Wednesday 7 September 2011

Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)

WARNING
THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS.
IF YOU WISH TO AVOID SPOILERS THEN DON'T READ THE BITS WRITTEN IN RED.
OTHER THAN THIS BIT, OBVIOUSLY.
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

Cornwall, England is behind in the times when it comes to films. More to the point Cornwall is behind the times in everything from technology to racism but the mere fact that most of the county is still eagerly awaiting Terminator 2 should give you all a good idea as to how tough a situation I find myself in this week, having been stranded here after a planned stag weekend dived head first into a shit ravine with less than a days notice. I've not seen anything new, I've spent most of my time either walking on a beach or walking on a cliff and the idea of writing a film review for this site is very much second on my list of things to do next to getting the hell out of this backwards place. But fear not, I would hate to deprive you, the masses, of my superior intellect and so have booted up Windows 95 and hogged the phone line in order to use the dial up all so I can bring you a review that even Cornwall would be excited to read. This week I will be reviewing 1988's Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

I first saw WFRR back in the summer of 1989 on a Ritz rented VHS copy and loved 90% of it. I can't honestly say that I understood what was going on throughout the film but I can honestly say that I enjoyed what I witnessed, even if the films final few moments scared me witless.

In the many years since that day I must have seen WFRR almost a hundred times and still to this day manage to get something new out of the expirience. The same can't be said for most of my friends who simply remember it for being a loud, stupid kids film with a rather boring plot. I have, however, always managed to buck the trend and unconditionally offer my upmost praises for WFRR on the basis that I think it's near enough a perfect example of what a film can be.

The plot to WFRR is a lighter hearted rendition of a the kind of classical story you would find in any given 'film noir' picture. Roger Rabbit, a living and breathing hand drawn cartoon who lives amongst us in the real world, is framed for the murder of Marvin Acme (The famous cartoon gag king). In order to prove his innocesence he hires the detective tallents of Eddie Valiant played by everyones favorite london gangster, Bob Hoskins. Together the two work their way through a fictional version of 1940's L.A. in order to get to the bottom of the case and uncover a massive conspiracy.

WFRR is loosly based on a book called Who Censored Roger Rabbit from which the film borrows it's primary setting. WFRR is set in a bizarre alternative reality where cartoon characters and human beings all live side by side. Cartoons (or 'toons') work very much in the same way as actors do, starring in their own shows which are shot on stages, with cameras, very much in the same way as real films are. Unlike the book however WFRR is set in 1940's L.A. rather than in the modern day which aids the film in aquiring a timeless feel that has restriced it from becoming dated in the many years since its production.

Technically WFRR is dumbfounding. Costing an at the time record breaking 70 mil', the film blends a real life motion picture with hand drawn, frame by frame catroon animation in order to pull off the films wacky premise. This has been done with computers since in the forms of Space Jam and Loony Toons: Back In Action but back in 1988 computers weren't around that could pull this klind of effect off. So what had to be done was for a team of animators to go into the film after it had been shot and hand draw the 'toons' into every required frame while matching up with the pre excisting lighting and on the set practicle effects.

On paper it's very hard to explain how well the film makers pulled the special effects off. You'd expect, prior to seeing the film, that the animation would look silly and out of place when inserted next to the real actors, but in WFRR you honestly never give it a second thought. The reason for this is down to how much effort the film makers put into making the 'toons' interact with their actors and sets. By utilising robotic contraptions, puppeteers and wire gags the film was shot as if it were an invisible man film. Everything was thought of, objects would wobble on desktops, boxes would rock and things would fall over in order to give the animators a perfect reference for where the 'toons' were to be inserted. It's this attention to detail that really sells the effect and prevents the film from ambitiously falling flat on it's face. It took a year of post production work to pull this off and has gone down in history as a film that would never be made again.

Obvisously none of this would be worth anything without a cast that could knock the film out of the park without their animated aids. Bob Hoskins delivers such a flawless performence in WFRR that it is still a highly praised piece of work to this day. If it wasn't for his total commitment and tallent the entire film would fall completely flat. If you watch the film closely and really focus on his performance you can tell that he believes that the rabbit is really there. If you were to watch the film without any animation effects at all, it would still hold up perfectally and this is all down to Hoskins's performance, truely outstanding.

Opposite Hoskins we'll find the usual geneous being handed out by Christopher Lloyd as county judge Doom, a solid and consistant performance by Joanna Cassidy as barmaid and love interest Delores and an interesting layered portrayal of studio owner R.K. Maroon from Alan Tilvern. Each of these actors faring well in their own right and doing their part to sell the animation effects while delivering any relevent emotion as and when required. Even the more humourous lines are delivered with a level of deadpannery that any Brit, such as myself will find endlessly entertaining. I really can't flaw the physical cast of the film.

On the voice acting side we have some great contributions especially from the films lead, Charles Fleischer. Roger Rabbit is annoying, hyperactive and loud, yet as a direct result of Fleischer's performance the character still manages to come off as a loveable hero who the audience can sympathise with. The voice acting works on so many levels mixing parody, reference, comedy and passion all the while not really becoming noticeable as a performance while your watching which is a key element to any good piece of voice acting. Fleischer aside, Kathleen Turner also does a bang up job voicing the worlds most famous boner enduing animated cartoon character ever created. Jessica Rabbit has gone down in history as a sex symbol in the world of cinema, something which quite simply wouldn't have happened without Turners smooth and dangerously sexy tones. The rest of the voice cast also pull out all the stops for this film with many of the vocal greats including Mel Blanc, Wayne Allwine, Tony Anselmo and David L. Lander all contributing their trademark trade with style and aplomb. 

Obviously these performances wouldn't have been anywhere near as memorable without a knockout script to back them up. The script for the film works well on multiple levels, being forced to balance a dark noirish detective story with outlandish cartoon humour both of which it serves perfectly. Neither the comedy nor the drama outweigh the other in WFRR, something which could have happened very easily if it weren't for Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman's skilled penmanship. It's an impressive script which only gets more impressive the more consideration you give it. Having watched the film as a pre-schooler and as a young adult and having discussed the film with people nearing their middle age I can certify that WFRR works for a massive age range. This is great example of how good a family film can be. It's got the silly, slap dash humour and manic action set-pieces for the kidlets while giving way to a sensible plot with genuine suspense and dark elements that will keep the adults intrigued without ever becoming boring for either party. Too many films before and since have failed when trying to cater for a wide, family audience but Seaman and Pierce struck a winning formula with WFRR. It's a great piece of writing to listen to and to study.

Sadly though, absolutely none of this gumpf would be worth anything without a skilled director helming the project, or in this case two skilled directors. Many people remember WFRR for being a Robert Zemekis film when in fact he only took on the live action half of the directing responsibility. On the animation side that responsibility fell upon the shoulders of Richard Williams. If either one of these two talented individuals attempted to direct the entire film alone I am sure it would have resulted in a flop. Thankfully both recognised their talents and didn't encroach on the other's work resulting in a perfectly directed live action film and perfectly directed animated film. On the live action side Zemekis's direction is heavily noticeable. Many of his trademark, stylistic decisions adding further depth and style to an already impressive looking feature while Richard Williams's understanding of what makes decent animation fun while marrying it with Zemekis's work fully completes what has to be one of the most complicated films ever to be produced. Both deserve heavy praise for their work and have rightly received it in the years since WFRR.

Finally we arrive at a few more words to follow the words that came before them, in this case words that will attempt to sum up this lengthy review. I love Who Framed Roger Rabbit, I have for twenty two years now, so the chances of that changing are slim and none. It's a piece of cinema that defies belief. It shouldn't have been possible, nobody should have taken the risk and it will never happen again. It's a great example of what can happen if a studio decides to take a risk and how wonderfully those risks can pay off when handled correctly. 

The idea that a studio would spend so much money on a project that has potentially no audience is both preposterous and rare, but give credit to Disney, they've made that leap a few times. Its films like Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Pirates Of The Carribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl that lend credence to the notion that cinema can still be relevant, imaginative and fun. I only hope that this already floundering concept isn't totally lost on everyone in the business of film, but if it is then at least I'll always have Who Framed Roger Rabbit, the film that allows me to marvel and dream in a way that all 'GREAT' movies do.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit gets...

5 out of 5 (Yeah nothings perfect but fuck you, this is my review!)

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