A Quick Look: SPACE JAM (1996 - color)

  SPACE JAM is a movie which I admit underwhelmed me when I first saw it (likely because I've never been a sports guy). A fresh screening proved the film better than I remembered, and I found myself laughing quite a bit in this weird tale of NBA superstar Michael Jordan recruited by the Looney Tunes to help them win a basketball game against invaders from space who want to enslave the cartoon stars and force them to work at an intergalactic amusement park. There are complications due to Jordan's recent retirement from basketball to pursue a career playing baseball, and the invaders have stolen the talents of several NBA giants! This was seemingly Jordan's bid to become an actor, and he does rather well here. Though playing himself, he comes off smooth and demonstrates the rare ability to interact with animated characters in a naturalistic fashion. The technical abilities of the effects crew are also quite impressive, and cartoon animation and live action blend without having too jarring an effect on the eye. The number of NBA personalities involved would likely mean a lot more to someone who followed the game in the 90's, but most of them indeed prove themselves solid entertainers. With so many notable WB characters being male, the studio introduces a new female character in the shape of Lola Bunny. Though she has a bit of a cult following in her own right, she follows the lead of Bugs Bunny's other romantic interests and largely dropped from sight after her first appearance (which was really quite minimal, pre-release publicity aside -though she did wash back into the comic books I understand). For whatever reason, the universe of the Looney Tunes cartoons is apparently at the center of the Earth (making one wonder if other studios are supposed to have similar colonies embedded under the ground). Those who felt the animated characters served mainly as set dressing for a Michael Jordan movie would get a better showing from them in LOONEY TUNES: BACK IN ACTION some years later. Though I loved that one, it fizzled out at the box office. Back to SPACE JAM, though, I must admit I found it highly entertaining this time. A fan of the characters could do worse for an evening's entertainment. That said, one reason the film is largely disdained is that it represents the studio's attempt to give the beloved Looney Tunes a more modern edge. Reportedly, Chuck Jones despised the film, claiming that his version of Bugs Bunny would never beg for help!