Video/DVD Review: Space Jam
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this movie has some cartoon
violence. The film is likely to impress younger viewers,
especially those without any sentimental attachment to the
original Looney Tunes cartoons. The characters assemble a
basketball team, including Michael Jordan as a member, to
defeat a group of aliens who want to enslave them. By standing
up against their potential slave masters, the Tunes' efforts
are admirable, so the overall message is fairly positive. Jokes
about merchandising and Jordan's ill-fated baseball career are
thrown in for the older folks, but ultimately, this film will
likely fail to hold the attention of many people over the age
of 12.
Families can talk about whether or not they think the blending
of animation and live-action works or not. Would this movie
have been better as a completely animated feature?
Made shortly after Michael Jordan's first retirement from basketball and his short foray into professional baseball, SPACE JAM marks an attempt to revive the Looney Tunes franchise by creating a big budget live-action/animation feature riding on the basketball superstar's coattails. Bugs, Porky, Tweety, and other favorite Looney Tune characters assemble a basketball team, including Michael Jordan as a member, to defeat a group of aliens, the Nerdlucks, who are trying to enslave the Tunes as attractions in their outer space theme park.
Space Jamdoes little to revive the Looney Tunes characters, who pretty much stick to their tried and true (and violent) antics, albeit in a new setting. As for Michael, his athletic prowess need not be proven, but the mix of animation in the basketball sequences tends to trivialize his abilities. With cartoon characters bouncing around every which way and easily slam dunking the ball, Michael's acrobatics seem minor in comparison.
While the film fails on many counts to best utilize the characters at its disposal, it's still likely to impress younger viewers, especially those without any sentimental attachment to the original Looney Tunes cartoons. By standing up against their potential slave masters, the Tunes' efforts are admirable, so the overall message is fairly positive. Jokes about merchandising and Jordan's ill-fated baseball career are thrown in for the older folks, but ultimately, this film will likely fail to hold the attention of many people over the age of 12.
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