Zootopia 2 3D Movie Review

November 27, 2025 by Jacob Scarberry in zootopia 2, zootopia 2 3d, zootopia 2 3-D, zootopia, Disney , Disney, 2025, 3-D Cinema, 3-D Films, 3-D Movies, 3D Movies, 3D films, 3D or 2D, 3D Worth It, animated movies, zootopia 2 3d review

Zootopia 2 3D Movie Review

Written By: Jacob Scarberry

3D

Stunning. Breath-taking. All the positive adjectives — I can bear-ly put into words how fantastic this 3D presentation was for Zootopia 2. Honestly, I couldn’t even think of what to say at first, because it’s that good.

The depth in Zootopia 2 is incredible — wide, clean, and consistently layered. There are constant pop-outs, including one tranquilizer dart in slow motion that had me literally duck for cover. Cityscapes stretch endlessly, the rainforest district feels almost tactile, and the snow regions look so good they practically made me feel cold. Action scenes are staged with clarity and purpose, with snouts, tails, tools, and debris regularly extending toward the audience.

Zootopia 2’s 3D presentation had zero ghosting, no dimming, and no artifact issues whatsoever — just bright, clean, reference-quality 3D visuals. You can tell the filmmakers planned for the format from the beginning, and the result is Disney’s strongest 3D effort in years.

Go see Zootopia 2 in 3D — you will not regret it!

Final 3D Verdict: 10/10 And Editor’s Choice Award

Movie

Nine years ago, with Zootopia, we got an amazing animated film about bias and racial stigma disguised as a buddy-cop comedy. Now we have Zootopia 2, a solid animated buddy-cop comedy with twice the puns, twice the pop-culture references, and far less emphasis on sociopolitical commentary — maybe a little too light for the times we live in. While it’s fun, Zootopia: The “Squeak-quel” isn’t exactly the sequel I was hoping for.

The plot of Zootopia 2 takes place one week after the duo solved a major conspiracy, with Officers Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) now rookie partners who immediately overstep Chief Bogo’s (Idris Elba, in a glorified cameo) orders. Their mistake causes major destruction and lands them in mandatory therapy for mismatched partners or else be split up. Naturally, they ignore the warnings and jump into a new case: a reptile land-rights conspiracy tied to a century-old murder that drove an entire species into hiding. The duo goes on the run to protect a misunderstood population on the brink of extinction.

Do you like animals? Do you like puns? Do you like both glued together? Because Zootopia 2 has them by the bushel. Some puns land well, others… well, “Nitrous Oinkside” exists. The film also packs in a surprising number of pop-culture references, including nods to R-rated horror movies that’ll fly right over kids’ heads — not always as clever as the movie thinks.

What works, though, are the characters and their chemistry. Bateman and Goodwin still have excellent rapport, and whenever Zootopia 2 focuses on the inner workings of their partnership, it’s touching, genuine, and funny. The voice cast is strong across the board — Fortune Feimster’s conspiracy-podcast host Nibbles is a standout, and Ke Huy Quan is delightful as Gary De’Snake. Hopefully both return.

The visual and technical aspects of Zootopia 2 are outstanding. Disney Animation delivers gorgeous work: expressive faces, fluid body movements, beautiful weather effects, and stellar rendering of physical materials (water, sand, dust, etc.) I also appreciated that the film credits the entire animation studio, not just department heads. Michael Giacchino’s score is charming, though some cues reminded me a bit of The Bad Guys. Sound mixing and editing are top-notch and deserve a Dolby Atmos or DTS:X setup — sadly, my theater only had 7.1.

Besides the uneven puns, the heavy-handed references, and a third act that drags long enough to make you check your watch, Zootopia 2 is a delightful film. It’s not as good as the original, but it is entertaining, visually excellent, and full of heart. The movie could have leaned harder into deeper societal themes — racism, bias, and the reptile community’s oppression — but the character work is strong enough to make it worth your while.

Final Movie Verdict: 7/10

Check out our review of the original Zootopia movie via the link below:

https://www.3dor2d.com/reviews/zootopia

Official Website:

https://movies.disney.com/zootopia-2

Tron Ares 3D Movie Review

October 10, 2025 by adolph vega in 3-D Cinema, 3-D Films, 3-D Movies, 3D or 2D, 2025, Tron Ares, Tron

Tron Ares 3D Movie Review

Movie Review by Jacob Scarberry

3D

Overall the 3D aspect of Tron Ares is pretty dang good. The film has a distinct unique art style that in theory works well for the 3-D format. The film looks its best in 3-D when in the world(s) of Tron. At times the grid lines visually pop in 3D, with incredible depth and some pop-outs (The scenes are very brief). Moving into the “real” world, the color palette tends to get desaturated quite a bit, dulling the colors, and dulling the 3D quite a bit, with only the primary colors (namely red) feeling punchy and adding to the 3D visual experience. My primary complaint is the absence of significant pop-outs (it has some, but not nearly enough).. The "de-rezzed" NPC remnants moving towards the viewer, a few laser gun barrels, and the power discs moving in from the projector to the actors - these moments are when the 3d excels. Sadly a few scenes of ghosting at the edges of the picture occurred as I watched the film (very brief). Overall, I had high expectations for Tron Ares, anticipating a visual feast of 3D effects. However, I was disappointed to find that the 3D elements were limited and not as prominent as I had hoped.

Final 3D Score: 7/10

Movie

I have been aware of the Tron films for decades now, from seeing the old-school Disney VHS clamshell on the shelves at Blockbuster Video, to seeing the various toys and video games out there, and not to mention the legendary Tron Guy meme on the olden days of the Internet. Tron, a cult favorite for over four decades, finally captured my attention this past week. I meticulously prepared for this film by watching the previous two films in series. Sadly that was a waste of time as Tron Ares is low-key soft reboot of the film series. This film barely acknowledging Tron: Legacy as all except for a few passing references.

The plot of Tron Ares is that the character of Ares, a self-aware program, is sent to retrieve the permanence code from old floppy discs. The code is crucial for bringing digital constructs into the real world. Will this code go into the wrong hands? You will need to watch the movie to find out.

Yeah, I gotta admit, I really don't like the Tron movies. The entire film franchise is guilty of having poor world building, muddled narratives, underbaked motifs, and motivations. I fail to see why the films are considered cult classics, besides the neon-hued set designs and a terrific Daft Punk score for Legacy. I mean, how did a company that went from making arcade games go on to become a tech giant, making way too advanced software for its time and a laser that, quite frankly, was always in an unsafe location, with no protective barrier between the computer and laser? Major OSHA violation there, but there are light (and I mean light) touches on religion, software gone astray, and AI possibly being too powerful in the wrong hands, that are fumbled in the entire trilogy.

I’m sorry but the Tron film series just fall flat (including Ares). Tron Ares has performances that are mediocre, direction feels generic, and the screenplay is super predictable. The only real positives are the terrific visuals (except for some scenes in the real world that feel washed out with a lack of color and contrast) and the amazing Nine Inch Nails soundtrack. Everything else is just the biggest, fattest mid-movie Disney could muster after 15 years in between sequels and 40 years of a franchise that should never have been. It's truly amazing how a trilogy of films could be so damn boring yet achieve a sizable fandom. In the words of the popular meme from the decade-old animated film The Lorax, "Let it die! Let it die! Let it die!" and this time for good.

Final Movie Score: 5/10

Learn more about how we rate 3D content via the link below:

https://www.3dor2d.com/3d-or-2d-ratingssystem/

https://movies.disney.com/tron-ares

Disney's Elio 3D Movie Review

June 20, 2025 by adolph vega in 3-D Cinema, 3-D Films, 3-D Movies, 3D or 2D, Elio, Disney Elio, 2025, 3D films, 3d Movie, 3D Movies, Disney, Disney , animated movies, 3D Or 2D Elio, 3D Worth It

Disney's Elio 3D Movie Review

By Adolph Vega

3D

The 3D in Elio is solid overall, and some moments genuinely wow you, but ultimately it’s hampered by Disney’s reluctancy and ghosting. Many of the space scenes look fantastic in stereoscopic 3d — the layering, the particle effects, the alien architecture — all rich with depth and visual candy. The movie features numerous enjoyable 3D moments, including pop-out scenes and shallow environments that effectively immerse the audience (diorama effect) into the scenes.

That being said Elio is a science fiction movie, but it’s absolutely haunted by 3-D ghosting. Sadly this issue is not just in one or two spots — it’s frequent and frustrating. You’ll go from an impressive scene that looks near-perfect to a blurry double-vision mess that ruins the moment in the next scene. Honestly, Elio has bipolar 3D — and that’s not a reference to the 3D glasses. It swings between fantastic and awful, and frustratingly averages out to be fine overall… when it should’ve been stellar. It’s a shame, because when Elio leans into the 3D format, it really excels. I do not believe this issue with the theatre’s presentation. The 3D trailers before this movie were 100% fine. Regrettably, I believe Disney itself is hindering the 3D potential of its animated films. There’s one scene with a character aiming a gun right at the screen — a perfect pop-out moment — but the gun that’s popping out of the screen is blurred. Why?! It just seems as if Disney deliberately instructed the 3D team to refrain from fully embracing the format. I’m sorry to state this, but if this were a DreamWorks animation film, the 3D probably would’ve been better implemented, and it would probably have received a much more positive review. Perhaps Disney is hesitant to fully commit to stereoscopic animation, perhaps due to concerns about potentially harming children’s eyes. While Disney animated films generally have good 3D visuals, they don’t seem to be fully exploring the potential of 3D. This is particularly disheartening for me, a die-hard 3D enthusiast, as I can envision a version of this movie that would be breathtaking in 3D.

Elio also has many darkly lit scenes, and those are always an issue with 3D. Elio’s 3D is orbiting greatness. Sometimes it’s closer, and sometimes it’s farther away, but it never quite lands where it should be. Elio should have been a 3D showcase, but sadly it’s a disappointment. With a heavy heart, overall I have to give Elio 3D aspect only a slight recommendation.

Final 3D Score: 6/10

Movie

Disney has an uneven record with sci-fi, and Elio unfortunately keeps that streak going.

The story centers on Elio, a lonely boy who dreams of being abducted by aliens — and then actually gets abducted. The aliens mistakenly believe he is the leader of Earth, which (of course) sets off a string cosmic misadventures. It has that rewritten-a-few-too-many-times feel — probably because it was. I accurately predicted a solid 60% of the movie’s plot points. The characters are fairly one-dimensional, and simplistic. I thought the huge conflict in this movie was dumb and poorly conceived. Overall it feels like a short film that got stretched into a feature-length runtime.

This movie provided me with a roller coaster of feelings and tones. There are laughs, but it’s not fully a comedy. One horror-inspired sequence was genuinely hilarious and had me laughing out loud. The movie has heart and even some real emotional swings, but not all of it feels earned. I don’t care enough about these characters to shed a tear, even though the movie is trying to make me (and the audience) cry. Is the movie an adventure movie? Yes. Is it an emotional journey of self-discovery? Yes. Is it silly? Yes. Is it serious? Yes. Elio is the perfect example of a jack-of-all-trades and master of none.

I do respect that the space alien designs steer away from the usual “different face ridges or human with blue colored skin” formula. The aliens have truly bizarre, non-humanoid, non-bipedal designs that look not of this world, but they are also so alien that it’s hard to connect with them. As a lifelong sci-fi fan, I wanted to love that aspect more than I actually did.

The film has two standout cameos that fans of sci-fi will absolutely recognize. I won’t spoil them here, but they fit the movie perfectly— a little too perfectly — like the film was elbowing you and saying, “You see what we did there?” Yet, I had a huge grin on my face. There are also clever nods to classic sci-fi films, which were genuinely fun to find. Unlike the cameos, the sci-fi references in the movie are very subtle. If you don’t know the reference, it’s perfectly fine.

Visually, the animation is colorful, but the art style is forgettable — generic, even. It has the same visual design as Disney’s Strange World, and honestly feels like Pixar / Disney is just recycling assets at this point. It’s not uncommon for Disney to revisit its classic animated films, such as the original Snow White and Robin Hood movies. This video showcases that aspect perfectly, and I imagine in the future someone will do a similar video with Strange World and Elio. It’s still disappointing and robs Elio of a fresh distinct look.

Before I conclude this review, I must mention that this movie includes both a mid-credit and post-credit scenes.

Mid-credit scene:
A basic 5-second moment. The scene is a cute continuation of the story, but it’s not particularly special.
Post-credit scene:
A teaser for an upcoming Pixar animated lizard movie. This ‘trailer’ is skippable and pointless. Don’t waste your time waiting for this scene - it’s truly not worth it.

While Elio does contain a few enjoyable moments, it’s not a movie that people are likely to revisit in the future. I love sci-fi, and I couldn’t love this uneven movie. The premise of Elio is cute, but the execution is entirely derivative.

Final Movie Score: 6/10

Learn more about how we rate 3D content via the link below:

https://www.3dor2d.com/3d-or-2d-ratingssystem/

Official Website :

https://movies.disney.com/elio