POPCORN REVIEWSS

Written by James Gunn, Jeremy Slater, and Samy Burch, there is a whiff of nostalgia while witnessing the several characters from Looney Tunes gracing the narrative here. Be it the ‘Wile.E’ dynamic between Coyote and The Road-Runner that had formed an integral part of my childhood, or the mad-hatter traits of Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny that had me smiling from ear to ear, or even the cutsie mercenary act of the cutsie Tweety Bird that sprinkled moments of laughter in the narrative – this felt like nostalgia done right, even as I reminisced my time of tuning in to my favourite cartoon characters immediately after school. And yet even in this capacity, the writing wished to address a larger issue in a template that epitomized the underdog.

The characterization does its bit in elevating the stature of the drama here. For instance, the protagonist Coyote isn’t a saint himself, in fact – he is an anti-hero that frequently devises plans to trap and feast on The Roadrunner. The latter remains an immortal figure, being unaffected by any antics of the former, who in-turn is known to be a regular customer of the ‘faulty’ Acme products that may seem to result in funny outcomes for the viewers, often at the cost of the downfall of the protagonist, literally speaking. And hence, the idea of suing the evil corporate is what forms the core premise here, even as Coyote approaches Kevin Avery (Will Forte), who is the owner of a humble, personal injury law firm.

It is interesting on how the corporate here is depicted as a faceless temple of greed in an inescapable mode of monopoly. If it were a Hindi film villain from the 70s, it would be Gabbar from Sholay (1975) – a character so evil and so powerful that he would stop at nothing. In 2026, if Acme was a person – he would be a corporate honcho, often working hand-in-glove with the government on a pretext of serving people, but instead capitalizing on his profits at the cost of human lives. Now who could that possibly be in the real world – making empty promises in single echo chambers through reels that seem increasingly false and lunatic? Your guess is as good as mine.

The narrative follows the standard beats of the legal drama – that includes an out of court settlement by the defending lawyer Buddy (John Cena; ironic with the name along with a meta-commentary on the goodness of the character – that cannot be ‘seen’), a trust deficit between Kevin and his client, a court of law that seems to be increasingly compromised, a discrete project underway by the name of Sisyphus (ironically linked to Coyote who like Sisyphus, pushes the boulder up the hill, only to watch it roll back on himself), an underground operative in the form of a ‘surprise’ whistleblower (hint : ehhhh whatsup Doc), and a plan to supercede or even eliminate the sole witness in the form of The Roadrunner.

And yet, there are two ways that the writing coaxes you to guage the exploitation in play. One involves the invisible lines of hierarchy in the form of the citizens of this world – even as second-class citizens (read : the middle class) like Coyote have to bear the brunt of the corporates, knowingly or unknowingly. And the other stance being that laced with a meta-commentary – on how the Looney Tunes figures had to take up a fight against an evil capitalist like Warner Brothers Discovery, wherein the value of the art and the artists is purely reduced to financial assets that are perishable in nature. In an alternate world, this could also be a commentary on carrying out tests on animals, even as humans would continue to be oblivious, deranged and detached to the harsh realities of the world.

The proceedings are entertaining and delightfully funny, even as the larger messaging doesn’t overpower the narrative while still continuing to treat it as a film for kids and young adults. Even through the standard beats of the narrative, the timely usage of some famous characters and figures from Looney Tunes had me immensely invested in the proceedings. This, while they doubled up as some interesting nostalgia baits along the way. There is a hint of an emotional core in the form of an unexpected friendship that laces the narrative at the end, without losing sight of the core themes in the narrative. The end result is a roller coaster ride of nostalgia that is rather poignant in today’s times, even as it had me questioning the realities of life – are these ‘Toons’ Looney or humanity in general featuring powerful capitalists who would stop at nothing in destroying this beautiful world. Worth a ponder, I’d tell you!