Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003)

Lunatic Tunes-Back in Traction
Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes were classic cartoons back in Hollywood's Golden Age of the '30s and '40s. Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Elmer Fudd blended humor with current events and even opera. "Looney Tunes-Back in Action" is an awful mess of cartoons with live action. Brendan Fraser heroically puts up with it, Steve Martin hams, and Jenna Elfman brings in her ditzy Dharma persona from "Dharma and Greg."

"Looney Tunes-Back in Action" is a comedy without humor. Granted, there's slapstick and visual tricks, but it lacks the humor that gave Looney Tunes their magic in the '40s. The plot (such as it is) is needlessly convoluted. Every single Warner Brothers cartoon character is dragged in. Brendan Fraser&Jenna Elfman wander aimlessly,going from a compound with space aliens to the desert. There are loveable cheesy movies-this isn't one of them. It's an unfunny trainwreck.

Fun but not Looney enough
They're back and they're Looney. But where [[ASIN:0790749858 Space Jam]] surprised everyone with just how fresh and silly Bugs and company still were, "Back In Action" just doesn't get inspiredly silly. My expectations were pretty high for this, and ultimately, unfulfilled.

That isn't to say there aren't some great moments here. Bugs, Daffy and Elmer's chase through the Louvre is brilliant, probably the best set piece in "Back In Action." The others come less from the plot (as much as there is one) than from the insider type jokes. Having Speedy Gonzales complain that he can't get work in these politically correct times is the most pointed and poignant moment here. The exchange between Matthew Lillard (live) and Shaggy with Scooby (animated) is a snort, too.

In fact, the live stars are second only to Porky Pig in Ham Factor. Brendon Fraser mugs for the camera as DJ Drake, a hapless stuntman whose best gig was doing stunts "in those Mummy movies." When it turns out his father, an action movie hero, turns out to be an actual spy, DJ and Daffy have to hit the road to rescue mankind and stop ACME from taking over the world. Both Timothy Dalton (channeling his 007 character to the smarmiest degree) and Steve Martin (doing an absurd Dr Strangelove) are so far over the top that they should have parachutes. Wrestler Bill Goldberg shows up as a baddy. Heather Locklear shows up as a Spy/Vegas Showgirl. (Which leads to another great set piece - the Dancing Yosemite Sams.) Joan Cusak scene steals as "Mother" in Area 52; not the Area 51 nonsense. Michael Jordan flashes back from "Space Jam" and Peter Graves makes a mission statement.

But the jokes are often in the background (like the board names of ACME VP's for Bad Ideas, Stating the Obvious, Nitpicking, Unfairly Promoted, Rhetorical Questions, Never Learning, Child Labor, Climbing to the Top) and the homages to past silliness. It adds up to plenty of fun moments without much of a movie to hang them on. Lest you think I hated "Back In Action," I really didn't. Joe Dante did a super job of catching the spirit of the old Looney Tunes, but did so without the essence. I enjoyed watching the DVD...but unlike "Space Jam," it didn't make me want to run back and watch the old cartoons again. It will please the kiddies for repeats, but probably not the adults.

PS: The new Roadrunner cartoon as a bonus alone is worth getting this DVD.

Fun but not Looney enough
They're back and they're Looney. But where [[ASIN:0790749858 Space Jam]] surprised everyone with just how fresh and silly Bugs and company still were, "Back In Action" just doesn't get inspiredly silly. My expectations were pretty high for this, and ultimately, unfulfilled.

That isn't to say there aren't some great moments here. Bugs, Daffy and Elmer's chase through the Louvre is brilliant, probably the best set piece in "Back In Action." The others come less from the plot (as much as there is one) than from the insider type jokes. Having Speedy Gonzales complain that he can't get work in these politically correct times is the most pointed and poignant moment here. The exchange between Matthew Lillard (live) and Shaggy with Scooby (animated) is a snort, too.

In fact, the live stars are second only to Porky Pig in Ham Factor. Brendon Fraser mugs for the camera as DJ Drake, a hapless stuntman whose best gig was doing stunts "in those Mummy movies." When it turns out his father, an action movie hero, turns out to be an actual spy, DJ and Daffy have to hit the road to rescue mankind and stop ACME from taking over the world. Both Timothy Dalton (channeling his 007 character to the smarmiest degree) and Steve Martin (doing an absurd Dr Strangelove) are so far over the top that they should have parachutes. Wrestler Bill Goldberg shows up as a baddy. Heather Locklear shows up as a Spy/Vegas Showgirl. (Which leads to another great set piece - the Dancing Yosemite Sams.) Joan Cusak scene steals as "Mother" in Area 52; not the Area 51 nonsense. Michael Jordan flashes back from "Space Jam" and Peter Graves makes a mission statement.

But the jokes are often in the background (like the board names of ACME VP's for Bad Ideas, Stating the Obvious, Nitpicking, Unfairly Promoted, Rhetorical Questions, Never Learning, Child Labor, Climbing to the Top) and the homages to past silliness. It adds up to plenty of fun moments without much of a movie to hang them on. Lest you think I hated "Back In Action," I really didn't. Joe Dante did a super job of catching the spirit of the old Looney Tunes, but did so without the essence. I enjoyed watching the DVD...but unlike "Space Jam," it didn't make me want to run back and watch the old cartoons again. It will please the kiddies for repeats, but probably not the adults.

PS: The new Roadrunner cartoon as a bonus alone is worth getting this DVD.