Michael's Movie Grade: B-
I know that I may be going against the crowd here, but I had a surprisingly good time watching this movie. Both the trailers and the early reviews had me nervous (Though I tried to keep in mind that the first Space Jam got just as bad of reviews and I enjoy that). As the movie started my fears seemed to be coming true. It takes too long for the Looney Tunes to appear and there were two many scenes that simply seemed to exist to show how amazing Lebron James is (Note: I know nothing about sports and the first preview was the first time I heard of him). Yet as the film went on I began to enjoy it quite a bit.
The storyline is basic and simple, which was something I was delighted by. The previews made me worry that the film would try too hard to be bigger than the original in every way. What made the first one work is that it is a small scale unpretentious movie. Luckily this sequel is very similar to the original in that way. True it is also very similar in that some plot points are repeated here. Yet there is enough of a difference to make it feel like it is not just a rehash. The Looney Tunes unfortunately take too long to appear and can feel like supporting characters in their own movie. Yet when they are on the screen they really shine. The characters are perfectly in character. These are the tunes that we have grown to love and it is a joy to watch them. Much of the humor involving them is excellent. The scenes in which we see the Looney Tunes in the worlds of various other movie worlds are excellent (with the Casablanca one getting a really good laugh out of me). This is the Looney Tunes doing what they do best. Too often modern versions of these cartoons parody the subjects they are making fun of, when in the classic cartoons the humor came from entering these characters into worlds were they don't belong (for instance Daffy Duck being a superhero). The tunes also get some quite funny moments during the game. Fans of the franchise will probably be both disappointed by these characters being supporting players and delighted that the characters are handled very well. This movie is also helped by a good villain (Don Cheadle) who feels like a real threat and is quite fun to watch at the same time. LeBron's son ( Cedric Joe) is also a surprisingly good character and I truly liked and cared about this kid. He brought a real emotional connection to the film and carries many of the scenes without the Tunes very well.
While this movie has its faults, it is a simple and fun story and the Looney Tunes are great (I just wished they were the main characters).
-Michael J. Ruhland
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