PLEASE go see Hoppers in theaters.
It’s delightful. It’s hilarious, charming, has great messages, and just feels so much like a Pixar Renaissance era film!
It’s also quietly woke in a way that will deeply resonate with older viewers who feel helpless and angry about… everything currently going on with the world. Like I’m obsessed with how they were able to subtly slip in a message that goes very much against the expected and tired “meet your moral opponents in the middle”.
It’s so subtle but not at all missable. And it’s so on the nose you might want to scream when you realize what literally happens in the figurative message.
(TEARS THE DUCT TAPE OFF MY MOUTH)
SPOILERS for Hoppers because you really should just go experience this movie blind for yourself.
You don’t understand. This entire movie’s conflict is about the greed of corrupt officials. How even the most pleasant politicians can and do lie, cheat, and steal. How this doesn’t just affect the initial victims, but primes the playing field to very soon go after you. How we all need to stand up together because that’s the only way we can make things change.
But Hoppers doesn’t stop there. It says hey, don’t forget, politicians are people too! Then doesn’t give you time to put up your finger before saying but that doesn’t change the fact that harmful acts needs to be stopped. It quietly says that more local officials (like mayors) tend to buckle under social pressure the easiest, and can indeed be well-meaning while doing despicable things.
It looks you in the eye and says “Your anger is dangerous, and can get innocent people hurt if you aren’t careful. But your anger is legitimate, and you don’t need to silence it, just wield it carefully.”
It tenderly holds your face and says “You’ve been told to be the bigger person, haven’t you? That fighting back means stooping to their level? That you need to meet truly evil ideals in the middle, even when that means simply giving ground to dictators and fascists?”
Then it leans in and whispers “Screw that.”
Sure, Jerry is mostly off the hook (after having his life threatened, which, I’m just sayiiingg), but he’s not the true villain.
Jerry is a mini boss. A foe that can be reasoned with, to a degree (or at least scared). The official close to home, beholden to his constituents in a far more immediate way than those higher up the ladder. Possibly even human, somewhere in there.
No, the true villain, was Titus.
Not just a nepo baby, but a king.
Someone who the hero (Mabel) tried to talk to. To give him a way out, to appeal to his humanity.
Except… he’s not actually human.
And after Mabel did her best to try and find a reason for Titus’ brutality, the wannabe dictator spat in her face and mocked her kindness. “Did you really think that would work?” He asks. Did you really think you could talk to me civilly and just change my mind? That I wouldn’t already be doing this if I weren’t truly evil? Did you really think this could be solved without force?
And Mabel replies “I really wish it had.”
And then promptly begins the short cascade of events that ends in Titus, the rich king attempting to be dictator, being killed.
Eaten, in fact.
But the writers have made sure not to put a spotlight on this. It’s a rather quick scene framed as a gag. But it’s front and center, it’s in your face, and it lingers for several silent seconds under the guise of comedic timing. Which does in fact work, it was freaking hilarious seeing Chekov’s frog.
Hoppers gently pats your back and sympathizes with your plight. It tells you that you’re not alone, that your anger is justified, and that some people can’t be reasoned with. Mabel did what we all need to do–try our best to talk things out peacefully first. But if that doesn’t work, if it’s so serious that countless lives are on the line…
Well. We’re not saying “kill the villain”, but we very much did kill the villain.
Eat the rich, indeed.
Don't get me started on the found family and the young adult and the young adult + much older adult finding a familial-flavored platonic love! ...not quite father-daughter, but something similar that doesn't need solid definition! Romance was NOWHERE TO BE FOUND, which again – disclaimer – romance is fine; it's just so terribly over saturated, ESPECIALLY for female (or femme) protagonists!! I was biting my nails half the movie, expecting the same exhausting “but evil politicians are people too” nonsense, and it just delivers all of that in the span of a few minutes! Like, I just did a sky dive and the parachute came out while giving me a sick high five!! ̈The political message in Hoppers is unapologetically brutal, but done so in the most non-sanitizing empathetic way! It's just genius!!!
