"Smile darn ya, smile!" Robert Zemeckis' classic always leaves a happy feeling x

Rating: 10/10 (18 September 2017)

I love this movie so very much, I think it's a sublimely-crafted one-of-a-kind amazing experience of a film to watch on various levels, and I don't believe that there's ever been another one that combined the use of animation and live action that has even come close to the kind of pure magic that was achieved so perfectly with this wondrous little picture back in '88. With every scene you can feel the downright astronomical effort that must have been put into every moment of the movie to make you fall in love with the fantastical world that it presents. They really pulled out all the stops to make you believe that cartoon characters were walking and talking with real world regular people, and nothing is lazy whatsoever about the production of the animation and live-action combinations, they gave the animated characters animated shadows, they had the physical environment reacting to the frequently calamitous movements of the toons as well as the actors reacting to them, such as when Jessica pinches R.K. Maroon's cheeks, and the ultimate hybridisation of the physical and animation stuff is the rather terrifying toon form of Judge Doom! I find it such a joyous marvel to sit through and it was always a big favourite of mine and I love it just as much now as when I was a kid, it gives me a warm feeling just to think of some of the scenes, like the entire sequence at the Pink and Paint Club, and the sweet Betty Boop cameo that saw the voice actress resuming her iconic voice role after fifty years and the way that she seems to be the only toon at that point in the story that Eddie Valiant has nostalgic admiration for. I'm always blown away by the whole opening sequence where Eddie walks down the 40s street to that terrific classy music score while the toons chaotically go about their business everywhere and the film in general seems to come with a sense of nostalgia that's built into its very fabric and atmosphere. I mean you'd have to be totally heartless for there not to be some little thing that you love or appeals to your inner child about it, because if the rich tone, fantastic visuals and great sight gags don't grab you, the characters will! The sadly late but forever great Bob Hoskins was solid in his role and was really the grounding force of the movie as his good old-fashioned down on his luck hard-boiled detective completely contrasts with and reacts to all the weird and wacky characters around him, and undergoes a real arc as he delves deeper into what's going on and uncovers the dark secret that threatens all of the toons and regains his humour, pride, and respect for them along the way. He and Roger made a great unlikely team, and as hyper and loud as he is, Charles Fleischer delivered a voice performance as Roger that was very lovable and endearing, which I think is because he occasionally reigned in his energy a little and gave the manic clownish rabbit moments that help to make him more well-rounded and relateable. And of course he is enormously backed up by his significant other Jessica Rabbit, who arguably stole the show! What a sassy legend the movie made in her, she's so brazenly sexual and it's so hilariously blatant the the way the buxom babe sensuously sashays around in her scenes! She's the most human-like of all the toons and does feel more like a human than one of them, with the exception of her reaction when she's faced with the dreaded Dip! Kathleen Turner gave her the ideal voice that perfectly captured the traits of a classic sultry femme-fatale... And Christopher Lloyd was just phenomenal as the ice cold and utterly ruthless terror of Toon Town, Judge Doom! He's a villain who by his commanding presence alone brings the fear to a generally happily-toned picture - due in no small part I'm sure to the frightening threat that he poses to the seemingly indestructible toons with his Dip, as clearly demonstrated for the audience in the famously chilling moment where a poor helpless shoe gets it! On subsequent viewings the little signs of his true nature are cool to spot, not just the constantly billowing cloak, but how he always avoids the Dip, how he can smell Roger on the record, how he moves kind of stiffly and has odd skin that's almost rubbery and teeth that are too big and white! I love the mystery of Doom, how could a toon who's purpose is supposed to be to bring joy and laughter yet who disguises himself as a stern humourless man, be so completely evil and twisted that he'd concoct an elaborate scheme to ultimately give him the power to eliminate his own kind? When the truth is finally revealed and the mask comes off(sort of), he's finally free to let loose and really goes creepily crazy with it!! I think what would have made a perfectly great happy ending even better, would have been if they'd have made a kind of callback to the poignant early scene in Eddie's office, by showing new pictures of Eddie and Delores on their planned vacation, joined by Jessica and Roger this time, and maybe some showing that Eddie and Roger had teed up as a new detective duo: Valiant and Rabbit! I think Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a solid gold classic because not only is it a fantasy come to life and a loving homage to the beloved animated characters of yesteryear, but also because it creates such an amazing alternate reality within the world of the movie that feels so rich and alive and fun to watch and that you'd love to be a part of and is so memorable and precious, it's a glorious celebration of childhood joy, animation, ingenuity, and the imagination. X