Looney Tunes: The Day The Earth Blew Up

Bluesky

Where other popular cartoons have struggled to retain their audience appeal over time, the manic energy of Looney Tunes has seen it win new fans in every generation. Porky Pig and Daffy Duck are characters with all-ages appeal, and indeed, we see them at different ages here, as the film includes an origin story in which we see them living an idyllic life on a farm in the care of enigmatic giant Farmer Jim. Although he cannot stay forever, Jim makes provision for the two of them in his will so that they can always be together. It is not until many years later, when the combination of an alien invasion and their total failure to do any kind of home maintenance results in the farmhouse getting condemned, that they are forced to grow up fast and venture out into the real world in search of gainful employment.

This is the first time that anyone has tried to stretch a Looney Tunes story across an hour and a half of screentime. Previous cinematic outings have been collections of episodes, or have been stitched together from previously aired stories. The job search is a good place to kick of, with lots of potential for fast-paced, wacky antics as the pair try out and screw up an assortment of roles. It’s entertaining enough, but unsustainable. As the larger plot develops, the pace slows and some of the magic is lost. The characters still work and they’re likeable enough to be worth following, but without the frantic quality of their usual behaviour, the whole thing feels a little bit too ordinary.

It centres on a gum factory where secret and potentially sinister experiments are underway. After our heroes get hired there and Porky goes googly-eyed over brilliant, glamorous researcher Petunia Pig, they discover that its activities may not be entirely above board. People consuming its products have a strange inclination to turn into zombies (there’s a heavy influence from Quatermass II, even down to the domes), and there may even by alien involvement – but not everything is quite what it seems, and the plucky trio’s efforts to save the day could lead them into an even worse predicament.

The animation is in the style of the originals but uses up most of its delightfully surreal touches early on, again settling into something more ordinary. Where it breaks the rules – as with Daffy’s production of a number of eggs – the film feels obliged to explain itself, indulging the audience too much. This is a context in which viewers expect to be presented with unlikely things. It seems similarly apologetic about Daffy’s destructiveness, which we could use a bit more of. One gets the sense that the writers don’t really know what to do with him, and he spends too much time pushed into the background. If you’re looking for a family-friendly cartoon with action blockbuster elements, you can still have fun with this. As a Looney Tunes experience, however, it falls a little short.

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