SPACE JAM
A film review by Michael John Legeros
Copyright 1996 Michael John Legeros
(WB)
Directed by Joe Pytka
Written by Leo Benvenuit, Steve Rudnick, Timothy Harris, Herschel
Weingrod
Cast Michael Jordan, Bugs Bunny, Wayne Knight, Bill Murray,
Theresa Randle, voice of Danny DeVito, Lola Bunny, Daffy
Duck, Wylie Coyote, Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig, Larry Bird,
Charles Barkley
MPAA Rating "PG"
Running Time 88 minutes
Reviewed at General Cinemas at Pleasant Valley, Raleigh, NC
(08NOV96)
==
An animated tribute to North Carolina's most famous native not currently crusading against radical homer-sexual agendas, SPACE JAM is both a surprise and a disappointment. Who would've thought that such a commercially crass premise (ninety minutes of Hare Jordan) would yield such a fun family film? While the brilliant colors, frenzied characters, and pulse-pounding soundtrack are a dandy distraction for the wee ones, Mom and Dad are guaranteed a good time by the many flashes of adult humor, like a PULP FICTION gag here, a bit of sexual innuendo there, and all of those gloriously exaggerated (and refreshingly politically incorrect) speech impediments. (Watch when Daffy coats the lens after a particularly moist monologue.)
Animation fans are also in for a treat, though they're likely to lament the absence of any discernible edge. Missing are the Toons' twin trademarks: rapid-fire wit and violent physical humor. Sure, the final reel breaks loose, but most of the gags (and the animated characters themselves) are lamer, tamer versions of the originals. Even a bigger letdown is how... familiar the whole experience is. What does SPACE JAM say about our exposure to celebrities-- and the entertainment industry as a whole-- when a well-attended, decently- reviewed blockbuster can be built by simply casting a bunch of basketball stars, cartoon characters, and one actor (Bill Murray) as themselves?
Grade: B
--
Mike Legeros - Raleigh, NC, USA, Earth legeros@pagesz.net (h) - legeros@unx.sas.com (w) I'm also on the Web! http://www.pagesz.net/~legeros/
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