Laughs are sparse in latest Looney Tunes offering
Perhaps it’s because I have such a nostalgic connection with the heyday of Looney Tunes cartoons – and the sublime voice work by the late Mel Blanc – that I found a well-intended attempt to resuscitate the iconic franchise so immensely disappointing. Dubbed “The Day the World Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie,” this reuniting of Daffy Duck and Porky Pig for a zany “origin” story only made me long for reruns of the original Warner Bros. shorts directed by the immortal Chuck Jones.
For one thing, the premise – an alien ship crashes into Daffy and Porky’s dilapidated farmhouse, emitting a mysterious goo that finds its way into a popular bubble gum, which then transforms chewers into zombies – is unimaginative; and second, brutally unfunny. It’s mostly just annoying, distracting us with lots of mindless commotion rather than generating anything remotely clever or involving.
It’s certainly not the fault of Eric Bauza, the voice actor doing a credible job as successor to the legendary Blanc. He perfectly nails Daffy’s trademark lisp and Porky’s sta-sta-sta stutter. But not one of the film’s 11 – yes, 11! – writers can furnish a single LOL line for him to deliver. So, the movie opts to coast on the powers of recollection stemming from Bauza’s precise impersonation of Blanc. For a short time, it works, particularly for baby boomers who grew up transfixed by the innovative creations sprung from the brilliantly avant-garde mind of Jones in the late ’50s and early 1960s.
Alas, Peter Browngardt is no Chuck Jones. Not even close. He’s more of an adherent to plot over characterizations. To that end, there is only a trace of an arc for Daffy and Porky to traverse in their efforts to save the world from the machinations of the manipulative alien mastermind billed as The Invader (Peter MacNicol, far removed from his award-winning roles on stage and TV). Due to this lack of depth, there’s only minute chemistry between Daffy and Porky, leaving the impression that they exist in two vastly different realms.
Much more satisfying is the bud, bud, bud, budding romance between Porky and the lovely Petunia (Candi Milo), the gum researcher helping the boys to blow the lid off The Invader’s fiendish plot. These two have got it going on, so much so that Daffy often feels like a third wheel, somewhat countering the film’s ultimate theme that the disparate critters are ride or die.
It also doesn’t help that “Day” is debuting in the shadow of the increasingly popular, Oscar-winning “Flow,” which is everything this tired, discombobulated mess is not. “Day” doesn’t in any way pretend to be cerebral, offering pretty much what you’d expect, meaning lots of cartoon violence, much of it courtesy of a large mallet wielded by the notoriously reckless Daffy. There’s also a plethora of situations designed to exploit Daffy and Pork’s “sibling rivalry,” which began when they were taken in by Farmer Jim (Fred Tatasciore) after he discovered them abandoned as duckling and piglet.
It all rings hollow, as does a head-scratching left turn the story takes in the third act, when we transition from a homage to “The Night of the Living Dead” to a paean to “Armageddon.” What? It’s so bizarre that it instantly erases any faint hope the movie had of righting itself. I guess that’s to be expected when there are 11 cooks in the kitchen.
It’s little wonder then that Warner kept “Day” on the shelf since its completion in 2022. And while it’s noble that Ketchup Entertainment rode to the toon’s rescue by distributing it on its own dime, I fear it’s for naught. I say this because it’s unclear just whom to market it to. It’s too dumb for adults yet a tad too sophisticated for children. It’s undeniably colorful and nostalgic, but I’m afraid, to quote Porky, “Tha, tha, tha, that’s all, folks!”
Movie review
The Day the World Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie
Rated: PG for cartoon violence; action; rude, suggestive humor
Cast: Voices of Eric Bauza, Candi Milo, Peter MacNicol, Fred Tatasciore, Wayne Knight and Laraine Newman
Director: Peter Browngardt
Writers: Kevin Costello, Alex Kirwan, Peter Browngardt, Darrick Bachman, Andrew Dickman, Edie Trigueros, David Gemmill, Ryan Kramer, Johnny Ryan, Jason Reicher and Michael Ruocco
Runtime: 91 minutes
Where: In theaters March 14
Grade: C+
