Boasting a perfect voice cast led by Ginnifer Goodwin as a righteous* rural rabbit who becomes the first rabbit police recruit in the city of Zootopia, the 3-D film combines wit with a gentle and timely message of inclusivity*.

    As the Zootopia Police Department’s only bunny officer, idealistic Judy Hopps (Goodwin) discovers that breaking barriers* can be an uphill climb, especially when the other cops in the force are mainly of the more imposing* elephant/rhino/hippo type.

    Although Judy can’t wait to collar her first perp*, Bogo (Idris Elba), Precinct* 1’s Cape buffalo police chief, has other plans, assigning her to parking duty, where she proves her worth by writing 200 tickets before noon on her first day.

    But when a number of Zootopia’s residents* go missing, Bogo gives Judy the green light to do some big time police work and she finds herself partnering up with Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman), a sly* fox, in a 48-hour bid to solve the case.

    Directed by Byron Howard (“Tangled,” “Bolt”) and Rich Moore (“Wreck-It Ralph”), along with co-director Jared Bush, who shares screenplay credit with Phil Johnston, the film is full of sharply observed satire* wrapped up in life lessons that never feel preachy*.

    While Goodwin and Bateman are a voice-casting dream team come true, they’re joined by a nice supporting ensemble that also includes J.K. Simmons, Tommy Chong, Octavia Spencer and Shakira as a gazelle pop star who performs the film’s original song, “Try Everything.”

    Also making their lines count are Jenny Slate as a not-so-sheepish sheep who serves as Zootopia’s assistant mayor and Maurice LaMarsh as an arctic shrew* version of “Godfather” named Mr. Big.

    Visually, the Zootopia canvas pops — with or without the 3-D glasses — thanks to a lively color palette and clever architectural scales offered by production designer David Goetz.

    (SD-Agencies)