Space Jam (film)

Space Jam is a 1996 American live-action / animated film starring Michael Jordan opposite Bugs Bunny (voiced by Mel Blanc) and the rest of the Looney Tunes characters. It was produced by Ivan Reitman, and directed by Joe Pytka and Tony Cervone & Bruce W. Smith (animation). This film was released by Warner Bros. Family Entertainment.

Other voices included Bob Bergen as Porky, Tweety, Hubie and Bertie and Taz, Bill Farmer as Sylvester, and Dee Bradley Baker as Daffy Duck and Marvin the Martian.

The Looney Tunes crew did not return to movie status afterwards until 2003 in Looney Tunes: Back in Action.

Space Jam was also converted in a pinball and a video game by Amblin Entertainment for PC-DOS, Sega Saturn and PlayStation.

Plot


In this movie, aliens called Nerdlucks arrive on Earth to capture the Looney Tunes characters and take them back to Moron Mountain, an outer space theme park belonging to their boss, Mr. Swackhammer, voiced by Danny DeVito. Bugs Bunny convinces the aliens that the Looney Tunes must be allowed to defend themselves. Since the aliens are very short the Looney Tunes challenge them to a basketball game.

The aliens steal the talent of 5 |NBA stars (Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Muggsy Bogues, Larry Johnson and Shawn Bradley) and use it to transform themselves into the tall and muscular Monstars. Fortunately, the Monstars haven't stolen the talent of Michael Jordan because he has retired from basketball to pursue a career in baseball (and play golf) (which was a real-life event). Bugs Bunny gets Jordan to help them in their basketball game. The Looney Tunes manage to win the game and their freedom. Swackhammer berates the Monstars for losing, but then they realize that since they're no longer smaller than him, they don't have to put up with his bullying anymore. They launch Swackhammer into space, and give back the stolen skills, becoming Nerdlucks again. Michael Jordan decides to return to basketball, mirroring his real-life return.

Many major and minor characters from Looney Tunes shorts make appearances in the movie, and are even joined by Lola Bunny, a female hare that acts as Bugs' love interest.

Notable cameos include Wayne Knight (as Michael's new manager, Stan), Bill Murray (as himself, but mistaken by Swackhammer in the movie for Dan Aykroyd, Jim Rome, Larry Bird and Scottie Pippen.

Critical response
Reviews of the movie were generally negative. Many critics compared it unfavorably to Who Framed Roger Rabbit, a popular film in which cartoon characters and live-action humans coexisted in the same film as well. Basketball fans thought the movie to be demeaning to the sport, and to Michael Jordan himself. Many of them also claim it was not canon, despite referencing real-life events.

Those who liked the film praised the visual effects, which were groundbreaking at the time. Roger Ebert was among the few major critics to give Space Jam an enthusiastic "thumbs up." Some of his readers theorized that Ebert did so because he works in Chicago, and therefore would be supportive of any of Michael Jordan's endeavours. Leonard Maltin also gave the film a positive review.

Over at the Chicago Tribune, Gene Siskel gave the film 3 1/2 stars out of 4, while Michael Wilmington gave it 3 stars.

Despite the negative press, the film served as a high point for musical artist R. Kelly, whose song I Believe I Can Fly became a hit after it was featured on the film's soundtrack. Other notable musical numbers appearing in the film include a cover of Fly Like an Eagle (by Seal), Hit 'em High (Monstar's Anthem) (by B-Real, Coolio, Method Man, LL Cool J, and Busta Rhymes), and For U, I Will by Monica.

Cast of Looney Tunes characters

 * Bugs Bunny
 * Daffy Duck
 * Porky Pig
 * Lola Bunny (debut)
 * Melissa Duck
 * Elmer Fudd
 * Yosemite Sam
 * Wile E. Coyote
 * Road Runner
 * Sylvester
 * Sylvester Junior
 * Tweety
 * Granny
 * Witch Hazel
 * Dr. I.Q. Hi
 * Rocky and Mugsy
 * Nick
 * Foghorn Leghorn
 * The Barnyard Dawg
 * Sam Sheepdog
 * Ralph Wolf
 * Pepe Le Pew
 * Penelope Pussycat
 * Taz
 * Beaky Buzzard
 * Marc Antony and Pussyfoot
 * Claude Cat
 * Pete Puma
 * Speedy Gonzales
 * Slowpoke Rodriguez
 * Hubie and Bertie
 * Miss Prissy
 * Gossamer
 * The Crusher
 * Playboy Penguin
 * Egghead
 * Egghead Junior
 * Hippety Hopper
 * Michigan J. Frog
 * Mac and Tosh, the Goofy Gophers
 * Marvin the Martian
 * K-9
 * Sniffles
 * Henery Hawk
 * Spike the Bulldog and Chester the Terrier
 * Charlie Dog
 * Giovanni Jones from Long-Haired Hare
 * Toro the Bull
 * Cecil Turtle
 * The Gambling Bug
 * Mr. and Mrs. Gruesome Gorilla
 * The Three Bears
 * The Dover Boys
 * Little Red Riding Hood
 * The Hillbilly Brothers
 * The Weasel
 * Angus MacRory
 * The Leprechauns
 * The Tired Businessman from A Pest in the House

Trivia

 * One scene references Pulp Fiction, with Elmer Fudd and Yosemite Sam dressed as killers and "Misirlou" in the background.
 * The movie was inspired by Nike commercials featuring Michael and Bugs against Marvin and an alien. Another Nike commercial is referenced when Larry Johnson says that his grandmother can play better than him (he played his grandmother in an ad).
 * When sending Bugs and Daffy to pick up his basketball gear, Michael Jordan tells them that he wore his UNC basketball shorts under his Chicago Bulls uniform in every game he played. Jordan really did do this, as a good luck charm.
 * Many minor Looney Tunes characters appear as the spectators at the Looney Tunes basketball game.
 * Bugs and the other Looney Tunes are shown to reside in Looney Tune Land, a realm located beneath earth's surface. Only two known portals to Looney Tune Land exist, one lying beneath a Piggly Wiggly parking lot in suburban Birmingham, Alabama (also the home of Michael Jordan's minor-league baseball team the Birmingham Barons), the other accessible from a tunnel beneath an unspecified hole on a golf course in the Birmingham metropolitan area. Each portal consists of a membranous elastomer imprinted with the Warner Bros. studio shield (anywhere from 20-50 feet in diameter). The portal can be stretched and punctured by a projectile, admitting persons or vehicles into the skies of Looney Tune Land. Basically the Looney Tune Land to the average intelligent viewer was obviously underground.
 * The song that Foghorn Leghorn was singing on the basketball court (oh, I wish I was in the land of cotton...) was "Dixie".
 * Mr. Swackhammer, the antagonist of the movie mistakes Bill Murray for Dan Aykroyd during the basketball game.
 * The early 1930s Looney Tunes stars: "Bosko" and "Beans" makes a cameo appearance.
 * Lola Bunny made her debut appearance here.