Plot: What’s it about?
In Toon Town, the king of the cartoons is Roger Rabbit, comedic genius and megastar. But lately, his on screen performances have been lackluster, to say the least. He forgets his lines, goofs up gags, he’s just not on his game. Why? Rumors abound of an unfaithful wife, but no one knows for sure. In hopes of resparking his career, his boss hires Eddie Valiant to get proof of Roger’s wife cheating on him, so Roger can have peace and move on. Valiant gets the photos, and Roger goes bananas…or is that carrots? Rogers vows to do anything to get Jessica back, and a bit later, the man in the photos with his wife turns up dead. Of course, everyone blames Roger, who swears his innocence. Local lawman Judge Doom promises to “dip” Roger if he finds him, which prompts Roger to beg Eddie to hide him. Eddie eventually agrees, and soon discovers that Roger is telling the truth. Can Eddie and Roger find a way to keep Toon Town out of Doom’s leather gloves, and at the same time clear Roger’s good name?
The major draw of this film has got to be it’s use of animation. It puts toons in the same frame as humans, and really puts them through the paces. They don’t lurk around and mope, they interact with the humans in several ways. The look of the process is very smooth, and the interaction is very realistic. I had some reservations when this film was released theatrically, but I was proven wrong, as the visuals are excellent, very well done. Another cool feature of this film is the wide cast of animated characters used. Disney made this flick, well actually Touchstone, which Disney owns, and I was not expecting non-Disney characters to make the film, but they did. A couple interesting sequences happen because of this, and we get to see some unique pairings that I doubt we will ever see again. Daffy and Donald, Mickey and Bugs, Goofy and Porky, you can’t beat these unusual matches for anything. The live actors are good too, with Bob Hoskins and Christopher Lloyd heading up the cast. Hoskins is defined by this role, I feel, whenever I think of Hoskins, I think of Eddie Valiant. Lloyd shines as Judge Doom, bringing a “living cartoon” feel to the role that is very humorous.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit? is a great movie, plain and simple. The concept of cartoons and humans interacting is ingenious, and the film pulls it off without a hitch. A solid storyline and great “chemistry” between Roger and Eddie make this more than just a novelty flick as well. If you’ve ever wondered what happened to toons when they’re not making cartoons, where they live, what they really act like, this is a must have. Don’t think just because this movie features cartoons that is a children’s picture, because it’s not. True, kids will enjoy the regular toon antics, but adults will find entertainment in the dialogue and themes found in Toon Town. Plus…Jessica Rabbit is quite a looker…as far as cartoons go anyway. I highly recommend you pick this disc up, at least give it a rent. The disc is empty when it comes to features, so unless you’re a big fan, you might want to wait for a sale. But with a nice picture and a good sound to boot, this disc is good enough for me. But of course, I would gladly shell out the cash for a Special Edition…are you listening Disney?
Video: How does it look?
A nice widescreen transfer is used, but it is not anamorphic. So all you 16X9 guys can start yelling now. But, aside from that, the visuals look great, with almost perfect color and correct black levels. I agree with the masses that the picture is lacking, but it is by far the best this film has looked, so I won’t complain much.
Audio: How does it sound?
Being a comedy, the audio is not exactly in the spotlight. Effects are mostly slapstick noises, which won’t exactly push your system to the limits. The soundtrack is nice, with some very humorous and whimsical tunes, but again, not anything to send your meters off the charts. The dialogue is what the audio needs to focus on, and it does an above average job here. While the mix could have been better, this type of movie does not require anything more.
Supplements: What are the extras?
I sure couldn’t find any if there were any.
