A landmark in a very rare genre.

Rating: 8/10 (7 January 2010)

The ideas of blending animation and real life cinema is a rare concept, I can count the number of films I've seen in this style on one hand and it's safe to say none of them come close to matching the quality of Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Bob Hoskins plays Detective Valiant, he was a man once renowned for taking on cases to help toons. Until one night in toon town when a mysterious character killed his brother by dropping a piano on his head, after that moment he decided to never work for toons again. That is until cartoon film maker R.K. Maroon hires him for a dirty job; to snap some compromising pictures of Jessica Rabbit to prove to Roger Rabbit they shouldn't be together. It's a simple start to the story, but it soon evolves into a plot of twists and corruption.
The film is a great blend of genres, principally it's a film noir meets animation. Detective Valiant is the archetypal detective embroiled in a case much deeper than he first thought, Jessica Rabbit is the seductive temptress (Hey, she isn't bad, she was just drawn that way), and of course there is a murder to solve. It's all there, and more. There is a blend of zany cartoon comedy and adult humour, much of it is derived from gags on the animated characters themselves, you know Betty Boop not doing too well since they started drawing in colour! The opening scene could force most adults to turn the movie off within seconds if you wasn't aware of what was to follow, but give it a few minutes and you're introduced to a unique version of seedy 1947 Hollywood.
On a technical level it's impressive. For a movie made in 1988 the cartoons blend in well enough, they aren't perfect but they aren't bad. When Valiant actually enters Toon Town it's a bit rough around edges, but you can forgive this given the age it was made in. What the film really excels in is the interactions the characters have with the toons, a lot of praise has to go to the actors for this. I can imagine how difficult it must be to carry a conversation with thin air, but Bob Hoskins manages to react to Roger Rabbit convincingly throughout the whole film. Christopher Lloyds Judge Doom deserves a mention to, he is possibly one of the creepiest villains I've seen, and at the climax of the film when the little twist to his character is revealed he becomes a genuinely scary sight.
For some reason, the films ambitious concept and merging of genres just seems to work. Its fun and tongue in cheek nature mixed with its darker side make for a unique experience.
7/10