed and are now partners with a fox who they accept as an equal. What occupation is the fox? A baker. Again the allusion to gays as stereotypical bakers.
- The evil sheep has a scheme to make the public believe that predators will attack prey. She makes a poison that turns the innocent predators into vicious attackers. The message here is that gays are normal and it only the Christian's wrong bigoted attacks that can convince the public that there is something wrong with gays. The Christians are wrong. The gays are normal.
- At one point Judy Bunny proclaims that sometimes predators will attack prey because that is just who they are and they can't help themselves. This is hurtful to Nick Wilde to hear something so mean because predators aren't really predators. They are just like prey. Again, there is nothing different about gays. To think so is bigoted.
- One of the characters in the movie mentions that life is not a live-happily-ever-after-musical cartoon. That used to be the message of Disney movies. Boy meets girl and they live happily ever after. Not this time. In the end the once-scared-of-foxes bunny becomes the police partner to the fox.
- The movie ends with an upbeat song entitled "Try Everything." While much of the lyrics has the message that you should not give up and try again if you fail, the choice of words to "try everything" is also, in the context of this movie, an invitation to not limit yourself to a normal lifestyle.
- And what about the very choice of the title of the movie, Zootopia? It is clear allusion to Utopia, an imagined religion free paradise where everyone is equal and everything is perfect. Isn't that what the LGBT community wants?
Welcome to Disney 2016. Would Walt Disney even recognize where it has gone?
Is this for real?? Really??? Are you being serious?
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ReplyDeleteI appreciate this well thought out reply to my essay. If you do some inquiry, you will find out that my believe that Zootopia is a gay parable has also been pointed out by those in the LGBT community who see this as a positive things (Example: http://sdgln.com/entertainment/2016/03/04/disneys-wonderful-zootopia-has-lot-lgbt-subtext#sthash.iyuiaXFH.dpbs)
DeleteI probably would not have noticed many of my observations in the context I have written about if it had not been for the scene were the fox is kicked out of scouts. That was a a pretty clear allusion that predators in the context of this movie meant gay. It was after that that I starting seeing the other things.
One final note, I usually delete comments that included profanity, but I am not doing so in your case, because your points are well thought out and you took time to share your opinion in detail. However, I am hopeful that you could edit out your use of the F-word. I don't think you need vulgar language to support your point. You did quite well without it.
Honestly speaking, this is ridiculous. I'm not saying that your rant is homophobic or anything similar. But based on what you're writing, it's really overstretching it to a breaking point. This is my reason:-
Delete- A sheep is chosen as a villain due to them being "timid" or "shy" which makes it reasonable to think that if they were abused and used like in the movie, they'll turn villainous. Think about it, what other animals that could replace the shy and timid prey animal that is the sheep? A cow?
- When i see predator and prey living together, the obvious thing that pops out is racism. I'm not saying that your take on LGBT message couldn't be interpreted in this context as well. I'm just saying that the LGBT message can only be interpreted if you dig so deep into it and just plastered it on something that is more obvious in this case which is racism.
-Nothing to do with LGBT community in this point. It just shows that Judy Hops' parents are traditionalist (since they are from the farmer's family). That's it.
-Another attempt to dig too deep in details. Boy scouts are not the only group to exclude gays, there are countless more others. So much so, it would take a ridiculous amount of time to think of a group that DOES NOT exclude gays. Especially when the plot wants to show the vulnerable side of Nick Wilde.
-The last name Wilde could also probably be taken as play on word as "wild". Again when you mentioned Oscar Wilde, its kinda overstretching it again. In this generation where social media is evrywhere, Olivia Wilde could also take the place as another famous people. I had to google Oscar Wilde to know who he is and I'm 22. Remember this movie was directed to kids. I dunno about you but i highly doubt kids would know the controversy behind Oscar Wilde or even know his name.
-Well, take it into perspective. Who would work together with a farmer? A businessman would be too successful for a character like that fox. Any other career that could work together with a farmer would be a chef, baker, or a florist if you wanna stretch it. All of which is labelled as gay. There's literally no escape here.
-The sheep scheme could also be viewed in terms of racism. Still trying too hard.
-Refer to the last point
-Nothing LGBT about that
-Again, nothing LGBT about trying evrything unless you're viewing it in what i call as "homophobe goggles"
-Funny thing, Zootopia wasn't going to be the original title according to the creator of the movie. The original title was gonna be Zootropolis. Look it up.
Reading back at what you've written. Those points could've only emerged if the mind of the viewer keeps thinking about LGBT community the whole time while watching the movie. Which is in my opinion is REALLY narrow minded. I've watched it and honestly I see NOTHING of such sorts in the movie. I mean I HAD to find THIS blog to see why are they calling this movie pro-gay. (Edited note: sorry about the profanity, its fine to take it as a positive note in the LGBT community, but the "attack on chirstians" thing just kinda uncalled for)
Honestly speaking, this is ridiculous. I'm not saying that your rant is homophobic or anything similar. But based on what you're writing, it's really overstretching it to a breaking point. This is my reason:-
Delete- A sheep is chosen as a villain due to them being "timid" or "shy" which makes it reasonable to think that if they were abused and used like in the movie, they'll turn villainous. Think about it, what other animals that could replace the shy and timid prey animal that is the sheep? A cow?
- When i see predator and prey living together, the obvious thing that pops out is racism. I'm not saying that your take on LGBT message couldn't be interpreted in this context as well. I'm just saying that the LGBT message can only be interpreted if you dig so deep into it and just plastered it on something that is more obvious in this case which is racism.
-Nothing to do with LGBT community in this point. It just shows that Judy Hops' parents are traditionalist (since they are from the farmer's family). That's it.
-Another attempt to dig too deep in details. Boy scouts are not the only group to exclude gays, there are countless more others. So much so, it would take a ridiculous amount of time to think of a group that DOES NOT exclude gays. Especially when the plot wants to show the vulnerable side of Nick Wilde.
-The last name Wilde could also probably be taken as play on word as "wild". Again when you mentioned Oscar Wilde, its kinda overstretching it again. In this generation where social media is evrywhere, Olivia Wilde could also take the place as another famous people. I had to google Oscar Wilde to know who he is and I'm 22. Remember this movie was directed to kids. I dunno about you but i highly doubt kids would know the controversy behind Oscar Wilde or even know his name.
-Well, take it into perspective. Who would work together with a farmer? A businessman would be too successful for a character like that fox. Any other career that could work together with a farmer would be a chef, baker, or a florist if you wanna stretch it. All of which is labelled as gay. There's literally no escape here.
-The sheep scheme could also be viewed in terms of racism. Still trying too hard.
-Refer to the last point
-Nothing LGBT about that
-Again, nothing LGBT about trying evrything unless you're viewing it in what i call as "homophobe goggles"
-Funny thing, Zootopia wasn't going to be the original title according to the creator of the movie. The original title was gonna be Zootropolis. Look it up.
Reading back at what you've written. Those points could've only emerged if the mind of the viewer keeps thinking about LGBT community the whole time while watching the movie. Which is in my opinion is REALLY narrow minded. I've watched it and honestly I see NOTHING of such sorts in the movie. I mean I HAD to find THIS blog to see why are they calling this movie pro-gay. (Edited note: sorry about the profanity, its fine to take it as a positive note in the LGBT community, but the "attack on chirstians" thing just kinda uncalled for)
We just watched the movie last night and ever since the very beginning, you can spot pro-gay messages there. The sheep on the opening play is wearing the rainbow on its head, clearly an allusion to the gay flag and symbol. Then the cheetah at the front desk... You don't need to be a genious here to notice these messages.
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DeletePeople are blind with their eyes open:(. Only fool can take this lighty. I think that this movie is made for one reason only and this is the attack on Christians. But they made it so clear that i decided to explain this to my children and will think twice about watching Disney movies in the future.
ReplyDeleteI had the same thoughts as you did when I saw the movie, searched the internet, and found this blog with the same opinion as I did. The whole thing is very subtle. Sad to see Disney trying to insert it's political and moral agenda into movies, especially ones for kids.
ReplyDeleteI thought the exact same thing as this review. Even my 14 year ond daughter was aware enough to immediately recgonize it
ReplyDeleteI thought the exact same thing as this review. Even my 14 year ond daughter was aware enough to immediately recgonize it
ReplyDeleteThanks for the support you expressed in your comments.
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ReplyDeletehttp://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-disney-georgia-anti-gay-20160323-story.html.Disney threatens to stop filming in Georgia if anti-gay bill becomes law - of course it is a pro gay film.
ReplyDeleteHi Fiddling Ant!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this review! I have found next to NOTHING about this movie except high praise even from Christian websites. I just watched this movie with my family, my sister and her two kids, and I can safely say I agree with everything you wrote. I didn't pick up on the "Gay" theme, but now that you mentioned it, I could also see that viewpoint as well. My sister and I came to the same conclusions about the theme of the song at the end "Try Everything" which is the satanic mantra for Aleister Crowley and his occultic heritage he has left behind. Also the scene where they went to the Yoga retreat and all the animals were "naked" was very disturbing to me. Of course they are pushing the Hindu/new age agenda as well, and if you want to be free you need to practice these things. blah blah blah.. etc etc. Also I too found it interesting that the sheep were the villains, and did you notice the Lion was also the semi-villain who was the Mayor of Zootopia and went to jail? Who is the Lion, really??? I was just sitting there thinking "Gee, whoever wrote this movie sure does hate Christians, and Christianity. It was blatantly obvious for me. There were some other symbols in the film that pointed to the occult that is so prevalent in Hollywood. If I was ignorant, it was a cute fun movie! Yippi!!! If I was discerning it was disturbing and biased. Nice review! Thank you.
Even the gay community agrees - it's about them!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.sdgln.com/entertainment/2016/03/04/disneys-wonderful-zootopia-has-lot-lgbt-subtext
Thank you for posting this. I only saw a trailer and it had the hairs on my neck standing on end. We won't be watching this one.
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting this. I only saw a trailer and it had the hairs on my neck standing on end. We won't be watching this one.
ReplyDeleteI have a 2-3 questions for you: do you feel that watching Disney movies itself is sinful (and if not what movies do you feel are safe); and what about watching fan art and reading fanfiction of the source materials?
ReplyDeleteI did not claim that watching Disney movies is sinful. My essay's point is that the movie has a pro-gay message. I am not too familiar with fan art or fan fiction, though I remember reading a very interesting article about the phenomena in Time Magazine a few years ago.
DeleteWhat if no one sees what you see? Can they still watch the movie as long as it does not affect them negatively?
ReplyDeleteAll stories have a message.
DeleteSomeone can read George Orwell's Animal Farm and if they are uneducated they would not know it is a story about communist Russia. Uneducated people are also unaware that The Wizard of Oz is a message of late 19th century support for the silver standard.
In communist countries some literature is banned because the state is afraid of messages that criticize the state.
There is a clear pro-gay slant to this movie. The gay community is nearly always portrayed in a positive light in main stream media these days. This bias is a disservice. A more objective, balanced reporting is nearly always missing, since that would result in complaints of homophobia. As with most cultures, there is the good, the bad, and the ugly with the LGBT community. My thoughts on that subject can be read at: http://fiddlingant.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-good-bad-and-ugly-gay-version_29.html
I had the same question after watching the film, "Why a sheep?". Then, I came to this page...
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