Cast: Brendan Fraser, Jenna Elfman, Steve Martin, Timothy Dalton, Heather Locklear, Joan Cusack, voices of Joe Alaskey, Jeff Glenn Bennett , Billy West, Eric Goldberg
Director: Joe Dante
Producers: Allison Abbate, Chris De Faria, Bernie Goldmann, Joel Simon, Paula Weinstein
Screenplay: Larry Doyle
Cinematography: Dean Cundey
Music: Jerry Goldsmith
U.S. Distributor: Warner Brothers
Looney Tunes: Back in Action is so jam-packed with self-referential humor, pop culture cameos, and nods to some of the greatest moments in animation, that it's almost impossible not to like it. It's a breezy, fun-filled romp that owes as much of its success to nostalgia as it does to the cutting-edge computer animation that brings human actors and animated creatures together. With one bold stroke, director Joe Dante has eviscerated the memory of the 1996 Michael Jordan worship-fest, Space Jam, replacing it with something more worthy of the likes of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck.
Nearly the entire roster of Warner Brothers cartoon characters is on hand. Of course, the starring roles belong to Bugs and Daffy, but they are given able support by the likes of Wiley Coyote, Sylvester, Porky Pig, Tweety Bird, Marvin the Martian, Speedy Gonzalez, Yosemite Sam, and Elmer Fudd. Then there are the cameos, which include Shaggy and Scooby Doo, Roadrunner, Robbie the Robot, and a couple of Daleks from Doctor Who. Everyone gets his or her moments, most of which are reminiscent of what we remember from their golden age.
The movie has a plot, although it's best not to spend too much time thinking about it. It's clunky and uninteresting, and occasionally gets in the way of simply enjoying the clever bits. This is one of those times when it's better not to see the forest for the trees. Look instead at the leaves. At any rate, the chairman of Acme Corporation (played by Steve Martin doing an impersonation of Dr. Evil crossed with Arte Johnson) has a plan to take over the world by using a magical blue diamond that will turn human beings into monkeys. After getting superspy Damian Drake (played by ex-007 Timothy Dalton) out of the way, the chairman thinks everything is going his way, until Drake's son, DJ (Brendan Fraser), starts looking for his dad. He is aided in his quest by Kate (Jenna Elfman), a Warner Brothers executive, and a gaggle of Looney Tunes characters, including Bugs and Daffy. The chairman is not without his own animated henchmen, however.
As usual, Dante includes a lot of semi-subversive stuff in the movie – the ridiculing of product placements, Fraser mocking his own reputation, 007 being beaten by perennial loser Wiley Coyote (sort of), the cartoon Shaggy ripping his real-life counterpart (Matthew Lillard), and Speedy Gonzalez moaning about the encroachment of Political Correctness on cartoon characters. There's also tons of stuff to see in the background – puns, jokes, pop references, etc. DVD watchers will love going through this film frame-by-frame. There's a treasure trove of things to uncover.
The film has its share of inspired moments, the most obvious of which occur during a sequence in which Elmer Fudd chases Bugs and Daffy through the Louvre. The trio ends up running through paintings by Dali ("Persistence of Memory"), Seurat ("La Grande Jatte"), and Munch ("The Scream"), and being appropriately transformed as they enter each new landscape. For kids who aren't up on art, there's a scene that pays homage to Star Wars, complete with Bugs taking a crash course on the art of lightsaber dueling by reading The Force for Dummies.
Needless to say, the film's appeal is universal, much as the appeal of the Looney Tunes characters is universal. 7-year old kids will be laughing at the same things that amuse their older siblings, parents, and grandparents. The movie works on a lot of different levels. The older you are, the more satire you'll see in Looney Tunes: Back in Action, but the picture offers plenty of laughs for viewers of all ages. Who can fail to laugh when Roadrunner once again gets the best of his long-time nemesis? Sure, the human actors may all be stiff as boards and appear incredibly uncomfortable to be acting with animated characters, but we're not there to watch Brendan Fraser or Jenna Elfman. We're there for Bugs, Daffy, and company, and they do not disappoint.
© 2003 James Berardinelli