The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie (2024)

The film comes from the already notable series of Looney Tunes Cartoons shorts with this same team at the helm and shares with it the desire to return the characters to their original period, that is, to the era of directors such as Tex Avery, Frank Tashlin and, above all, Bob Clampett, while Space Jam and Back in Action focused more on the style of Chuck Jones.

The film succeeds in paying homage to Clampett, one of the most energetic directors of the Looney Tunes, and gives back to Daffy Duck his unhinged personality of that first stage, somewhat different from the unlucky, self-centred and envious duck he used to be in Chuck Jones' shorts.

Porky has not had so many variations in his personality but he has been a Looney Tunes character somewhat forgotten in favour of Bugs Bunny and who, nevertheless, works even better as Lucas' companion than the famous rabbit.

The film also succeeds in achieving an emotional involvement with the characters without getting cheesy or abandoning the gags.

Interestingly, although there are jokes during almost every sentimental moment, this doesn't make them seem false or cynical either. The other great thing is the pacing and the way it strings together different homages to the sci-fi sub-genre.

This film comes at a time when we all need to recover our lost childhood and innocence. Looking back, recognising ourselves in the mirror and evolving to be better people is always very necessary, and to be reminded of this in this film, both through the story and its characters, is a real achievement.

The laughter, the smiles, the craziness of the characters, the values that they transmit and the vitality that this film displays make that, although it is focused on children, we adults become children and remember those moments where happiness had NO end and marked us to live a better life.

There is a concept that fits them like a glove, especially for those of us who are starting to feel displaced by the new generations: The ‘happy place’.

Cartoons of this kind are a ‘happy place’ to escape from the chores of modern life; whether you have a child around... or not. Pure, simple, honest fun for children aged one to twenty-something.