The Day the Earth Blew up: A Looney Toons Movie

Grade: B

The Day the Earth Blew up: A Looney Toons Movie is a movie of the Looney Tunes Cartoons, the Max show that was a throwback to old timey Looney Tunes cartoons. It was originally intended to air on Max, but Warner Discovery's new head David Zaslav had it canned with several other films. (Children's films with classic Looney Tunes and Hannah Barbara characters particularly got the axe because Warner's been having trouble hitting that children's market). However, this movie managed to escape oblivion when a separate distributor bought it. In this movie, Daffy Duck and Porky Pig (both voiced by voice actor Eric Bauza) try to stop an alien invasion.

This is kind of like the Jetsons Movie back in the day in that it is not a perfect movie, but still pretty watchable and looks great. The plotting on this can be a little odd, with some stuff happening too quick or characters and plot points delivered at odd parts. It's partly funny. There are some truly great bits in here, but a lot of jokes are also just okay. Also, there are a few "modern" bits that don't mesh well with the more retro feel of the movie.

However, the story itself is a lot stronger than the jokes. It makes for a wild ride and has sort of an old school 90's feel to it. The alien aspect has a sorta of quasi-spooky, but isn't really scary atmosphere that can bring kids and adults a bit of excitement.

The brother-like relationship between the carefree Daffy and the cautious Porky (they were raised together in this story) makes for relatable protagonists. Funny thing is, I wouldn’t even say their personalities are as strongly written as some other incarnations, but it’s that bond that makes them compelling. The duo have your average “two-polar opposites-have-their-friendship-threatened-by-their-differences” storyline, but the movie has it developed mostly naturally. DtEBu shows their differences and building tension in smaller moments without having to yell the point of the story at you.

If you're a fan of talkative, self-centered Daffy, you won't find him here. Since this is a retro film, DtEBu went with old-school wacky Daffy. Some may not want this, but in fairness, some works, like The Looney Tunes Show, can go TOO far with his selfishness. I like friendly, well-meaning Daffy here. (BTW, Bauza is doing a great job as the duck).

The third main character of this is Petunia Pig (voice actress Candi Milo). I like what they did with her character. She's always been a bit of a blank slate, since her personality has always simply been "Porky's girlfriend," so the writers had some free room to work. In this, she's an eccentric and enthusiastic flavor scientist at a gum factory. You weirdly become invested in her obsession with the next flavor. (And yes, Daffy, Porky, and Petunia are the only Looney Tunes characters in this. This might disappoint some, but it keeps the story focused.)

The BIGGEST reason to watch this is the 2D animation. It really feels old school. It is so fluid with characters rarely being stagnant. The character designs in general work really well. Humans are all distinct and exaggerated without being too simple-looking. (Keep an eye out for Farmer Jim (voice actor Fred Tatasciore), the man who raised Porky and Daffy, who creatively shifts between being done in still background art and being SUPER fluid). Backgrounds are vibrant and colorful. Not loving Porky's light yellow gloves here. The color just doesn't blend well with anything else.

Recommended. Kids will probably like this and the humor more and not care too much about weaker plot elements. Adults will like the parts that do work and the fantastic animation.

Space Jam: a New Legacy

7/10

In this sequel to 1996's Space Jam, which has developed a loyal fan base over the years, basketball player LeBron James is trapped in the WarnerMedia Serververse (home to all WB IP), by a vengeful computer program Al G. Rhythm (get it?!) (played by Don Cheadle). He's also kidnapped James' son (his movie son, not real son) (played by Cedric Joe) and won't let them leave unless LeBron beats Rhythm's team at basketball. The athlete ends up teaming up with the Looney Tunes in order to save the day.

First off, LeBron is not a great actor. Michael Jordan in the original wasn't a great one either, but he fared better than LeBron. 'Course, I think the first film knew how to play better to the lead's strengths. This film feels more story heavy and Lebron is required to do a lot more. The movie have him at times to be a hard father who wants different things than his son and having LeBron be a bit of a jerk, albeit unintended, and do more serious stuff isn't a thing he can pull off. That having been said, the guy is definitely game for everything and doing his best and doesn't seem disinterested or like he's coasting. LeBron does better with the non-exposition scenes when he gets to be happy or mad. The star/Toon dynamic is also different. Jordan was more the cool mentor type who was weirdly chill when he met Bugs, LeBron's more likely to be a part of the lunacy and is legitimately thrilled to meet the rabbit (voiced by Jeff Bergman).

Cheadle on the other hand, is given some very basic bad guy dialogue with his material, but he's doing his best with what he's got here.

SJaNL is a lot like the original in that it's not perfect, but there's a lot to like about it. There are several clever or funny moments throughout this. The movie doesn't take itself too seriously and you shouldn't either. I appreciate that New Legacy tackles the same basic story as Space Jam but manages to do it in a different enough way, switching from an alien threat to computer programs and giving more of a video game theme to how the basketball game is played. Plus, the stakes feel a little bigger here than in the original. The father/son gap is predictable but is handled pretty well, and the script does a good job of explaining why LeBron has this tough style of parenting at the beginning. You can't get behind him, but you understand where he's coming from. 

I know a lot of people are complaining about how much WB product is jammed into this and that this feels like an advertisement for the company. Personally, I'm not hating it. I won't deny that except for Bugs, the plot and other properties don't give the Looney Tunes enough time to shine with such characters as the Tazmanian Devil (Fred Tatasciore), Elmer Fudd (Eric Bauza) and Lola Bunny (Zendaya) barely getting anything to do. But, the various worlds and characters in this movie add a bit of fun to the proceedings and it's fun to see LeBron and the Toons interact with it all. There are a surprising amount of references for just the adults and that'll be fun for older audiences. However, expect kids to ask questions about properties that they don't know about. There are a a few selections in this that one can argue don't fit in a kids' movie (like Game of Thrones and a background cameo of the Droogs from Clockwork Orange). Also, they really try to squeeze in EVERY property WB owns, resulting in references that  your kids won't get, such as background appearances by the kid from The Bad Seed and Baby Jane.       

I think I liked The Monstars, the rival team from the first Space Jam, a little more than this films' team The Goon Squad. (The Monstars had more of a traditional Looney Tunes look and feel to them). That having been said, I liked the new guys. It took me a moment to warm up The Goon Squad 'cause their design was a different style than the Toons, but at the end of the day, credit has to be given to giving each character a distinct look and powers.

I think I preferred the original's use of cel animation and greater shadow work, which resulted in a more theatrical feel. Still, the animators definitely did a lot of work here, resulting in a slick, shiny look. For the 2D animation, I mean. The ads have been stressing the Toons' new 3D designs, which also look good, but they don't appear immediately. And that's the neat thing about this movie: it's mix of styles and media. You'll see LeBron switch between cartoon and live-action based on what world he's in. (By the way, I particularly liked the design of his cartoon version.) There is one particular world featuring Lola that particularly feels visually unique and really well animated. Going back to what I was saying about liking what they do differently between movies, I liked what they did with the basketball court here. It feels very different from the traditional indoor court of the first film and has a grander scale when it comes to the audience.

I think I liked the first film better, because it was simpler in it's story and more emphasis was put on the Looney Tunes, but I did have fun with this. Imperfect, but the highs are definitely highs. You're children will probably love this.