Product: Who Framed Roger Rabbit [VHS] (1988)
Rating: 5.0
Technical achievement and a great film
Sometimes digital groundbreaking images get in the way of artistry and actually creating good art. Robert Zemeckis is a director who's similar to James Cameron and George Lucas as they try to incorporate new film techniques into their films. George Lucas oddly enough has great visuals but bad films(except Episode 3) while Cameron and Zemeckis make good films that still are visually great. Add Roger Rabbit to the list of not only groundbreaking films but good films overall.It's the late 40's and animated characters are not drawn, they actually exist side-by-side with humans. Well Eddie Valiant used to be a private detective who specialized in toons until one killed his brother so now he's on all-toon hating rampage. R.K Maroon, owner of Maroon Cartoons wants to use Eddie to take pictures of Jessica Rabbit's infidelity, who's husband is also Maroon Studios big star, Roger Rabbit. After photographing them play pattycake(the actually clapping game that is), Roger gets upset. Then he's a suspect when Marvin Acme, the other pattycake and owner of Toontown as well as behind the same company Wile E. Coyote uses to get that Roadrunner.So Valiant becomes a reluctant of Roger when he's being hunted by Judge Doom and trying to solve the mystery of not only who killed Marvin Acme but why and what's it got to do with not only Roger but R.K Maroon and a odd company called Cloverleaf. Also on the hunt for Roger is weasels, kind of like Judge Doom's cronies.This film not only looks great(although real-life/animation combo shots look a bit off such as when a character is holding a cartoon) it's actually a really great film period. I still feel sorry for that shoe that has the unfortunate luck of being near Judge Doom and there's many funny lines ("nose? that doesn't rhyme with walls! no, but this does <kicks him in the....yep, those>). The fact that the animation never calls attention to itself is a testament to the film.This film is very much like a guess that cartoon as there's so many characters, even obscure ones. I saw Jose from the Three Cabelleros, that kid from Boy Who Cried Wolf, that hippo from a Fantasia segment and faves like Yosemite Sam and Dumbo. Original characters are great such as Roger himself and my favorite weasel Psycho(time to kill the rabbit! hee hee!)Besides the Back to the Future trilogy, this is probably one of Zemeckis' best films. Cast Away went nowhere while Death Becomes Her wasn't that interesting. Forrest Gump was good but best picture? Pssh. For best film, go all the way to Roger Rabbit.