COYOTE VS ACME Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Dave Green
Stars: Will Forte, John Cena, Lana Condor, P J Byrne, Tone Bell, Martha Kelly, Luiz Guzman, voices of Eric Bauza, Candi Milo.
Taking its cues from Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Space Jam, both of which served up a clever mix of CGI animation and live action, comes this hugely entertaining and enjoyable family friendly film from the Warner Bros Animation Studios.
Many of us grew up watching the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons, which ran between 1930 and 1969. A particular favourite featured the ongoing battle between the road runner and his nemesis Wile E Coyote who was always trying to capture the fleet footed bird. But his elaborate traps inevitably failed due to the substandard and malfunctioning equipment he bought from the ACME corporation (rocket skates, catapults, magnetic gloves, explosives, etc). Frustrated by the continual failure of his plans Coyote decides to sue the ACME corporation over their defective devices.
He approaches small time strip shopping mall personal injury lawyer Kevin Avery (Will Forte, from Nebraska, etc), whose advertisements promise compensation for cartoon characters who are injured. Kevin usually accepts a settlement from the ACME corporation on behalf of his clients. But Coyote insists on having his day in court. Kevin is forced to face off against Buddy Crane (John Cena), his former law school classmate who is now an uber successful and powerful lawyer who just happens to be the head attorney for ACME.
As well as Coyote and Road Runner we get many other characters who were a staple of those Looney Tunes cartoons. Foghorn Leghorn is the arrogant, blustering and opinionated head of ACME, while other familiar characters who pop up include Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig, Tweety, Sylvester (all voiced by Eric Bauza) and sweet old granny (voiced by Candi Milo), and the Tasmanian Devil (voiced by Jim Cummings), who is the head of public relations for ACME.
Written by Samy Burch (May December, etc), who developed the story with James Gunn and Jeremy Slater (Mortal Kombat II, etc), Coyote Vs Acme is based on a humorous 1990 magazine article originally written by Ian Frazier for the New Yorker magazine. This clever and very funny film retains much of the physical humour and gravity defying nonsense that were a hallmark of the original cartoons. The film is packed with lots of visual humour and sight gags and references to the original Looney Tunes cartoons that will hold nostalgic appeal for older audiences, while younger audiences will enjoy the physical humour, the colourful array of characters and the goofiness of it all. It’s also amazing how the filmmakers can get so much emotion from two characters that don’t talk.
At its core Coyote Vs Acme is a familiar underdog story as the down on his luck Kevin tackles the David vs Goliath like task of taking on the huge megacorporation. Forte brings a suitably hangdog expression, world weary quality and dishevelled look to his role as Kevin, who has been beaten down and crushed by the system once too often, while Cena, largely cast against type, is great as the arrogant, slick and smarmy Crane.
Director Dave Green (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out Of The Shadows, etc) is a dab hand with mixing animation and live action and he keeps things moving along at a fast pace. The animated characters are seamlessly integrated into the live action. It’s obvious that Green and his creative crew have a deep affection for the original Looney Tunes characters.
The film was completed in 2023 but its release has been delayed as Warner Brothers initially buried the film hoping to use it as a tax write off. But the collective outcry via the internet proved to be a rallying point and eventually Coyote Vs Acme has found its way onto our screens.
And just as well because Coyote Vs Acme is a real winner and ideal entertainment for the school holidays.
★★★☆
