Movie Thoughts: Hoppers (2026)

• Released: March 6th, 2026
• Directed by: Daniel Chong
• Running time: 1h 44min
• Rating 4/5

Synopsis

A girl named Mabel mentally hops into a robot beaver in order to save a piece of nature from being destroyed by a greedy businessman building a road.

My Thoughts

I originally rated this 3.5/5 stars, but upon closer inspection it's worth a 4. I did really like it. The more I think about it, the more I think "Yes, that was a good movie.". So it gets that extra 0.5 stars.
 

And yes, this is genuinely a good film. I love how it manages to combine fun and wacky situations with some genuine heart and a powerful message about hope, love for nature, and seeing the best in others. 

I did, based on the trailers, fear that this movie might be leaning a bit too much into the hyper comedy angle, and yes, it kinda does, but the comedy in this was also legit funny and sometimes it gets so balls-to-the-wall insane that it's just great.

But the movie also has a genuine heart. I really cared about Mabel's plight to save this little piece of nature she takes comfort in. As someone who is also passionate about nature, I relate a lot. But it's not just that. The heart in this movie is just in its right place and it also has some pretty well-written and likable character relationships, especially the one between Mabel and her beaver friend/mentor King George. Also, surprisingly the relationship between Mabel and the initial villain, the businessman Gary, also ends up ending being quite engaging and even heartfelt. Obviously they start out disliking each other, but later on Mabel genuinely tries to help them and eventually they do see eye to eye and work on a solution for their problem. So that's good stuff. I appreciate that they made Gary an actual character and not just a "greedy businessman" stereotype we see so often in these types of movies.

The animation and characters and design of the environments was also genuinely great. Pixar movies are usually a visual treat, but this has to be visually one of my favorite movies they've done in recent years. 

Just overall a great movie. It's funny, it's heartfelt, it's visually appealing, it's got a good story and morals. Watch this one.