Space Jam A New Legacy - Tumblr Posts
Thoughts on Space Jam 1 (prior to seeing 2)
I'm seeing 2 this afternoon, so I figured I'd give a brief thought on Space Jam 1 before I watch the sequel later.
Now, if you don't know (which you wouldn't cause I've never posted about it on here) I'm kind of a Looney Tunes whore. It's one of my favorite franchises of all time. So I'll kinda just eat up anything with them in it. I can still judge weather it's good or bad, but I'll probably have at least some enjoyment out of it no matter the quality.
So, let it be known, I'm VERY bias when it comes to this stuff.
The being said, what did I think watching Space Jam this time around? Was it a good movie?
Nah, not really.
But was it an ENJOYABLE movie.
For me, yes.
Space Jam is one of those cheesy 90s movies that, while not good, had a special place in a lot of people's hearts. Mine included. Does that mean I can't see the flaws? No, but it's still enjoyable for me. Is it nostalgia? I dunno, probably.
But there are aspects of it I do think are legit enjoyable. For example, I really like the scene where Bugs and Daffy go to Michael's house to get his gear. I find it funny that apparently they actually get screwed over with merch rights? Plus, Bugs and Daffy just having casual conversation is pretty fun to me.
I also like the game itself. I like over the top, cartoony sports stuff, so I enjoy seeing the Looney Tunes using their talents to play Basketball. Makes me wish those other "Sports Jam" movies got made. Like Skate Jam or Golf Jam. Eh, whatever. Maybe if this new one's a success.
And finally, I dig how Michael Jordan has to accept cartoony logic and embrace it to win. That's kind of a cool combo of both his real basketball talent, and being in the Looney Tunes world.
But let's talk about the elephant in the room. Yes, this is basically an hour and half long ad. There's even a line where Wayne Knight lists off like six product placements in a run on sentence. Yeah, that's pretty distracting. And if you can't get past it, I don't blame you.
And let's talk about the OTHER elephant in the room, Lola
Lola... is REALLY boring in this movie. She's just "hot girl". That's it. She dosen't really do anything Looney. And, I get it, you want her to be a more grounded character like Porky, but to do that she has to be... funny? And she's not.
I think she could've been interesting if they played into her being a basketball fan, maybe even putting that above relationships? Like Bugs comes onto her in the movie and she seems pretty accepting before she gets called "doll". Maybe have her be so into basketball she dosen't care about teammates, and Michael had to teach her to be a good teammate, then she still ends up falling for Bugs when he saves her because she finally gets the value of teamwork.
Yes, I am giving script recommendations to a 25 year old movie about Looney Tunes and Micheal Jordan.
There's also the fact that I didn't find the movie too funny. And for Looney Tunes, that's kinda important. I dunno, there a couple chuckles here and there (again, I really liked how Bugs and Daffy don't get merch rights, and the idea of the tunes challenging the aliens to a basketball game just cause they're short is also funny) but otherwise, not really.
Michael Jordan also can't really act with the tunes. Like I love the guy, but he was clearly out of his element. He does fine with the humans, but the tunes? Not really? And considering they're co-stars, that ain't great.
But overall, even though I've spent the ladt few paragraphs bashing it, I do still enjoy Space Jam 1. It's stupid, it's not good, but it's still fun.
Hopefully the sequel follows suit. I'll get back to you when I see it.
Space Jam 2 thoughts
Also, here's my thoughts on the first one if you wanna read that first. If not, feel free to skip ahead.
Ok, so I've watched Space Jam 2.
And I feel... Basically the same yeah about it as I do about the first movie. For different reasons, but about the same.
For one thing, I think the animation in this movie is phenomenal. It moves really fluidly, the characters are well designed (by the way, credit Dave Alvarez) and the game itself, jumping ahead a bit, ia super fun. It actually looks like a game I would play, this over the top sorts extravaganza... Speaking of which, Microsoft, put that fucking tie in game on Windows 10. Or Switch, you have a good relationship with Nintendo. But I'm getting off topic.
And, fitting for a Looney Tunes movie, I like the Looney Tunes! They're all pretty funny, I specifically like how Daffy just said "Nah I ain't playing the game, I'll be a coach." Speaking of which, I really like his coach outfit. Again, the designs in the movie are great.
But let's get to what I didn't REALLY like about the movie. And that's, sadly, LeBron James himself.
Now I'm not one of those who hates LeBron for whatever reason, I'm sure he's a nice guy. But he's just... not who I came to see. And so much of the movie is dedicated to him. And to be fair, a lot of Space Jam 1 is dedicated to Michael Jordan, but 1. Michael goes along with the Tunes pretty much instantly. That COULD be seen as a negative, but I like it. It makes the movie concise, and gets exactly to what we want to see. Michael Jordan playing ball with the Looney Tunes.
And 2. The first movie is only an hour and half. This movie is damn near 2 hours. And on top of that, the first movie knew to cut between Michael Jordan in the real world, and the Looney Tunes. In this one, we spend the first, like, 30 minutes in the real world with LeBron and his family. I get it, it's setting up the game and LeBron's arc... but I don't care about his arc either. It's the stereotypical "mean dad" story and... I don't CARE.
Okay, going back to positives real quick so I'm not a total negative Nancy, I like a lot of the references. They can be seen as distracting, but I just like the idea of the Looney Tunes battling in front of all of Warner Brothers. It's cool.
But back to negatives, let's talk about Lola.
I know a lot of people like this Lola but, to me, she's just as boring as the first one, but for different reasons. In the original she's just "hot girl" and in this one she's just "sporty girl". She's just as boring to me, but people like her more cause... I dunno, she's not sexualized anymore? I don't know, I don't really give a shit. I know that's gonna piss people off, but meh.
But yeah, you can kinda see why I say it's on the same level as 1, just for different reasons. I like the game itself and the setup a bit more in 2, but I dig the characters and pacing more in one. Also, Michael learning to use cartoon physics to his advantage is a lot cooler then... glitching a video game.
Overall, I guess I like 1 more, because the pacing and characters are really important, but I can't say 2 was worthless in any way. I still liked, despite it not actually being good, and would watch it again.
So... yeah. Kinda jumbled thoughts, but overall I would say I enjoyed Space Jam 2.
... Back in Action is still easily the best Looney Tunes movie, ok byyyyyye.
My 29 and a quarter ass liked it *because* its corny, cheesy, ridiculous, and goofy. Its the Looney Tunes, *thats* what I paid for 🥰
💯
Do you guys think daffy is going to play as a team player in Space jam 2 ??
I can't wait for this movie
