Like most children of the 80’s, I’ve always been a huge fan of classic cartoons, especially the Looney Tunes ones. I know a lot of fans have had their feelings hurt to have such hits as Space Jam come along, only to follow it up with the disappointing Looney Tunes: Back in Action. Thankfully this time Warner Bros. has kept the next feature-length entry fully animated in Looney Tunes: Rabbit’s Run, which brings the offbeat humor that was introduced in the popular The Looney Tunes Show from Cartoon Network, as well as slapstick from the classic cartoons.
Lola Bunny is an optimistic but airheaded young lady who works at a department store and has dreams of making the next big perfume that every woman wants. When her landlord Speedy Gonzales brings her back a rare flower that captures the perfect scent she’s looking for, she immediately turns it into her dream perfume. The only bad thing is that it turns whoever uses it invisible, and the military along with another mysterious group wants it. After being chased by said groups, she hops into a cab being driven by none other than Bugs Bunny, who inadvertently becomes tangled in the adventure of helping Lola get her perfume to Paris where it is sure to impress the fragrance society there and become the next big thing. Can Bugs get her there safely with the help of Daffy Duck that they meet along the way? Or will they get caught when classic baddies such as Yosemite Sam get in the way?
Rabbit’s Run wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, as it actually surprised me a few times while watching. It’s not the best Looney Tunes movie out there, but it has just the right amount of fun moments to keep you watching until the end. The comedy here is hit or miss, which is pretty funny when it’s good, and feels forced when it’s bad. It was fun seeing a lot of cameos from the classic cartoon universe throughout the film, like the slow-talking tortoise that Bugs raced against in the Tortoise and the Hare cartoon, the silly-sounding lion from a few episodes in the past, Foghorn Leghorn as the head of the military force with Elmer Fudd working for a secret group, and more.
It would’ve been nice to see this in high definition on Blu-ray, but given this is a DVD-only release, things look and sounds as good as the format allows. There are some pretty cool special features here though, like the pilot episode of The Looney Tunes Show, along with four of the newer, CG animated Looney Tunes shorts that were shown in front of various Warner Bros. films. Some of them are hit or miss, but I thought it was a pretty cool set of extras all the same.
Looney Tunes: Rabbit’s Run is a nice film the anyone is sure to get into, thanks to the modern day humor thrown in with the slapstick of yesteryear. Those looking for a fun movie to check out on family night can’t go wrong, especially with the neat bonus cartoons that will have you saying “What’s up, Doc?” in no time.
