Space Jam Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.5

Space Jam Blu-ray Movie Review

The finest animated basketball comedy with Michael Jordan of all time!

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf March 28, 2012

“Space Jam” was an odd film in 1996, and it’s an even stranger film in 2012. Someone, somewhere had the bright idea of merging the worlds of cartoons and basketball, throwing a ton of cash toward Michael Jordan to co-star with the Looney Tunes army in what was something of a comeback vehicle for the animated legends at the time. There’s barely a story, rarely a laugh larger than an approving titter, and the visuals range from professionally polished to Full Sail freshman. It’s a chaotic, ephemeral feature, and it’s difficult to tell just what audience this effort is for. Animation purists have vehemently dismissed “Space Jam” as trendy junk over the years, while basketball nuts have treated the movie with a great deal of confusion. It’s tempting to outright dismiss the picture as nonsense from a studio desperate to make a longstanding property relevant to the “kids” again, yet “Space Jam” isn’t a total failure. It’s rather amusing in a who-thought-this-was-a-good-idea? kind of way, making the whole enterprise a big-budget lark that works up a sweat to prove itself worthy for the big screen. I’m certainly not a fan of “Space Jam,” but it’s hard to deny its rich tapestry of questionable ideas.

Deep in the outer reaches of space, the theme park Moron Mountain, run by the evil Swackhammer (voiced by Danny DeVito), is in dire need of a new attraction to stem the tide of guest dissatisfaction. Sending his minions to Earth on a quest to retrieve the community of Looney Tunes characters for the park, the creatures are met with protest from Bugs Bunny (Billy West), who challenges Swackhammer’s goons to a basketball game, hoping to free the gang from alien slavery. Accepting the deal, the minions proceed to steal basketball gifts from Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Muggsy Bogues, Shawn Bradley, and Larry Johnson, turning themselves into hulking “Monstars.” Sensing doom, the Looney Tunes abduct Michael Jordan, pulling the 3D star into their 2D world, hoping his rusty sense of the game (after retiring and moving on to professional baseball) could help them crush the Monstars. Attempting to turn a line-up of spastic cartoons (including Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, and new character Lola Bunny) into a winning squad, Jordan finds the task nearly impossible, urging the Looney Tunes to use their innate gifts to run circles around the opposing team, while accepting help from an earnest but physically limited Bill Murray.

It all started with a 1993 commercial that teamed Bugs Bunny and Michael Jordan in the joke department and on the basketball court, where the pair faced off against a team of towering Martians. A smash spot for the Air Jordan shoe line, the suits at Warner Brothers decided it was a fine idea to turn a 90-second ad into a feature-length motion picture, bringing back Bugs, Jordan, and director Joe Pytka (a veteran commercial helmer) to recreate their magic for the silver screen. It was a can’t-miss proposition, especially with Jordan enjoying great success as a pitchman at the time, while Bugs and the Looney Tunes gang were also in the midst of a grand marketing resurgence, with mid-level corporate employees everywhere shattering their milquetoast demeanor by slapping on a Tasmanian Devil tie. It was a prime moment to combine these pop culture titans in their own movie, with “Space Jam” assembled to take advantage of the cartoon potential of the animated stars, while dropping in broad basketball atmosphere to keep Jordan’s fans content. That’s not to suggest that these two worlds demanded to be combined, but a team of four writers dutifully sat down and worked out a structure to merge laughs and dribbles, with “Space Jam” providing the bare minimum of plot and characterization to pass as movie.

Pytka plays the picture as wisely as possible, charging forward with a ripping pace, looking to keep the basketball bopping and the gags flying as fast as possible. Although “Space Jam” takes on the appearance of a Michael Jordan bio-pic in the opening reel (dramatizing his youthful zest for the sport, while surveying his career over the opening credits), it’s quickly established that the material is chasing more of a manic tone of comedy, working hard to reignite the traditional feel of a typical Looney Tunes experience for a new generation. Slapstick is king here, with one-liners and a few pop culture references (“Pulp Fiction” being the weirdest) slathered on to keep the movie sufficiently lubed for short attention spans. While I was never convinced of its comedic strength, “Space Jam” does capture the Looney Tunes vibe, laboring to fill the frame with character cameos (including Foghorn Leghorn, Pepe le Pew, and Marvin the Martian), preserve famously mischievous behaviors, and initiate persistent visual wackiness, engineered by the filmmaker to play smoothly into the movie’s intricate live-action/animated concept. While it runs a puny 78 minutes, the feature does move swiftly, which is perhaps the highest compliment I can pay “Space Jam.” It’s never boring and it never stops, but seldom does it come together as a thrilling example of cartoon hilarity or sporting inspiration.

You see, Michael Jordan can’t act. Not that anything remotely resembling thespian proficiency was expected of the basketball legend, but, you know, with a major motion picture, perhaps a few acting lessons weren’t out of the realm of possibility. Mercifully, most of Jordan’s role requires the giant to stand there and react to nothing, while Pytka and his team swoop in and fill the frame with animated shenanigans. Still, there’s not a whole lot of charisma emanating from the star, who carries a firm monotone and two different faces (happy and confused) for the duration of the feature. His basketball gifts are what they are, but surely Jordan could’ve been challenged a bit more by the production, extracting a tremor approximating an identifiable emotion. When one is outacted by Charles Barkley, something is wrong. Livening up the feature is Bill Murray, who cruelly only appears in a cameo, bringing true comic chops to the picture as himself, a wannabe basketball superstar waiting for the perfect opportunity to prove himself. Murray is simply goofing around, improvising with the likes of Larry Bird, but his spirit lights up the film like a Christmas tree.

Space Jam Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.77:1 aspect ratio) presentation feels satisfactory for this type of viewing experience. Concentration on colors is quite pleasant, filling the HD mood with cartoon hues that pop reasonably, with lush purples and reds, while monstrous greens and oranges generate a special feel for the alien characters. Skintones for the humans are also pleasant, with clean pinks and browns providing a distinct contrast to the animated characters. The image is spotless, free of nicks and scratches, also boasting a pleasant sense of shadow detail, important to a film of extreme nuance such as this. Textures are commendable, with a good feel for detail on faces and animated particulars. Although the cartoon sequences are captured with a soft look, the overall ability to survey the frame for gags and emotions remains easy, with the disc offering a comfortable feel for the feature (which unfortunately reveals crude CGI in full).

Space Jam Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA sound mix is incredibly active, supporting the frantic visuals with a hefty aural accompaniment. Directional activity is substantial, tracking spaceships and basketball plays around the surrounds, which also fill out depth of crowds and arena echo. Dialogue is held in a crisp frontal force, making comedic speeds and thick-tongued actors easy to understand. Voices retain personality and depth, without creating a blur of cheeky actors stepping all over one another. Music selections are fresh, with strong instrumentation and clear vocals, while scoring buttresses moments as intended, carrying a vigorous sense of tomfoolery. Low-end is active with bass-heavy songs and more active action, providing the winning rumble. Keeping with the manic Looney Tunes mood, the mix does a commendable job with scale and accuracy, enveloping the listener in the animated explosion.

Space Jam Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with stars Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, director Joe Pytka, and voice actors Billy West and Dee Bradley Baker is about as unenlightening as it sounds, acting as more of comedy bit than a true conversation about the film. Pytka pops up on occasion (introduced as though he's walking in and out of the room) to deliver the technical information and that material is great, supplying an understanding of the production process and the tricky digital compositing that merged live-action with animation. Baker and West also bring a little backstage perspective of their own. When the focus remains on Daffy and Bugs, the track becomes strictly a superfan affair.

• "Fly Like an Eagle" (3:53, SD) is a music video from Seal, merging footage from the feature with the artist dancing in front of a greenscreen.

• "Hit 'Em High" (4:52, SD) is a second music video, this time taking on a hip-hop mood with help from B-Real, Coolio, Busta Rhymes, LL Cool J, and Method Man.

• "Jammin' with Bugs Bunny and Michael Jordan" (22:32, SD) opens with the pronouncement, "It's the film moviegoers hasn't been waiting for 60 years to see!" I disagree, but who am I to stop the flow of this promotional featurette, which traces the origins of the stars, offering interview snippets with Jordan. Better is the BTS footage, which explores how the picture was assembled, revealing the amazing labor required to bring the monkey business to life.

• A Theatrical Trailer (1:15, SD) is provided.

For additional fun, check out the film's original website, which is still active.

Space Jam Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Once the basketball game commences between the Monstars and Jordan's "TuneSquad," "Space Jam" hits a routine of arena chicanery and CGI-boosted animation (to be fair, the effort looked dated in 1996), with alternating baskets offering the picture room to horse around with the idiosyncrasies of the opposing teams. It's a shame there wasn't more to the effort beyond dunks and yuks, though it's easy to see younger viewers being very impressed with the colorful event despite a complete lack of awareness with the human competitors and, frankly, a few of the animated ones as well. Although efforts have been made in recent years to turn "Space Jam" into an ironic monolith of cinematic worship (an increasingly difficult quest when plucking oddities from the 1990s), the endeavor would be more successful if the feature were total disaster. Instead, it's a middling movie with an occasional pulse, better when locked into tribute mode than when it colors outside of the lines. At least Jordan knew when to quit, never tackling another major acting job, to the relief of filmgoers everywhere.