Hello again everyone! Hope you all are doing well out there! Anyway, today, we are going to be reviewing a film that was associated with Disney shortly after the 1986 Disney animated film, The Great Mouse Detective, was released. Basically, after that film was successful, Disney apparently had plenty of money that the company decided to buy companies like Touchstone Pictures (or so the story goes). As a result, Disney, Touchstone, and movie directors Steven Spielberg, and Robert Zemeckis decided to make a live-action, and animation hybrid film that would include cameos of characters like Goofy, Bugs Bunny, both Mickey, and Minnie Mouse, and more. That being said, let’s discuss Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Plot: Set in 1947, a cartoon character named Roger Rabbit (Charles Fleischer) is framed for the murder of Marvin Acme, head of Toontown, and Acme Corporation. Now, he must team up with detective Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins), and see if they can find the real culprit behind Acme’s murder.
Now, even though Who Framed Roger Rabbit is one of those older movies, I surprisingly never saw this film until maybe 2013, when the film reached it’s 25th anniversary. And yeah, I remember enjoying it quite a bit. Now that I’ve gotten a little older, it’s definitely time for me to say whether or not it still holds up. Well, let me tell you, for the most part, it is a really fun film. First of all, how could you not love Alan Sylvestri’s score? I mean he uses his score to really help capture what life was like in the 1940s, even with the type of music that played back then. Also, the setting of what life was like over all back then is fantastic. Of course we know that cartoon characters don’t really exist in real life. Still, that doesn’t change how fun, and creative it was to have a fictional premise like this one, where real people, and animated characters coincided with each other. Actually, it’s really fun. Oh, and if you can, probably see a film like this before watching another animated/live-action hybrid film like Space Jam 1, or 2. Chances are that if you do, you’ll be less likely to believe that either Looney Tunes, or other cartoon characters exist underground, you know? Now, how about the characters? Well, most of them are really likable. Yes, some people could potentially feel rather ambivalent about someone like Jessica Rabbit, but more on that in a bit. The rest of the characters are great from leads like Eddie Valiant, and Roger Rabbit, who work off of each other really well, to Eddie’s love interest Dolores, to even Judge Doom, who’s played by Christopher Lloyd, and his weasel gang. Speaking of the main villain, and his gang, they are even fun to watch onscreen as well. Honestly, the weasel sidekicks are examples of villain sidekicks, or even sidekicks done right. They’re developed well, and they bring out some good laughs just like other villain sidekicks like Iago (from Aladdin), and Pain and Panic (from Hercules) for instance. Oh, and how could you not like the song that Eddie Valiant performs near the end during the climax. I won’t say what all happens, but he does a great job. Oh, and another thing! How could one not like seeing Bugs Bunny, and Mickey Mouse together onscreen at the same time, or even the same thing with Daffy Duck, and Donald Duck? As for the animation, some of it may feel a little outdated by today’s standards. Still, there are times when the animation does seem to hold up as well. Finally, the acting is great. I mean Bob Hoskins, Charles Fleischer, Christopher Lloyd, and the rest of the gang each do a really great job with all of their performances.
With all that said, are there any downsides to this film? Well, sadly, yes, there are. First of all, the character of Jessica Rabbit can sometimes have this bad habit of throwing in your face how good looking, pretty, and sexual she is. Seeing as kids may have been likely to watch this film, and this film seemed to be geared as a “family film,” I’m not sure that having Jessica Rabbit behave that way was the best idea, you know? Also, there was an additional character that seemed to act rather annoying, and creepy at the same time. Thankfully that character is only onscreen for a few minutes, but still. Also, was having a female cartoon character like Jessica Rabbit, and a rabbit like Roger Rabbit being a couple the best idea? I mean I get that they’re both animated characters. Still, I don’t think that family films should make a habit of having such couples, you know?
And that’s my review for Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Even though it could be a little too adult for kids, the movie is still really fun, and creative overall. The animation is mostly good, the premise is fun, and most of the characters are likable. If you haven’t seen Who Framed Roger Rabbit yet, definitely see it, and see what you think!
Final Grade: A-
Matthew’s Animated & Live-Action Movie Reviews 