Looney Tunes: Back in Action  (2003)

Starring Brendan Fraser, Jenna Elfman, Steve Martin

Director: Joe Dante

Rating: PG

Distributor: Warner Home Video

Release Date: March 2, 2004
Review posted: March 9, 2004

Spoilers: Minor

Reviewed by Dennis Landmann

"Sell all my Warner Brothers stock. I have an inside tip that Bugs Bunny's about to die." - Daffy Duck

SYNOPSIS

The fate of the human race is in the hands of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, teaming to wreck comic mayhem in an adventure co-starring a security guard (Fraser) and a studio executive (Elfman). Join the Tunesters as they try to obtain the powerful Blue Monkey gem and stop the evil Acme Corp.'s grab for worldwide domination.

CRITIQUE

The interaction between the live actors and the cartoon characters is amazing, and it makes Looney Tunes: Back in Action almost a visual wonder. The technology first appeared in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, directed by Robert Zemeckies, and was applied with great success. Warner's previous Looney Tunes film, Space Jam, worked with the same platform of bringing together people and toons, but ultimately the story was a bit lackluster, although it entertained for a while. Warner's new, and perhaps last film featuring the Looney Tunes characters, based on terrible box office receipts (only $20 mill for the $80 mill production), is, of course, Back in Action.

In the film, Daffy Duck has a fallout with the two Warner brothers over his portrayal in the latest buddy comedy co-starring Bugs Bunny. Eventually, the studio's executive of comedy, Kate Houghton, carries out her order to fire Daffy. Daffy is ordered to leave the premises, but escapes, sending security guard DJ Drake on a hot pursuit. They both cause so much destruction that they're literally thrown out of the Warner gate. Now unemployed, DJ goes home. He receives a last-minute transmission from his father Damian Drake (Timothy Dalton), an undercover spy working against Acme Corp's evil Chairman (Martin) to obtain the powerful Blue Monkey stone, a device that will transform humans into monkeys; the ultimate tool for world domination, wouldn't you say?

So it's up to DJ and Daffy to get the stone, and the mission starts in Las Vegas, detours in the Nevada desert, heads for Paris, and eventually to the African jungle. But before any of that, Kate gets only a few days to find the missing Daffy - it turns out the studio needs him back - before she gets fired herself. She teams up with Bugs and eventually meets DJ and Daffy in a chance meeting on a popular Vegas street. Meanwhile, the evil Acme Chairman tries to do everything he can to stop, thwart, and prevent the guys from getting the Blue Monkey. In fact, he enlists the help of various toon characters, such as Yosemite Sam, Wile E. Coyote, and the Tasmanian Devil (voiced by Frazer himself). And then all sorts of action ensues. That's the film's plot right here, which is not all that bad in the beginning. As the story progresses, things become more silly and even predictable, but the various cameos by the toons keeps the entertainment value in check, mostly.

Looney Tunes: Back in Action looks incredible and sounds incredible, but by the middle of the second act the film slows down and doesn't deliver as much quality as that from the first act. If the story seems somewhat silly, with the whole Blue Monkey stone and the evil Acme Corp., that was to be expected. The acting is good, both Fraser and Elfman make good contributions to their characters, although Steve Martin's performance as the Acme Chairman is one big pile of disappointing awkwardness. Whether that assessment makes sense to you or not, his performance is the weakest thing about Back in Action. Martin is always unfunny and he comes off embarrassingly, not to mention the character is crap to begin with. Aside from that, Back in Action is fun whenever Bugs and Daffy have one of their disagreements or signature moments; I thought the whole museum chase was great. They also share good chemistry among themselves and with Fraser.

After said museum chase, DJ chases wrester Bill Goldberg's character (an Acme henchman) on top of Paris' Eiffel Tower to save Kate from abduction. Well, when the scene gets to the helicopter escape part, I began to wonder just what the purpose of the scene was; it did nothing but to serve up an impossible action sequence. That scene and a few others just didn't work out for me, leaving me with a divided impression. Looney Tunes: Back in Action works on several levels, mainly providing viewers with some fun-filled action scenes and a few memorable one-liners. Yet the script is flawed and some scenes are downright pointless. Surprisingly, the film's pacing is good and the animated sections in the film looked great. In fact, the space battle at the near end of the film with Bugs and Daffy versus Marvin the Martian is fun to watch as it features a few funny gags with the characters' ships going head-to-head, or bumper-to-bumper.

So, without making any further statements that will repeat my thoughts about the film, let me say Looney Tunes: Back in Action should make for a fun rental. I'm hard-pressed to actually recommend it, so rent the DVD at some point.

THE VIDEO

Warner Bros. presents Looney Tunes in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. Colors are bright and pristine, not to mention well-saturated. Detail is clear, and sharpness looks quite nice. The print image is in good condition without any noticeable scratches or marks. There are no problems with grain or compression artifacts. Dark tones and black levels are deep and consistent. Overall, a very nice effort by Warner; sweet video quality.

THE AUDIO

Warner Bros. presents Looney Tunes in English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The many music cues in Jerry Goldsmith's score come across as lively and loud in this presentation. Surrounds are active, as are the front speakers that emit dialogue in clear and positive quality. Dialogue remains easy to understand, and the rear speakers do a very fine job with the sound effects. In the end this is a perfect presentation for a film like this. French and Spanish dub tracks are available.

THE EXTRAS

Apparently, the new Looney Tunes short Whizzard of Ow is the main attraction of the extras, but I don't think so. The cartoon, starring Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner in another battle, is fun in a few spots but not one of the better ones around. Actually, the special features menu begins with the 8-minute Behind the Tunes featurette, hosted by Bugs and Daffy, which through a series of both on-set and film clips recounts the film's production on the soundstage. The two friends also host the Bang, Crash, Boom! featurette, a 7-minute look at the film's special effects and stunt work. Some viable clips and information is gathered here, but it's nowhere near an in-depth look.

Next, Bugs and Daffy sit down in a screening room to present Looney Tunes Out of Action: Best Scenes You've Never Seen, a 10-minute montage of additional scenes, as well as an alternate opening and ending. In fact, the original ending seems longer and more action-oriented. The two friends offer shtick-like commentary over the scenes, which is supposed to be amusing, but instead I would've liked to see the scenes by themselves with commentary by Dante as to why he cut them out. Sadly, the featurettes are only as long as the attention span of the average kid, or so I'd assume. With that in mind, the extras are geared more towards the kids. Though I should admit the featurettes are done in a slick way.

Rounding out the extras is the film's theatrical trailer and an easter egg (go to the special features menu and click "right" on your remote). As for DVD-ROM stuff, there's a link to more deleted scenes, though I haven't tried it so I can't say what's there.

You can select to view the film with optional English, French and Spanish subtitles. The 92-minute feature is organized into twenty-four chapters. The DVD is a snapper, naturally.

FINAL THOUGHTS

There's not much else for me to say about the film. Video/audio is very good, and the extras are only decent at best, obviously geared towards kids. Rent the DVD at your local video store.

VERDICT: RENT IT

Home | Back to Top