After years of trying to catch the roadrunner and failing due to defective Acme products, Wile E. Coyote sues the Acme corporation with the help of a small claims lawyer (played by Will Forte).
I would describe this film as Who Framed Roger Rabbit meets John Grisham‘s The Firm, but with Looney Tunes characters. Now those projects are three very distinct tones, and I was very impressed with how the movie is able to blend all three pretty seamlessly into a cohesive and enjoyable whole.
Growing up, my two favorite Looney Tunes were the Tasmanian Devil and Wile E. Coyote, so it’s nice to not only see Wile get the spotlight, but also for a character who only talks using signs, the film really nailed his character and added a surprising amount of depth and sympathy for Wile while also feeling true to his original concept of “coyote wants to eat tasty bird." Also, if you were wondering if my other favorite tune makes an appearance, I don’t want to spoil anything, so I’ll just say… I left the theater happy.
I also appreciated how other popular Looney Tunes characters were worked in; they each played a role in the overall mystery that felt very organic to the story and made good use of their personalities. Also, this isn’t a huge thing, but there is something I’ve always kind of wondered about Granny that this movie finally answered, so I appreciated that.
The CGI in the film is very good; it’s clearly CGI, but the way it’s animated, the cartoon characters feel two-dimensional and tangible in this world, not to mention they make a few deep-cut character callbacks with some of the tunes who show up in the background that I appreciated. Now there are a few shots and a few characters that do look like impressive early PS3 graphics, a little stiff and bulky, not to mention you can clearly tell which characters were created just for this film, but overall it’s not really distracting, and you’re able to stay submerged within the story throughout.
I’ve always felt Foghorn Leghorn is an underrated Looney Tune, so it’s nice to see him in a fun villainous corporate executive role.
I was pleasantly surprised with Will Forte in the movie, not just because he gives a funny and sincere performance, but because growing up, I usually did not care about the human characters in Looney Tunes movies, like I’m there for the Tunes lol, but his story of an underdog, who is scared to try things because he’s scared of losing and how his character's arch ties into Wile and about never giving up, I thought got pretty deep at times, and I never thought I’d say a movie about the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote was “emotionally sincere” lol
John Cena plays Acme’s lawyer Buddy Crane; he is very funny at playing an overly slimy dude, a bro version of a lawyer.
I like how powerful they showed the Rose Runner; like, I’m half convinced he could survive a nuclear explosion lol.
I like and appreciate all the Looney Tunes references throughout the film, like the use of the Looney Tunes theme and naming the lawyers after famous Looney Tunes creators (Avery, Jones & Maltese).
Lana Condor plays Will Forte's niece, and she’s going to film more of a straight man all the whacking around her, but she brings a lot of heart and motivation for the Forte character.
Coyote vs. Acme is my biggest surprise of the year; it takes a premise I’ve seen joked about throughout my life in many forms and makes something pretty unique and heartfelt, without forgetting about the comedy in honoring the characters. I give the film an enthusiastic four stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and like the coyote falling off a cliff. I’m glad this movie is making such a “big bang” with audiences lol
