Stuff I Grew Up With: Space Jam (1996)

Remember back when I reviewed Congo and I reiterated my point about being an absolutely unapologetic 90's kid? Well, here's probably the ultimate example of that. I was nine years old when this was released (though likely closer to ten when I saw it for the first time, on VHS), so I was the absolute perfect age for it. Moreover, while I didn't care at all about basketball, I loved the Looney Tunes, so any movie featuring them was right up my alley, no matter what it was. And even with that said, I knew who Michael Jordan was, so it's not like the movie's other side was completely alien to me. This also happened to be one of those movies where it seemed like everybody I knew in my age group, including my classmates and my two closest cousins, were talking about how much they loved it. One of my cousins had the VHS and we watched his copy quite a bit, and I also rented it a lot from our town's local video store, making this something I never actually owned as a kid, but was still so prevalent in my childhood that it definitely deserves the "Stuff I Grew Up With" label. In any case, I saw it for the first time at school (by that point, I'd already flipped through a junior novelization I found in a classroom), during one of those times when the teachers decided to put something on for the kids to watch rather than do any teaching. I vividly remember that it caused a bit of a kerfuffle, as the kid who had the tape wanted to fast forward to the spots with the Looney Tunes, and this other kid got so worked up about not getting to see the whole thing that he actually started crying (that kid had issues). I didn't mind personally but that meant I saw it in pieces before I actually saw it from beginning to end, likely when I rented it for the first time. It didn't matter, as it instantly became a flick that I absolutely loved. Naturally, I gravitated the most towards the scenes with the Looney Tunes themselves but, while I didn't understand a lot of the humor or what was talked about in the live-action sections, I didn't mind them, either. I think it helped that the movie is a tight 87 minutes and those moments didn't overstay their welcome, but also because I ended up liking Michael Jordan himself, as well as Wayne Knight's character of Stan Podolak. Plus, as a kid, I thought the melding of animation and live-action was really cool (I hadn't actually seen Who Framed Roger Rabbit? at that point), as were the instances of computer generated effects, and I really liked the music score and the songs. So, for a kid my age at that time, Space Jam was kind of perfect.

So good were my memories of it, in fact, that I was kind of shocked when I got older and learned that, not only was the general consensus on it not that great, but that it was actually looked upon as something of a stain on the Looney Tunes' legacy. At first, I really didn't get it. By then, I was able to understand that it wasn't a cinematic masterpiece, but a terrible movie? Come on! It's just a fun family flick with the Looney Tunes and one of the most popular sports stars of his time. What's there to really hate? But, when I saw the Nostalgia Critic's old video on it, I began to understand why it wasn't viewed so fondly, that it's seen as just a big corporate product and a feature length version of the Nike commercials that spawned it. Moreover, it is very much of its time, which isn't always thought of as a good thing when it comes to the 90's, especially that era from '96 to '98, which is considered as sort of the "junk-food" era for entertainment in general. And looking at Space Jam now, I'll admit that, despite all the nostalgia I will always have for it, it's not great. For one, there are things about it that have aged poorly, such as how it completely deifies Michael Jordan, as well as in some of the visual effects work. For another, aside from maybe Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, most of the Looney Tunes themselves aren't utilized to the best of their abilities, and they all take a backseat to Jordan. And speaking of which, the way they tie those two halves of this movie together is just bizarre, with certain parameters not making sense, even for something like this. Make no mistake, I do still have fun with Space Jam but, man, have the seams started to show.

On a summer night in 1973, ten-year old Michael Jordan wakes up his father while playing basketball out in their front yard. They talk about Michael's dreams for the future, such as his desire to play at the University of North Carolina, then in the NBA, and finally, switch to baseball and follow in his father's footsteps. Twenty years later, he achieves his dreams of becoming a basketball superstar, but after his father's death, he opts to retire and go on to baseball, just as he planned. Meanwhile, out in space, an alien theme park called Moron Mountain is losing customers and its proprietor, Mr. Swackhammer, decides they need new attractions. He then learns of the Looney Tunes and sends his five small minions, the Nerdlucks, to Earth to abduct them. There, Michael's baseball career, playing for the Birmingham Barons, isn't panning out. The team's owner also assigns him an assistant: Stan Podolak, a very overeager publicist. The Nerdlucks make their way to the Looney Tunes' world and immediately come upon Bugs Bunny, as he's being chased by Elmer Fudd. Initially, Bugs doesn't take them seriously, and even attempts to outsmart them using one of his familiar routines, but their very destructive laser weapons change his tune. On their orders, he assembles a meeting of his fellow Tunes at the Union Hall, where, like him, they initially deride the tiny aliens, only to realize they're a more serious threat than they may seem. However, Bugs manages to talk the Nerdlucks into giving them a chance to defend themselves in some manner. The Tunes then opt to take advantage of their short stature and lacking physical capabilities by challenging them to a basketball game. But, when they show them a documentary on the game to give them a rough idea of it, they unintentionally inspire the Nerdlucks to steal the talents of Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Shawn Bradley, Larry Johnson, and Muggsy Bogues. They then use said talent to transform themselves into the "Monstars," a team of hulking, skilled, and ferocious alien players. Realizing they need help, the Tunes manage to pull Michael into their world and explain the situation to him. But even with the help of His Royal Airness, there's no guarantee that the Tunes won't end up as Swackhammer's slaves.

I saw some commercials featuring Michael Jordon and the Looney Tunes after Space Jam was released (specifically, for MCI Communications; the one I always remembered had the Tunes singing, "I Believe I Can Call"), but I didn't know until many, many years later that the movie itself was inspired by commercials. As I'm not a sports guy, it won't surprise you to know that I've never once watched the Super Bowl, so I had no knowledge of those Nike commercials where Jordan first appeared with Bugs Bunny, which aired during the 1992 and 1993 games. But, many other people did, and it inspired Jordan's manager, David Falk, and CBS executive Ken Ross to pitch a full-on movie featuring Jordan paired up with Bugs. Ivan Reitman, who would go on to be a producer on the movie, is also said to have had a big hand in its conception, with the idea being spawned by a conversation between him and a Nike executive, and that he also came up with the basic story. Strangely, though, Warner Bros. initially wasn't interested, despite how successful those commercials were, and it was only when Lucy Fisher, the studio's Executive Vice President of Production, gave her support that it got the green light. Jordan's retirement from basketball in 1993 initially seemed to have killed the movie before it even got made, but it was revived upon his return two years later. There were ultimately four writers behind the screenplay, specifically two writing teams. One was made up of Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick, who'd previously written the spec script that eventually became The Santa Clause, while the others were Timothy Harris and Herschel Weingrod, who'd written Trading Places, and also had a hand in writing Twins and Kindergarten Cop, both of which were directed by Reitman (thus, it's probably not a coincidence).

The fact that Joe Pytka, the man who directed the original Nike ads, was hired to direct Space Jam does reinforce the notion that it was seen as just a big commercial. That said, though, Pytka had actually directed a couple of features beforehand: the 1987 documentary, Cannes Goods II, and 1989's Let It Ride, with Richard Dreyfuss. And yet, at the same time, he wasn't hired onto Space Jam until just a few months before shooting was to begin. He also revised the script and, amazingly, Spike Lee, whom Pytka had worked with on a previous commercial, offered to help polish it further. However, Warner Bros. didn't allow it, as they didn't like how Lee had gone to other sources to finish funding Malcolm X. By all accounts, Reitman should've received a co-director credit, as he was the one who supervised the animation work, whereas Pytka seems to have only shot the live-action scenes and elements. In fact, there are stories about him being a major dick to the animation teams, with one animator, Dave Spafford, claiming, in an interview on the YouTube channel, The Looney Tunes Critic, that Pytka screamed at and cursed him out when he questioned a filmmaking decision that he knew was going to cause problems during the animation process. Spafford said he left, but was brought back later to fix the very problems he warned them about, and that Pytka was no longer involved with the movie. That could be why, despite Space Jam being such a giant hit, Pytka's directing career never took off afterward. In fact, he didn't make another feature film until 2017: another documentary, Lunch with George and Ed (specifically, George Lois and Ed McCabe, who had big careers in American advertising).

For as much grief as Michael Jordan himself gets for this movie, both for shamelessly agreeing to take part in what is a feature length advertisement of his own personal brand and his "acting," I don't think he's really that bad. David Falk had turned down previous movie offers for Jordan because he knew that he likely couldn't play anyone but himself, and that's exactly what he does here. Or, to clarify, he's playing his manufactured public image: a very talented but humble athlete and role model who's at a point in his professional life where he feels like he's achieved everything he can in basketball and has moved on to something else. Moreover, he's portrayed as a guy who, in his off-time, lives in an upscale house in a fairly modest suburb, and is loved by his family and popular with his neighbors. Really, the only conflict going on in his life is that his baseball career is proving to be a big mistake... that is, until he gets caught up in the Looney Tunes' dilemma. And speaking of which, I feel that, when he finds himself literally dragged down into Looney Tune Land, his reaction is pretty believable. When he first sees Bugs Bunny, his incredulous reaction is one I could see myself having, as well as how he reacts to the wackiness they put him through in rapid procession. And while I would probably be a little more aggravated, as well as still grappling with the idea that these characters really exist, something Michael seems to come to terms with fairly quickly, I do like when he finally looks up after the crazy physical Daffy Duck puts him through and incredulously asks, "What's goin' on here?" Regardless, he's initially not keen on helping the Tunes, partly because he hasn't played basketball in a long time, and also because he seems to feel this has nothing to do with him. It's only when the Monstars show up, humiliate him, and bruise his ego that he agrees to help (that, and he doesn't like the way they treat Tweety). Though he finds training the Tunes to be fairly difficult since, save for Lola Bunny, none of them have played basketball before, and he has to send Bugs and Daffy to his house to get his gear, he quickly manages to get back into the swing of things.

Of course, that doesn't mean beating the Monstars is a cakewalk by any means, as initially, Michael and Lola are the only ones who manage to score any points. Despite how bad the score is by the end of the first half, Michael tries to encourage the Tunes when they're back in the locker room, telling them he's been in this kind of situation before and that they can still win. He also gets mad when Porky Pig suggests they just give up and tries to encourage them to really take it to the Monstars, but it doesn't work. It's only with

Bugs' help that he manages to get them to believe in themselves to where they start to turn the game around. And then, during a lull in the game, when he overhears Swackhammer say that he wants him for Moron Mountain, Michael, also now knowing that the Monstars stole some of his friends' talent, makes a new deal: if he and the Tunes win, the Monstars have to return the talent to the NBA players, and if they lose, Swackhammer gets to enslave Michael himself. While it was partly to get his friends' talent back, I

also have a feeling that it, again, was Michael's ego that prompted him to make that deal, as he never considers how, if he loses, his family, who don't even really know what's going on, will never see him again. Though he says he has faith in his team, things get serious again when the Monstars incapacitate nearly all of the other Looney Tunes, leaving the team down one player. Fortunately, Bill Murray shows up at the last second to fill in that spot. And Michael, learning that, because he's in the Tunes' world, he can do anything they can, uses that advantage to

win the game. Afterward, he also encourages the Monstars to stand up to Swackhammer's abuse, manages to make it back in time for his next baseball game, and returns the NBA players' talent, before making his own triumphant return to basketball.

Again, while his performance is nothing amazing, I don't think Jordan is that bad. As I've said, he comes off as a likable, charismatic guy, and he handles the overzealous Stan Podolak really well, although he does occasionally lose his patience with him. I like how, despite the very weird situation he finds himself, he grows to the point where he sees the Looney Tunes as his teammates and does sincerely try to help them. Granted, I still think his ego being bruised is a big factor in his decision to help, as he never mentions the

threat of enslavement the Tunes are facing when things start going bad. But, that said, he does arrange for the Monstars to return the NBA players' stolen talent and offers himself to Swackhammer, as if to let the Tunes know, "If we go down, I'm going down with you." Also, I think Jordan does really well in the many scenes where he's interacting with the cartoon characters, particularly the climactic game. Granted, he wasn't actually reacting to nothing, as he had people in green suits standing in for the Tunes, but I, 

for one, have always been able to buy that he's walking around and talking with Bugs, Daffy, and the others, and that he's really in there, dodging and stealing the ball from the Monstars, and passing it to the Tunes.

As Roger Ebert said in his, quite positive, review of Space Jam, it partly functions as something of a weird biopic on Jordan. It starts the way you would expect one to, with Jordan as a young kid who shows a real knack for basketball, talking about his dreams with his father. Then, the opening credits are set to a montage of his highlights in the NBA, with both actual footage from his games and various real photos depicting him growing into a man, and that's followed by him announcing his retirement from basketball due

to his father's recent death and his decision to next go into baseball. (Until I was in my 20's, I always thought the section where he's a baseball player was something they made up, and from what I've heard, his time in baseball was actually pretty disastrous.) And since he'd just announced his return to basketball when production began, the writers decided to make it the movie's ultimate payoff, suggesting that his time playing with the Looney Tunes is what inspired him to return. It is definitely a unique angle to take with

the story, but the downside is, because the focus is on Jordan, the Looney Tunes are relegated to supporting roles. Their ordeal with the Monstars really just serves as a means for him to get back into basketball, and it also becomes personal for him following his deal with Swackhammer. And once the game is over and the Monstars have sent their abusive boss packing, before reverting back to the Nerdlucks and joining up with the Tunes, the focus shifts back to Jordan for the remainder of the movie, with the 

Tunes themselves disappearing until the post-credits bit (and even then, Jordan is the one who has the last line). Another con is that there was some dramatic potential to Jordan's story that they didn't take any advantage of. While he acknowledges that he's terrible when he gets home from one really bad game, they could've had him be much more conflicted about this career path, especially since he did it to honor his father, who always wanted him to play baseball, rather than because it was another passion of his own. It could've been something that was constantly 

gnawing at him all the way through and, in turn, could've also played a role in his ultimate decision to return to basketball. But, since this movie is what it is, that is never a factor (and, again, since Jordan isn't an actor, who knows if he would've been able to convey that emotion or if he would've even wanted to).

There are many ways in which Space Jam hasn't aged well, and I think a major one is how it glorifies Jordan, painting him as talented and driven, but also humble and down-to-Earth. Again, it's that public image he sold for a long time, but nowadays, it's well-known that Jordan was an overly competitive and vindictive egomaniac whose actions have caused a lot of people, including some of his former teammates on the Chicago Bulls, to despise him, particularly following that Last Dance documentary. That's also

not to mention his gambling issues, doing nothing when it was revealed that Nike had been using child labor in various factories worldwide, the bad decisions he made while he was majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats (now the Hornets) and the many stories of him just being a complete dick to fans. What's really funny, though, is how you can see some of Jordan's real negative traits here if you look for them, like that bruised ego that makes him determined to beat the Monstars (it seems as though being called "baldy" pissed him off more than anything else),

those moments where he gets frustrated with Porky Pig, especially in the locker room, and how he roasts Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, and the others before giving them back their talent (and even there, he messes with them when they're freaked out at the sight of the glowing basketball housing said talent).

I think a big reason why I didn't mind all of the stuff without the Looney Tunes was Wayne Knight. Most may know him as Newman on Seinfeld, but when I was a kid, I knew him as Dennis Nedry in Jurassic Park, which you should know was a very important part of my childhood. And here, as Stan Podolak, he gets to play a much more likable character than either of them. A publicist for the Birmingham Barons who's assigned to be Michael Jordan's assistant, Stan is very eager to please his client. Ordered to make sure that Michael is, "The happiest player in the world," Stan, after literally falling into the dugout, tells him, "I'm here to make your life easier. You want me to drive you somewhere, I will drive you anywhere. You want me to pick up your laundry, babysit your kids, I will do it. I am here to personally guarantee that no one will ever bother you." Needless to say, Stan can be overzealous, and is also apparently a very lonely guy, one who, most definitely, does not live in a place as nice as Michael's, as he asks if he needs anything done at the house as soon as he sees it. For the most part, Michael handles him with great care, but when he's playing golf with Larry Bird and Bill Murray, Stan's attempt at encouragement and coaching, as well as when he's getting all fancy with taking a picture as Michael reaches to get the ball out of the hole, does try his patience. When Michael gets dragged down to the Looney Tunes' world, Stan, worried for his safety, as well as for his job, is desperate to find him before his baseball game the next day. He goes as far as to dig a massive hole in the middle of the golf course, but then, with good fortune, sees Bugs and Daffy on their way back from getting Michael's basketball gear from his house and follows them. What I like is that, even though, when he finds Michael, Stan is initially intent on getting him back for his baseball game, he quickly goes along with his helping the Tunes in their game against the Monstars. He even offers to help by playing in the game, though Michael has him sit on the bench for the most part. Significantly, Stan sneaks into the Monstars' locker room and hears how they stole the NBA players' talent. Though he gets fried by one of them for this, he manages to tell Michael about it, and late in the game, when they're in need of a fifth player, he puts Stan in at center. He ends up getting dog-piled by the Monstars and is, literally, flattened like a pancake, but manages to get the shot in. But, because he's incapacitated until after the game, the Tune Squad is, again, in need of a fifth player...

...and that's where Bill Murray comes in. I tend to forget that he's in this movie and, as it turns out, he was originally only meant to be in the scene where he's golfing with Michael and Larry Bird at a country club. There, he mentions what's happened recently with the five NBA players getting side-lined after they lose their talent and that the league has to find some new people, before nominating himself. He asks Michael if he thinks he has a shot but Michael flat-out tells him no, that, "It's a man's game, and you can't play." To that, Bill asks, "It's 'cause I'm white, isn't it?" Michael retorts, "No. Larry's white. So what?", and Bill says, "Larry's not white. Larry's clear." He can then be heard giving Larry the same spiel as Michael's taking his turn, and Larry is even more brutally honest, telling him, "You can't jump." Bill is about to argue, then says, "Yeah, go on." Later, when Michael gets pulled down by the Looney Tunes as the three of them stand there, Bill looks at Stan, who was taking the picture, and asks, "What kind of camera is that?", before snatching it away and yelling, "Would you not point that at me, please, and close the lens cap?!" Later, as he and Larry leave the golf course, Bill says, "Larry, I'm gonna give us both 2s back there. We weren't in any kind of emotional state to putt." (The two of them are actually calm, considering what they witnessed.)

In any case, Bill's sudden appearance at the end of the game gets no in-universe explanation, even when Daffy flat out asks him how he got there. His answer is a complete fourth-wall breaker: "Producer's a friend of mine. He sent a Teamster to drop me off." And while he's saying this, the orange Monstar, Pound, looks at him with utter disgust. The actual real world reason is simply because Murray decided he wanted to be in the climactic scene, and they had no time to write and shoot a scene where he found his way down

there. (Granted, we don't ever learn how Stan got down there, either. Yeah, he saw Bugs and Daffy squeeze themselves down a golf-hole, but how he pulled that off is anyone's guess.) Regardless, Bill gets to live out his fantasy of playing basketball during the game's last ten seconds, and his intervention allows Michael to get the ball and make the winning basket. Afterward, while the Tunes are celebrating their victory, Michael compliments Bill on his skills and says he might actually be able to play in the NBA. But Bill, who's clearly in pain from just that

little bit of playing, says he's going to "retire," and, "Go out on top, undefeated and untied. That's the way it's gonna be." Michael invites him to celebrate with them, but Bill tells him, "I'd like to, but I have to ice down my knees right away." He leaves, but, at the end of the movie, as he and Larry are in the stands at Michael's return to the Chicago Bulls, he;s clearly regretting that decision. Larry, obviously not knowing anything about what happened, tells him to forget about it, and Bill, his voice cracking, yells, "Okay. Let's go Bulls!"

I may have known who Michael Jordan was (and I also knew who Shaq was, as this was the same year as Kazaam), but this is where I first learned of a number of other well-known basketball players, like Charles Barkley. He's the first one to have his talent stolen, during a game between the Phoenix Suns and the New York Knicks, and probably has it the worst of any of them afterward. Not only does it cause him to mess up during a crucial part of the game, but when you see him again later, he comes across these teenage girls playing basketball in a public court. When they spot and recognize him, and he asks if he can play, they're more than happy to let him. But, when these girls, who are significantly shorter than him, are able to steal the ball and block his shots, the one who first saw him says, "You're not Charles Barkley. You're just a wannabe who looks like him." He then leaves in shame, with that girl yelling, "Wannabe, begone!" Then, during this montage where the players are trying to figure out what's wrong with them, Barkley is talking with a psychiatrist about what happened, and is then shown sitting in church, praying, "I promise I'll never swear again. I'll never get another technical. I'll never trash talk." At the end of this montage, it comes back to him, as he says, "I'll never go out with Madonna again."

During that same game between the Suns and the Knicks, Patrick Ewing also has his talent stolen, and it causes him more immediate embarrassment on the court. When the ref tosses him the ball, it first hits him in the face, then he struggles to pick it up off the floor, and when he finally shoots for the basket, it whacks a guy in the stands who's selling popcorn. Later, during that montage, he's talking with that same psychiatrist, who asks him, "Are there any other areas, besides basketball, that you find yourself...

unable to perform?" Hearing that, Ewing turns around, looks at him, and, clearly annoyed, exclaims, "No!", to which the psychiatrist says, "I'm just asking." (The use of the song during this montage makes it funnier, as I'll explain later.) During this same montage, you also see Shawn Bradley and Muggsy Bogues talking to that psychiatrist. Bradley, who's so damn tall that his feet are sticking off the end of the couch, says, "I've got other skills. I could go back and work on the farm... Or maybe... I could 

go back to the jungle and be a missionary again," and then, we get a brief glimpse at a rather interesting conversation between Bogues and the shrink: "What are you sayin'? That I'm tryin' to disobey my mama?" "I didn't say that. You did, Muggsy." "But I love my mama." The one we don't get to see much of during this montage is Larry Johnson, at least by himself, save for when he's explaining what he felt to a doctor. As he, Ewing, Bradley, and Bogues are being rolled through a hospital corridor in wheelchairs, he complains, "I've been MRIed, EKGed, x-rayed, laser 

beamed..." Shortly afterward, as they're being wheeled again, Bogues says, "Maybe there's nothin' wrong with us," and Johnson adds, "That's right, Muggs. Maybe it's just in our heads." Bogues goes on to say, "We're fine. It's just some psychosomatic deal, or somethin' to do with the moon or the alignment of the planet." At the end of the movie, all five of them are in a gymnasium, lamenting about how they can't play anymore. Johnson says his grandmother plays better than him now, while Bogues adds that it's especially bad for him, as he's now "just another short guy." Fortunately, Michael shows up and, after some ribbing, returns their talent. They then proceed to return the ribbing, going after his baseball career and suggesting he can't play basketball anymore, prompting his return to the NBA.

Even though she's billed fairly high in the credits, Theresa Randle only has like two scenes in the entire movie, as Michael's wife, Juanita: when Michael comes home from his disastrous baseball game and laments to her about how bad he was, and at the end, when she and the kids are in the stands at Michael's next game, as everyone waits for him to show up. In fact, while it's not much, their three kids, Jeff (Manner Washington), Marcus (Eric Gordon), and Jasmine (Penny Bae Bridges), have more significance

than they do. Initially, it seems like Jeff may prove to be somewhat important in the story, as when he comes home from his own Little League game, he, like his dad, is not happy about his performance. Once they're in the house, Michael hears his kids listening to Jim Rome completely roast his own performance at the Barons game, with Jeff asking, "Did everyone get mad at you." Michael tells him that they were all really nice, which made it even worse, and Jeff gives his dad some "advice," saying, "I think you should open up your stance a little. It might make

you more aggressive at the plate." However, nothing more comes of that. In the middle of the movie, when Bugs and Daffy are trying to get Michael's basketball stuff, and are in danger of getting chomped by Charles, the family bulldog, the kids come to the rescue. Jeff gets his dad's shorts away from Charles and then hands them to Bugs (I love how he and the other kids don't question that these cartoon characters are in their house and trying to get their dad's basketball shorts), while Marcus makes the dog leave the room. On the way out, Bugs tells Jeff about how their dad is going to play in this important Looney Tunes basketball game, but asks him not to tell anyone. But, at the end, when everyone is waiting for Michael at the ball-field, Jeff lets it slip, absentmindedly telling his mother, "He's not back from his other game." Fortunately for him, just as Juanita is demanding to know what "other game," his dad arrives on the field... in a rocket-ship, no less, making me wonder how he explained that to his wife and everyone else in the stands.

He's only in the opening, but I've always liked the portrayal of Michael's father (Thom Barry), James Jordan Sr., as he comes off as the kind of dad you would want: really warm and encouraging. When young Michael wakes him up with his late night basketball shooting, instead of being mad at him, he's just curious and walks outside, asking his son what he's up to. Initially, he tries to make him come back into the house, but he lets him make one more shoot. When he gets that one in, James, impressed with his son's obvious skill, decides to let him go on until he misses (not a smart decision, considering who we're talking about). As he keeps shooting, Michael shares his dreams with his dad, and while he's supportive of all of them, he's especially happy when he says he'll play baseball after his career in the NBA, commenting, "Baseball. Yeah, now, that's the sport." Like I said earlier, I feel there was a lot of dramatic potential in that very line that the movie never takes advantage of. And, while I can understand why they omitted it, since this is a family film, it is mentioned that James died prior to Michael's decision to transition from basketball to baseball, but never does it hint that he was murdered, something I didn't know until I looked it up out of curiosity.

Interestingly, when the Nerdlucks sneak into the Knicks/Suns game to steal the players' talent, they sit next to two spectators who, in a random combo, are played by Patricia Heaton and Dan Castellaneta (what do you think is stranger: that, or when Heaton was paired up with David Duchovny during their scene in Beethoven?). While her husband is focused on the game, the woman gets weirded out by the strange movements the Nerdlucks make in their disguise and the glimpses of them that she gets. Her husband then

inadvertently makes Charles Barkley their target when he complains about how, "Barkley's killing us!" The last time you see them, the wife is completely freaked when the "man" in the raincoat next to her seems to melt, while her husband is still none the wiser. And finally, as brief as his role is, because he was in my favorite horror film, John Carpenter's The Thing, and is the center of one of its most memorable scenes to boot, I have to mention the late Charles Hallahan as the Birmingham Barons' owner, who tells Stan to be Michael's assistant and keep him happy. Sadly, this was one of the last movies Hallahan appeared in before he died of a heart attack the following year, and it was also one of the last to be released while he was still alive.

Getting to the Looney Tunes themselves, I think Bugs Bunny (voiced by Billy West) fares the best. He's his typical smart, sarcastic, fourth wall-breaking self from the get-go, when he's introduced running from Elmer Fudd, stops to tell the audience, "I'll, uh, be with you in a second, folks, after I finish with nature boy, here," and then, upon being faced with the Nerdlucks, pulls his classic routine of describing himself before walking away, saying, "Nope. Never heard of him." And even though the Nerdlucks aren't fooled for long, Bugs is later able to coerce them into giving the Tunes a chance to defend themselves before they're immediately enslaved, and after conferring with some of the others, opts to take advantage of their physical disadvantages by challenging them to basketball. Of course, he didn't count on them stealing a bunch of NBA players' talent and becoming the Monstars, which is what prompts him to recruit Michael Jordan. That was one of the many things about the movie that Chuck Jones took umbrage with, as he said Bugs would never seek someone else's help, but I think it's perfectly reasonable in this scenario, as he realizes they've really been backed into a corner they can't easily get out of. (And, with all due respect and admiration for Mr. Jones, that was his portrayal of Bugs, who, along with many of the other Looney Tunes, have been portrayed in a number of different ways throughout their history.) In any case, once they get Michael to help them, Bugs proves to be his biggest ally and supporter. He and Daffy go to his house to get his basketball gear, and after the disastrous first half of the big game, Bugs, seeing that Michael's inspirational speech to the team isn't working at all, comes up with the ploy to get them to believe in themselves by acting like a bottle of water is some performance-enhancing drug. He's also really shocked when Michael makes the deal with Swackhammer to allow himself to be enslaved, worried that he might come to regret it. And, while he should've told him earlier, he lets Michael know that he can take advantage of cartoon physics while in Looney Tune Land, allowing him to win the game.

Going back to what Jones said, I've personally always found it funny whenever Bugs has either acted out of character or found himself in a situation that really challenges him. For example, I've always liked Rabbit Rampage, the followup to Jones' classic Duck Amuck, with Bugs as the one being messed with by the animator, because it's funny watching him lose his temper and freak out over not being in control of the situation, for once. It's the same thing here, as I crack up at his reaction to nearly getting blasted by the

Nerdlucks, his plea to Michael to help them win the game, and how, right at the start of the game, he gets clobbered when he's so ecstatic about getting the ball. I also like his fawning over Lola and his attempts to flirt with her, like when he unintentionally pushes her berserk button by calling her "doll" when he first meets her. That's a side of Bugs that you, at that time, hadn't seen much of  And he does something really commendable and chivalrous when he pushes Lola out of the way to keep her from getting crushed by Pound, getting crushed himself in the process. Now that is something you would expect from him, particularly Jones' version.

I also think Daffy Duck (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) comes off well, too, and this is most definitely Jones' version: the arrogant, self-centered guy who thinks he knows everything and is jealous of Bugs always being the star. This is very clear when he claims to Bugs that he's played basketball before, but is then more worried about his appearance during the game than his actual skills, and especially when he and Bugs go to Michael's house. As per usual, he has to go against Bugs' suggestion of which way they should go, leading him to get mauled by Charles when he winds up in his doghouse. And the whole time they're searching the house, he's continuously sarcastic towards Bugs, like when he says, "Yes, oh, fearless leader," and, "Yes, sahib," and he can be heard muttering to himself, "I am in the peak of my form playin' second-banana to some sort of a harebrain... Mr. Low Duck on a Totem Pole... If this were a union job..." When the Tune Squad's starting lineup is introduced at the beginning of the big game, he comes out, expecting applause, only, of course, to get nothing but dead silence, save for a cricket chirping, much to his irritation. However, you do also get some of that classic Daffy kookiness, like when he gives Michael that crazy physical examination after he first gets pulled into the Looney Tune Land, when he paints a red splotch on the back of Pound's shorts, leading Toro to charge and stab him in the rear end, and when Bupkus smashes him with his hand and, in a daze, he goes, "But Mommy, I don't want to go to school today. I want to stay home and bake cookies with you."

She's always been a rather polarizing character since her first appearance here, but I've always liked Lola Bunny (voiced by Kath Soucie). Many complain that she's little more than a sex symbol, something for both Bugs and the audience to ogle, and doesn't have much of a personality, but I just see her as a very confident woman who knows how attractive she is and isn't afraid to lean into it. By that same token, some would say it's weird for her to then get so offended when someone calls her "doll," but I would argue that, just because she's confident in her sex appeal doesn't mean she wouldn't demand respect or dislike being referred to by outdated terms such as that. (And in a case of turnabout being fair play, she does ogle Bugs when he pumps himself up in order to make the "Secret Stuff" look legitimate.) Plus, it helps that she has the skills to back up her confidence, proving to be the one member of the Tune Squad who's really adept at basketball, able to score a basket even before Michael's halftime pep talk. And finally, while it's not focused on too much, she does prove to have a caring personality, notably when she's horrified when Pound crushes Bugs and then thanks him for saving her, finally reciprocating his affection for her, and as well as how concerned she looks when someone on her team gets hurt.

Sylvester (voiced by Bill Farmer) has one defining character trait here: he wants to eat Tweety (voiced by Bob Bergen). Even when they're trying to come up with a challenge for the Nerdlucks, all he can think of is, "I say... we get a ladder, wait 'til the old lady's outta the room, then grab that little bird!" Even during the middle of the big game, he randomly eats Tweety, only to cough him up when a basketball hits him in the gut. Also during the game, he uses a fishing pole to hook and tear off Pound's shorts, leading to that

moment where Lola yells, "Nice butt!" Other than that, the only memorable thing about him is that he's voiced by Bill Farmer, the modern voice of Goofy, and so, whenever he talks, all I hear is a little bit of Goofy with Sylvester's sloppy lisp. Tweety's most significant moments are after Michael first arrives, specifically when he's confronted by the Monstars. He defends Michael after Bang calls him "washed up," only to get flicked against the wall, hurting him. When Michael picks him up in his hand, Tweety, after moaning, "My poor wittle cranium," tearfully asks, 

"You're not... scared of them, are ya, Michael?" On top of everything else, that gives Michael the gumption to agree to the game. During the second half of the big game, there's a moment where Tweety, surrounded by the Monstars, suddenly goes crazy and beats the living crap out of them! Farmer also voices Yosemite Sam, whose most memorable moment is when he tries to scare off the Nerdlucks after they declare that they're taking the Tunes prisoner, only to get zapped by their laser gun, prompting the other Tunes to take them seriously. He's also the one who drags Michael down to the Looney Tunes' world with his rope and, during the big game, is part of a Pulp Fiction reference, along with Elmer Fudd. Farmer is credited with playing Foghorn Leghorn in some scenes but, for the most part, he's actually voiced by Greg Burson (who, notoriously, later went nuts and barricaded himself in his house, holding three women hostage). Most memorably, poor Foghorn gets fried by Bang's fire breath and, before disintegrating into ash, stands there charred, mumbling, "Did you order the Original Recipe or Extra Crispy?"

Bob Bergen, in particular, voices quite a few characters, such as Porky Pig, whose most memorable moment is when, after the Nerdlucks have just become the Monstars, he gets so scared that he says he wet himself (something else that Chuck Jones hated); Marvin the Martian, who acts as the game's referee (like I heard someone else say, he's probably the best choice for it, since being both a Looney Tune and an alien makes him impartial); Barnyard Dawg, who, when they're playing the film describing 

basketball, gets mad and throws his popcorn bag at Foghorn Leghorn when he walks right in front of the screen; Chester the Terrier, who, along with Spike the Bulldog, come in as paramedics and pump Stan up like a balloon after he gets flattened by the Monstars; and the two mice, Hubie and Bertie, the latter of whom is the game's announcer. However, the deep, booming voice he suddenly speaks in is provided by Steve Kehela. Billy West is also credited with doing Elmer Fudd, though Burson also voiced him in some 

scenes. The first time you see the Looney Tunes' world, when the Nerdlucks arrive, Elmer is chasing after and shooting at Bugs, and even corners him, only for the Nerdlucks to land behind him and drop the end of their ramp onto his head. And when they're trying to come up with a way to challenge the Nerdlucks, Elmer, after Porky suggests a spelling bee, says, "We could have a bowling tournament," and does his signature laugh. The classic voice actor June Foray, as usual, voices Granny, who's mainly on the 

sidelines, as a "cheerleader," but at the beginning of the big game, thanks to Daffy passing her the ball, she gets dog-piled by the Monstars. Foray also briefly voices Witch Hazel when she uses a defibrillator on Taz afyet nearly the whole team has been crushed by the Monstars late in the game. Speaking of Taz (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker), he has a couple of memorable moments, like when, after he cleans up the gymnasium following the Tunes' spit-shine, he says, "Lemony fresh,"; when he tears up his uniform while trying to put it on before the game; and when he

flat-out faints when faced with the Monstars at the start of the game (which, as a kid, I felt let you know these guys were a major threat, as Taz was never scared of anything). Pepe Le Pew (voiced by Maurice LaMarche) appears a couple of times during the game to serve as little more than a gag, notably when Michael holds him up so that his smell stops the Monstars in their tracks. I don't really remember the Road Runner doing anything memorable in the game, but he does mess with Wile E. Coyote during 

practice, and can also be seen with a neck brace when everyone has been wiped out during the game's second half. Wile E. manages to blow up Bupkus when he goes for a slam dunk at the start of the second half, and also gets utterly annihilated as soon as the game restarts after Swackhammer tells the Monstars to, "Crush 'em!"

Even if they're only cameos, it's cool that a lot of Looney Tunes characters appear, particularly during the climactic game. This includes obscure ones like Sniffles the Mouse (voiced by Colleen Wainwright), whom Michael, for whatever reason, calls on for the tip-off after Foghorn Leghorn gets fried, and gets squashed by a basketball after he yammers on in front of Blanko (that scene was done because one of the animators hated Sniffles), and Beaky Buzzard, who's among the Tune Squad but never does anything, as 

well as one-offs, like Toro the Bull (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) from the cartoon, Bully for Bugs, who charges at Pound's rear end when Daffy paints a red smear on it. In the massive traffic gridlock leading to the stadium, you can see characters like Gossamer, who's smooshed in a car in front of Toro, and Michigan J. Frog dancing on one car's roof. In the audience, you see characters like Penelope Pussycat, Pete Puma, the Three Bears, Sam the Sheepdog, Rocky and Mugsy, Giovanni Jones, and at the end of the game, when the Tunes win, Red Riding Hood from the cartoon, Little Red Riding Rabbit, who cheers with everyone else. 

While it's a pretty thankless role all in all, as he's just a stereotypical nasty boss, Danny DeVito does make the most out of his voiceover job as Mr. Swackhammer. After overhearing an unhappy customer at Moron Mountain complain about the place, Swackhammer agrees with him, yelling, "I've told you... if I've told you once, I told you a thousand, thousand, thousand, thousand, thousand times: WE NEED NEW ATTRACTIONS!" He also just happens to learn of the Looney Tunes when he, literally, sits on his TV remote and a bunch of their classic cartoons appear on this series of monitors behind him. That inspires him to order the Nerdlucks to go to Earth, capture the Tunes, and bring them back to Moron Mountain. After that first scene, Swackhammer isn't seen again until he arrives for the big climactic game, watching everything from a seat that overlooks the basketball court. Naturally, he's happy during the first half, which the Monstars absolutely dominate, but by the end of the first part of the second ond, where the Looney Tunes improve dramatically, he's furious. He then asks the Monstars why they didn't take Michael Jordan's talent, and proclaims that he wants him for Moron Mountain. That's when Michael suggests they raise the stakes and offers himself up if the Monstars win, a deal Swackhammer is more than willing to agree to. He next orders the Monstars to crush the Tune Squad, leading to them getting pulverized. But Swackhammer is flabbergasted at the end, when Michael wins the game for the Tunes, and angrily admonishes the Monstars, call them names and stomping on Bupkus' foot. He also threatens to do even more when they get back to Moron Mountain. But when Michael asks the Monstars why they're taking his abuse, they realize that they're now bigger than Swackhammer and promptly jam him into a missile that shoots him up to the moon.

The Nerdlucks, who are actually five specific individuals of an overall species, have pretty basic individual personalities. Pound (voiced by Jocelyn Blue), the orange one, is sort of the cantankerous leader, and is also the one who steals the NBA players' talent, shifting into a translucent, snake-like form to do so; Blanko (voiced by Charity James), the blue one, is the dimwit; Bang (voiced by June Melby), the green one, is sort of neurotic; Bupkus (voiced by Catherine Reitman), the purple one, is just 

sort of eccentric; and finally, Nawt (voiced by Colleen Wainwright), the little red one, is the smallest and most childish, with the highest-pitched, most kid-like voice. When they turn into the Monstars, some of their personalities stay the same, while others become noticeably different. Pound (voiced by Darnell Suttles) and Bang (voiced by Joey Camen) are the real trash-talkers when they meet Michael Jordan, calling him "wussy man," "washed up," and "baldy." Also, while all of them are dicks, Bang is the most aggressive and mean-spirited, given how he injures Tweety, and is often snarling and growling at his opponents. Bupkus (voiced by Dorian Harewood) doesn't really stand out from the others, save for maybe being a bit of a showboater, like how, when they first show up at the gym, he proclaims, "I'm here!" Nawt (voiced by T.K. Carter) is memorable simply because he's still the smallest of the bunch (obviously, his talent came from Muggsy Bogues), as well as the fastest talker. The most memorable is Blanko (voiced by Steve Kehela), not only because he's still a moron and, obviously taking after Shawn Bradley, the tallest, but because he has a few standout moments. He's the one who causes Porky to wet himself, is actually concerned about Tweety after Bang hurts him, much to his teammates' irritation, and flattens Sniffles with the basketball.

While the movie's big budget of $80 million is plain to see during the animation scenes, particularly during the climactic game, most of the full-on live action stuff has a rather average quality to the way it looks. Not that everything has to be visually distinctive, but there's really nothing that special about those scenes in that regard, and you can they were shot by a commercial director. The one exception, however, is when Bugs and Daffy sneak into Michael's house at night to get his basketball gear, which has that classic blue moonlight aesthetic to it, and the way the 

lighting plays on Bugs and Daffy as they walk in and out of it makes it totally believable that they are actually in the environment. Sure enough, it's during the scenes with the Tunes where the direction, cinematography, and editing really come alive, be it in how the camera follows Bugs and Daffy as they make their way through the house, with fairly long shots of them walking through the foyer and the trophy room; the quick pans and zooms you get in scenes like the introduction to Moron Mountain and Mr. Swackhammer, with the camera starting far away 

and getting right up on the latter's face as he rants, the Nerdlucks arriving in Looney Tune Land, and the shots establishing the interior of the stadium before the big game begins; and the numerous dynamic shots and exciting editing during the game itself. One often repeated visual motif is big, extreme close-ups, starting with that one on Swackhammer and continue on to Michael's face when he first meets the Tunes, Bugs when he goes in to kiss Michael and yells, "We need your help!", Tweety when he flies right up to the

screen upon seeing Michael, and a montage at the start of the game's second half, with the Tunes and the Monstars getting in each other faces, as well as yours. The one I always remember, mainly because I found it to be really gross, is when, after being told he has to go to Michael's house, Daffy says, "To your house? In 3-D land?", with his spit splattering on the camera lens to emphasize the latter statement.

I do like some of the locations used in the live-action scenes, like Michael's rural childhood home at the start, which reminds me of places like my grandparents' home, which I visited so often in my lifetime; the very lovely bit of forested countryside that serves as the country club where he, Bill Murray, and Larry Bird play golf; and the house where he lives with his family, which is a fairly big, lovely suburban home, with a nice kitchen, living room, and foyer, a bedroom full of toys for his little daughter, Jasmine, and, most notably, the trophy room, which

is also a very posh den/study, with a fireplace in-between two dressers in the back. Some other noteworthy places include the real baseball stadiums seen early on and at the end of the movie, various basketball stadiums (including Madison Square Garden), the city streets where Charles Barkley gets humiliated when he plays with those teenage girls, the psychiatrist's office where the players talk with him, and that church where Barkley is seen praying for his talent to return.

On a technical level, I think just about everything involving the animated characters is great. The animation itself is really well done, being very fluid and nicely detailed, and I also think it captures the spirit of the work done in those classic cartoons, just on a bigger budget and scale. You can also tell that the artists were particularly inspired by Bob Clampett's wild movements and exaggerated expressions, given how crazy some of the takes are, and how distorted the characters briefly become between frames. Speaking of which, from a design

standpoint, I think the characters look awesome, and I remember as a kid how cool I thought it was that they often have something of a 3-D feel, likely due to how, even though both the characters and many of the backgrounds and environments were still hand-drawn, they were digitally scanned, then touched up, colored, and composited. Like I said before, I think Bugs and Daffy are integrated into the live-action environment of the interior of Michael's house during that one scene really well (for some reason, I always thought 

they looked particularly awesome in that scene where they're in front of the door; I guess it was just because I'd never seem looking so three-dimensional and lifelike, for lack of a better word), and the same goes for when Stan briefly sees them at the golf course. Just as cool-looking is when they touch and hold live-action objects, like when Bugs puts one of Michael's sneakers into a gym-bag. And as drab as the live-action cinematography sometimes is, the animated sections are bright and colorful, and they also 

sometimes get a bit experimental and even quite dynamic in style. When the Nerdlucks first becomes the Monstars, the scene goes from sunset and kind of idyllic, to dark and overcast, with the clouds in the sky combining with the fading sunlight and flashing lightning to create some strikingly colorful visuals. Also, while most of their transformations are only partially seen or happen offscreen, Bang's is on full display and rather horrific, as you see his body grow in size as his back arches, bumps akin to Godzilla's 

spines pop out of his back, and he turns around, with his new, monstrous eye taking up the entire screen, and he lets out a fierce roar. And, when Michael makes the deal to be made into an attraction at Moron Mountain if they lose the game, Swackhammer envisions it in a completely animated and stylized manner, with very garish colors, deep shadows, and crazy, Expressionistic shapes and angles.

While the Looney Tunes' world is mostly done in the hand-drawn style, Moron Mountain, which you only see at the beginning, is a combination of it and CGI. It's introduced through a long, continuous bit of camerawork, starting on Michael as he's holding a press conference about his retirement, panning up through the skylight, and heading towards and then passing by the moon, panning in towards a sign pointing off to the right, and then turning in that direction and doing a tight, fast push-in towards the small planetoid housing the amusement park,

skimming across its surface, and heading towards the park, through its main gate and entrance, the latter of which is shaped like Swackhammer's gaping mouth, before finally arriving on a view of the park itself. We don't see much of it, but we do see attractions like a Ferris wheel, something called Sludge Summit, and a ride where rockets circle around a giant Swackhammer head, which shoots lasers out of the cigar. And these lasers are serious business, too, as they blast one of the cars and send it crashing down 

below. The only other part of the place we see is Swackhammer's office and control room, which looks out over the park. Its most notable feature is this big wall made up of TV monitors (which also function as CCTV cameras, given how he first uses them to monitor the park itself), which is where he first sees the Looney Tunes.

The portrayal of the Looney Tunes' world, which Daffy, at one point, calls, "Looney Tune Land," is another part of the movie that, much like the characters themselves, has received some criticism, mainly because the Tunes all live together here as friends. For me, the issue is that, while it's well-drawn and nicely colorful, this place is just really generic: a bland, non-de-script town with a forested surrounding area, the latter of which is the first part we see when Elmer is chasing after Bugs. Also, while, in the scene where Michael first finds himself there, we can see 

some living areas, a barbershop, a little park where he lands, and, most significantly, a basketball court, which is where the Nerdlucks became the Monstars, we only see a few select places for the most part. First is the assembly hall where the Nerdlucks make it clear that they intend to enslave the Tunes, and where the Tunes, in turn, decide to challenge them to a basketball game. Second is the Schlesinger Gym (if you're a big fan, then you get that reference) where they practice and hold tryouts, and which is initially a rundown dump, but then the Tunes fix it up with their

"spit shine." This setting is also an example where the backgrounds are digital rather than hand-drawn, making it a precursor to the giant stadium where the big game takes place. The stadium is definitely the most impressive setting in the Tunes' world, with its sheer size and the hundreds of characters taking up the bleachers, with Swackhammer getting his own personal balcony seat up high where he can see everything, directly across from the announcer booth. It also made for one of the most technically

innovative and challenging part of the production, as it was one of the first examples of a virtual studio, with Michael Jordan filming in a large room that was basically one giant green screen, with people in green suits standing in for the characters. And like I said before, I think the illusion works, for the most part, and I'm able to believe that Jordan is really on that court, playing basketball with those characters. It's not 100% perfect, though, as there are a number of shots where I can clearly see the separation between

him and the green screen. And there are some shots where the characters in the stands are completely stiff and not moving, like cardboard cutouts. But I still think the scenes of Jordan interacting with the characters are right up there with Who Framed Roger Rabbit? in regards to how believable they come off.

One thing that wasn't CGI, which I was originally sure it was, but was actually a miniature, was the Nerdlucks' spaceship when it's flying, which was used because Joe Pytka wanted to help smooth the transition between the live-action and the animation. However, moments that are very obviously CGI are gags like when the Monstars crumple Michael up into a ball, toss him around the gym, and then dunk him through the basket; when Stan gets flattened like a pancake, and is then blown up like a balloon and sent flying through the air as he deflates; and Michael's 

stretching arm when he makes the slam dunk that wins the game. Those effects were achieved using a new type of 3-D rendering, with a camera to create three-dimensional, 360 degree images of the actors' faces and bodies, but as amazing they may have been for the time, they now look pretty crude. What's more, when Michael unfolds out of that crumple, you can see where the effect leaves off and the live-action comes back in (though, with Stan 

deflating, the transition back to the actual Wayne Knight is more seamless). The CGI used for when Pound turns into his gooey, translucent form in order to infiltrate the NBA players' bodies may not be the greatest either, but it's so weird and icky-looking, slithering around like a snake, and entering and exiting their bodies through various orifices, that I can't really call it bad. The same also goes for the glowing basketball where the talent is stored, which also has a strange, uncanny feel about it.

The parameters and context of both Looney Tune Land and the movie's reality as a whole are really strange and contradictory, even for a movie like this. For instance, according to Space Jam, the Tunes live in an alternate world found within the center of the Earth itself, through a giant, stretchy portal that looks like the Warner Bros. shield logo, and their classic cartoons are being acted out in real time, as seen when Michael's kids are watching the Coyote/Road Runner cartoon, Beep, Beep, on TV, when Porky comes in and interrupts it, telling them they have an

important meeting to attend. Is that how it's been since the beginning, when these cartoons were originally shown in theaters, and do they have to do it over and over again or is it actually being filmed and is then replayed continually afterward? Yeah, I'm thinking too hard about this, but I remember finding this strange even as a kid, whereas other movies, like Who Framed Roger Rabbit? or, more relevantly, Looney Tunes: Back in Action, are much more straightforward, with their simply being treated as actors, working at studios alongside live action

characters. It also raises questions as to how these characters came to be and got so famous in this reality to begin with (especially since Bugs and Daffy mention merchandising), but I'm not going to get into that, as I doubt the filmmakers were even thinking about it. However, another question that I had as a kid is, why are Mr. Swackhammer and the Nerdlucks cartoon characters, and why is Moron Mountain and the section of space around it animated? It'd be one thing if they were also from the Looney Tunes' world,

possibly from their dimension's version of outer space, but going from the expected live action, everyday depiction of Earth, with Michael giving his press conference about retiring from basketball, to this fully animated planet and alien race is rather jarring. Originally, they were going to have another actor, like Dennis Hopper, play Swackhammer in live action, supposedly with everything else around him animated, but they likely dropped that idea because putting Michael Jordan and several other actors in

animated environments was hard enough already. It's also not explained why Charles the bulldog gets a little animated in his scenes with Bugs and Daffy, sprouting cartoonishly big teeth, adopting extreme facial expressions, and emitting more over-the-top vocalizations (courtesy of Frank Welker), but I guess it was just to make him blend in with them better.

Going back to Looney Tune Land itself, you also have the revelation that anybody there is unbound by the normal laws of physics and reality. I can understand why they did that, as it's a quick way to explain how Michael and the other live action characters are able to survive the Tunes' antics, which would kill them otherwise, but it is flawed in several ways. First, they try to make this a big revelation that Michael has near the end of the game, after what happens to Stan when he's flattened by the Monstars, but that should've been clear to him from the minute 

he got there, especially when the Monstars literally folded him up into a ball and bounced him around. Second, in their introductory scene, Swackhammer and the Nerdlucks already seem susceptible to cartoon physics as well, despite their technically being from our reality. Third, it makes the scene where Bugs saves Lola from getting crushed by Pound, as well as much of the Tune Squad being incapacitated during the latter part of the game's second half, leaving them in desperate need of a fifth player, impossible to take 

seriously on a dramatic level. Bugs is completely fine after Pound drops on top of him, and you know the squad's "injuries" won't be permanent, either, as this is all immediately after the gag where Daffy ends up as a stain on Bupkus' hand after getting slapped, yet is perfectly fine minutes later. It's also plot convenience that the Tunes' injuries are now suddenly sticking, when they'd previously spent the whole movie doing things business as usual in that regard. And finally, it's a cheap deus ex machina for Michael to use to make the slam dunk that wins the game, and it makes you wonder why the Monstars, in turn, don't do something to counteract it, since they should be able to.

Going back to the criticism that this is little more than a feature length commercial, while that's definitely true in regards to Michael Jordan's image and brand, there's not as much product placement here as you might expect. It is still very much here, though, with the most egregious example being when Stan comes in to get Michael before a game and tells him, "Get your Hanes on, lace up your Nikes, grab your Wheaties and your Gatorade, and we'll pick up a Big Mac on the way to the ballpark." Not only did he blatantly list off five products that Jordan endorsed at

the height of his popularity, but you could also accuse the screenwriters of sneaking in a sixth with "ballpark," since another sponsor of Jordan's was Ballpark Hot Dogs (I do vaguely remember those commercials). Plus, there's already McDonald's stuff in that scene, like a drink that Michael's holding and a thing of French fries on the dresser the TV set is sitting on. Another big endorsement was the Air Jordan 11, which Michael wears during the big game (when he walks out onto the court, they not only 

make sure to get a shot of one of the shoes, but Blanko even comments, "Cool shoes,") and which the movie served as a launchpad for. And you get a shot of a Piggly Wiggly when the Nerdlucks first arrive on Earth (don't think I've ever seen that get any product placement in anything), and there's plenty of product placement during the last scene, when Michael returns to the Chicago Bulls.

As far as the humor goes, I think most of it is on point with the spirit of the Looney Tunes. In fact, the movie utilizes a fair amount of their classic gags and routines. The first time you see the Tunes, Bugs is not only getting chased around by Elmer Fudd and often breaking the fourth wall to address the audience, as per usual, but, again, when first confronted with the Nerdlucks, he does his shtick of describing himself to a T, then saying he's never heard of 'Bugs Bunny" before. You also have Daffy stubbornly refusing to listen to Bugs when they arrive at Michael's house

and digging his way to Charles' doghouse (which he discovers by lighting a match), where he gets mauled; Bugs and Daffy trying to placate Charles with a cartoon bone and a slice of ham; Sylvester being obsessed with eating Tweety; some typical slapstick with Wile E. Coyote, with the former communicating his pain through various signs; and Pepe Le Pew's stink being used as a means to deter the Monstars during the game. The crazy slapstick here is most definitely of their flavor, with Yosemite Sam getting 

zapped by the Nerdlucks, leaving him charred and just in his underwear; Michael getting a wild "medical examination" from Daffy when he first gets pulled down into Looney Tune Land (they do the gag of Daffy being able to see straight through his ears), and getting crumpled into a basketball by the Monstars; and all the shenanigans that happen during both practice and the big game, notably the plethora of injuries they receive during the second half. And 

suggestive humor and innuendos are hardly unknown to the Looney Tunes, either, with Bugs not only fawning over Lola but getting stiff as a board when she acts really seductive towards him, Tweety commenting, "Ooh, she's hot," before doing the hissing steam from the rear end gag, and a number of male Tunes in the stands, particularly some wolves, going crazy when she first enters the court.

There is some crude humor, to be sure, with Porky saying he wet himself, the whole spit shine scene (which I did think was needlessly gross even as a kid), Pound's shorts getting yanked off during the game, giving us a good look at his big, orange buttocks, and, after he gets pumped full of air, Stan flying around the stadium while letting out a loud, continuous fart, the smell of which disgusts even Pepe Le Pew. (As a kid, I thought Stan had a problem with BO and flatulence in general, as there's a moment where Tweety blows a raspberry at him that 

I thought was him farting for some time. And when he spies on the Monstars in their locker room, he gets found out because Swackhammer and the others smell him. I think it's just because he's human, but at the time, I thought it was because he really stank!) I get why that wouldn't sit well with traditionalists, and I'm not big on that type of humor, either, nor have I ever really loved it here. But, at the same time, that was the humor that everyone in my age group at the time, especially the boys, loved, so I was kind of numb to it. One type of humor, however, that I've never been

big on, especially in modern family movies, is referencing something that's either popular at the time, as it becomes dated within just a few years, or something the filmmakers know only adults will get. Staying purely within the Looney Tunes franchise, this is hardly confined to Space Jam, as the classic cartoons constantly referenced celebrities and films that were popular at that time. However, they didn't know those cartoons would have any sort of shelf life, and mainly did it because they thought it was funny,

whereas nowadays, it's done so people will think you're hip. While I don't really mind the Patton reference that Bugs does while conferring with the other Tunes (which ends up getting cut short by Porky), moments like Daffy modeling that golden jersey, those purple shorts, and pair of sneakers (which go from looking like normal shoes to being shaped like his webbed feet between shots), the Tunes working out while watching Richard Simmonds, and that Pulp Fiction reference are the kind of things that make me roll my eyes in movies like this.

Now that I can appreciate it, I like some of the more cynical, corporate humor, like when Bugs asks Daffy if he gets any revenues from all the merchandising that sport their likenesses and he answers no, adding, "It's a cryin' shame. We gotta get new agents, we're gettin' screwed!" Also, just to take it a bit further, what prompts this exchange is when they look in Jasmine's bedroom and see all the toys she has. Later, as they're heading back to Looney Tune Land, the two of them have this exchange, which makes for a not so subtle jab at their home studio's number one rivals: 

"Listen, how's this for a new team name:the Ducks!" "Please! What kind of Mickey Mouse organization would name their team the Ducks?" "So, sue me! It's just a suggestion." But probably the best example is a visual one, where Daffy shows the Warner Bros. logo on his rear end, declares that they're, "The exclusive property and trademark of Warner Bros., Inc.," and proceeds to kiss the logo and, literally, his own ass in the process. That moment was created by Dave Spafford and his studio, when they were brought 

back onto the movie after the nasty encounter he had with Joe Pytka. In that interview with The Looney Tunes Critic, Spafford, who flat-out says he isn't a fan of the movie, said that was a gag they threw in there, which the higher-ups at Warner Bros. were reportedly not happy with because of what it flat-out stated about them.

The idea which this movie puts forth about talent being a tangible thing that can be stolen from and used by someone else, and how the NBA players become uncoordinated morons without it, is something I'm sure many people don't care for, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't find the scenes with these five guys funny. Though Charles Barkley is the first one who gets his talent stolen, it really gets funny when Patrick Ewing is robbed shortly afterward, as when the ref tosses him the ball, it knocks him right in the face. Then, he struggles to pick it up, and when

he does try to shoot a basket, he hits that guy selling popcorn in the stands. In the following scene, when Michael's watching TV before his baseball game, you see footage of Muggsy Bogues at the moment his talent was taken (it looks as though he's got the hiccups while standing on the court), which cuts to a shot of Paul Westphal angrily yelling, "What the hell's goin' on?!", which itself is funny due to the timing. That's followed by Larry Johnson being so uncoordinated that he tries to get a drink of water from a bottle and completely misses his own mouth, 

while Shawn Bradley very clumsily walks across the court. This causes a health-scare within the entire NBA, as it cuts to Los Angeles, before a Lakers game, where the team is refusing to go into the locker room because they're afraid of catching whatever ailment the other guys got. Del Harris tries to assure them that there's no danger, since the other cases happened on the opposite side of the country, but they're not convinced, with Vlade Divac saying, "It could be Invasion of Body Snatchers." In the end, 

they decide to dress in the hallway... while wearing gas masks. Later on, when the players are going through various examinations, there's a traveling shot through a hospital corridor that follows Ewing, Johnson, Bradley, and Bogues as they listen to a doctor. But when they walk through a doorway, the first three, because of their height, whack their heads against the top of it and fall back, which neither Bogues nor the doctor notice. I don't know if that's supposed to be because of their lost talent or what, 

but I do snicker at it. I also find the shot of Johnson being put through a neurological exam to be funny because of the weird equipment attached to his head. And the five of them end up going to a medium who tells them exactly what the deal is, but it sounds so ridiculous (I love how Ewing incredulously mouths, "Bugs Bunny?!", when the medium mentions him) that they give up and walk out.

While I enjoyed the entire movie as a kid, my favorite part was always the climactic big game, as it's where the movie's two major elements come together for some fast-paced, antics-filled fun. It starts with the buildup, with the street leading to the stadium jammed full of cars, and cuts to the Tune Squad's locker room, where you see them getting ready, putting their uniforms on, and adding their own personal touches: Lola wraps tape around her hand, Bugs pushes his tail out the back of his shorts, Elmer 

Fudd puts on a headband, Taz tears apart his uniform while putting it on, Sylvester and Tweety are doing jump-rope, and the latter puts black marks on his face, and Daffy puts on a ridiculous amount of protection. Finally, after Michael suits up, he and his team head out to the court. After the Tunes' starting lineup and the Monstars are introduced, the game gets underway, with Michael and Blanko doing the tip-off, which the latter manages to score. Pound jumps up to get the ball but misses, and Bugs gets it. He's all happy about

it, until Bang backhands him, sending him skidding along the floor on his face, with a loud squeak (even though it's a cartoon character, that still makes you go, "Ow!"), and takes the ball for himself. Pound makes the slam dunk, and Michael then gets the ball and tries to get around the Monstars. When he can't, he passes it to Daffy, of all people, who immediately wishes he hadn't, especially when Bupkus points at him and yells, "The duck!" When they all come charging at him, he randomly passes it to Granny on the sidelines, causing her to get dog-piled and

and knocked senseless. The Monstars then score another point, easily managing to get around Lola, but when Michael gets the ball again, he's able to make a slam-dunk, scoring the Tune Squad's first point, despite Bang's attempt to knock the ball away. Porky attempts to compliment Michael, but his lack of focus when he should be on defense causes the Monstars to score again. Bugs then passes the ball to Michael, but he finds himself surrounded by the Monstars, who yell, "Red light!" That's when Sylvester randomly eats Tweety, but then, Michael tosses the ball to him.

It hits him in the gut, causing him to cough up Tweety, who, of course, says, "Bad ol' putty tat!", while Pound takes the ball and scores another point. After that, Foghorn Leghorn gets fried by Bang's fire breath, and Michael picks Sniffles for another tip-off with Blanko, resulting in him getting squashed. However, Lola manages to score a basket by literally running across Pound's face when he makes the mistake of calling her "doll."

However, that's the only basket the Tunes make for a good long while, as the Monstars get on a massive winning streak, scoring so many points in a row that even the score counter notes how this isn't looking good for the Tunes. Marvin the Martin then fires his pistol to mark half-time, and ends up blowing a big hole through Sylvester's torso, which Tweety flies through, commenting, "Holey putty tat!" Naturally, the Tunes go back to their locker room completely dejected, while the Monstars head back to theirs

confident and sure they've got it in the bag. But, when Swackhammer comes in and talks with them, they mention how they stole the NBA players' talent, which Stan, who's hiding in one of the lockers, overhears. Unfortunately for him, Swackhammer smells his human scent and he gets found out, as they rip off the locker's door. It then cuts to the Tunes' locker room, where Michael fails to lift his team's spirits with one of his inspirational stories. Stan shows up at the door, steaming smoke and blackened from getting fried, with Daffy commenting that he 

looks like he had, "A close encounter with a bug zapper). Stan stumbles in and collapses to the floor. After Michael and the Tunes help him up, he tells them what he learned. But, after Michael's second attempt to pep them up doesn't work, either (it actually puts nearly all of them to sleep), Bugs comes up with the placebo of "Michael's Secret Stuff" and gets him to play along with it, as it's passed to everybody. Once everyone has had a taste, they hit the court again with renewed confidence. Staying behind, Stan, who was desperate to get some of the stuff himself, is dismayed that the bottle is now empty.

The Tunes come running back onto the court, as Get Ready For This by 2 Unlimited plays triumphantly on the soundtrack (God, I remember how much I loved that song as a kid, and would geek out whenever I heard it in anything). After they stare down the Monstars, the Tunes show off their new resolve when, after Bang passes the ball to Pound, Bugs comes by on a scooter, steals it, and passes it to Michael, who makes the basket. Bupkus then goes in for a dunk, only to find a bunch of explosives waiting for him,

courtesy of Wile E. Coyote. After getting blown up, he angrily grabs Wile E., only for Yosemite Sam and Elmer Fudd to shoot his teeth out. Michael sinks another basket, and the Monstars charge across the court with the ball, when Sylvester uses a fishing pole to rip off Pound's shorts, much to his embarrassment. Taz then sinks a basket, followed by Michael, and then Porky, with Sylvester and Foghorn Leghorn's help. Next, Michael uses Pepe Le Pew's funk to stop the Monstars dead, and Pepe himself makes the

basket, followed by Michael doing the same, whacking Nawt on the head when he tries to intercept him. When the Tune Squad's score gets to 62, not far behind the Monstars' 68, Swackhammer really gets angry, and that's followed by Daffy painting red on the back of Pound's shorts, prompting Toro to charge out of the crowd and nail him with his horns, sending him flying up to the ceiling, yelling in pain. Tweety then goes crazy and beats the hell out of the Monstars when they surround him, allowing Elmer to come in

and make the basket, doing Michael's signature tongue expression as he does. With the score now 68-66, Swackhammer calls a timeout, and makes the deal with Michael that will enslave him if the Tune Squad loses.

Upon Swackhammer's orders to, "Crush 'em!", the Monstars promptly massacre the Tunes: Wile E. Coyote gets smashed to bits, Porky is squeezed between two Monstars' massive butts, Sylvester gets stomped on by Pound, who then backhands Michael, Elmer gets a painful elbow drop from Bupkus, who also uppercuts Foghorn, Taz gets kicked by Nawt, and Bupkus, using Foghorn as a club, treats Tweety like a golf-ball, sending him screaming through the air with a swing. Bupkus also smashes Daffy with his hand,

though Daffy still proves to be a nuisance with his spitting lisp and dazed actions. After Michael gets knocked to the floor by Pound, the orange Monstar attempts to crush Lola by diving down on her from the hoop but Bugs pushes her out of the way and gets crushed himself. Michael calls a timeout, and you see the number the Monstars have done on the Tunes (I just now noticed that Speedy Gonzalez, whose head is caught in a mousetrap, is among the injured, even though he never ever appeared beforehand). Surmising the situation, Michael, desperate for a fifth

player, has no choice but to call on Stan, whom he tells to guard Pound. Stan is more than eager to jump in, talking about how he'll never take his eye off Pound, and falls over himself as he strips down to his uniform. Lola tosses Michael the ball, but he gets surrounded by the Monstars, prompting him to toss to Stan. He gets it, but promptly gets all of the Monstars diving on top of him. It causes the ball to go through the air and make the basket, but Stan gets flattened like a pancake. After Chester and Spike come in, do their thing, and take Stan away, the game's last bit begins when Bill Murray shows up to join the team as their new fifth player.

The final play begins as Daffy, wearing a football helmet and declaring, "It's gut-check time," charges right at Pound, who receives the ball from Bupkus. He hits him in the gut, causing him to lose the ball, which Bill grabs as it bounces across the floor. He dribbles it amid the Monstars, shouting, "I'm goin' left! I'm goin' left!", then tosses it to Michael on his right, yelling, "Don't ever trust an Earthling!" Unable to get around Nawt, Michael passes the ball to Lola, who quickly gets surrounded by Bang and Blanko.

Daffy yells for the ball, but when she throws it to him, Bupkus whacks him with his hand. He then prepares to catch the ball, only for Bugs to come in and steal it with his ears. He passes it to Bill, who trips up Blanko, and passes it back to Michael when he manages to get around Bang and Bupkus. Pound comes at him, but when he dives at him, Michael steps on his head and then his butt, using them as makeshift stairs, and jumps for the hoop. Bill yells that he's open, but then immediately realizes he'd better leave it to Michael. Pound looks up and sees 

Michael pass over him, while Bang and Bupkus grab his legs and his waist. That's when Michael makes use of the cartoon physics that Bugs early said applied to him and everyone else, and stretches his arm across the court in order to sink the basket. That wins the game 78-77 for the Tune Squad, much to everyone's delight, while Swackhammer's eyes nearly pop out of his head. Everyone immediately starts celebrating, while Bill heads out, Michael encourages the Monstars to no longer take Swackhammer's abuse and send him to the moon, and he wraps up the movie by returning the NBA players' talent and heading back to the Chicago Bulls.

Music-wise, Space Jam is a movie where the soundtrack is more well-known than the actual score. It was such a major part of it that the movie's own VHS had a promo for it in the previews leading up to it. And we are going to talk about that, trust me, but the score, by the great James Newton Howard, is worth discussing in its own right. His music definitely has the flavor of what Carl Stalling and others did in the classic shorts, and you could definitely imagine hearing some of it in those cartoons. For instance, the upbeat, orchestral, traveling theme for the long pan through outer space that introduces Moron Mountain, which becomes bigger and much more bombastic when it reaches the planetoid, and then turns ominous when the camera goes through the giant Swackhammer mouth, before adopting a carnival-like sound when we see the park itself. The music that plays during Looney Tune Land's introduction, and when the Nerdlucks meet Bugs, has that classic, mischievous cartoon tone all over it, with the various tunes and stings reacting to the action (I always liked the little string bit that you hear when Bugs hops around while describing himself). The same also goes for the rambunctious piece that plays when Charles the bulldog tackles Michael to the ground when he arrives home and licks his face, then becomes softer and more down-to-Earth when get a sense of his home life; the utter craziness that is the theme for when Michael first arrives in Looney Tune Land; the zany music during the spit shine and practice sequences; the sexy saxophone music for Lola's introduction; and the music that nicely goes with the antics Bugs and Daffy get into while retrieving Michael's shorts. But, all that said, Howard's score also goes places you wouldn't expect, with a big fanfare bit for the lead-up to the opening credits, and some loud, percussive music for the scene where the Nerdlucks become the Monstars, transitioning into some menacing, electric guitar riffs for when the transformation is complete and when they walk off after letting the Tunes know what kind of trouble they're in. 

The best part of the score, though, is the music for the big game, with the first half being dominated by this rocking, electronic vibe, getting into how, even with Michael on their side, the Tune Squad are badly outmatched by the Monstars. It even makes the game come off as really epic and downright serious business at points, reminding you of what's at stake if the Tunes lose. And once the first half is over, the music gets rather sad, alluding to how it looks as though they're doomed. While the first part of the second half is mostly dominated by the songs, you do get some more upbeat music, leaning into the Tunes' gradual comeback, with a downright holy-sounding piece when Michael manages to make a slam dunk that hits Nawt on the head, with some bits added in for some specific moments, like a French theme for when Pepe Le Pew is used as a makeshift stink bomb, and a Mexican-style horn piece for when Toro charges at Pound's rear end. But, when Michael makes his deal with Swackhammer, and the latter envisions what he has in store for him on Moron Mountain, to spend the entire day signing autographs and playing rigged games with the customers, the music gets really grinding, trying, and monotonous. And when the Monstars get serious again when the game resumes, the music becomes even more hard-hitting than it was at the start, and becomes really dire when Bugs saves Lola. The hard-hitting bit comes back when Stan ends up taking one for the team after Michael puts him into the game. And the music that plays during the game's final seconds, particularly The Winning Shot, is just awesome, as it builds to the momentous moment that is Michael dunking the basket, and a truly cheer-worthy fanfare when the Tunes have won. Speaking of cheer-worthy, the same also goes for the celebratory music for when Michael returns the NBA players their talent.

Getting to the actual soundtrack, so many of the songs featured here are quintessential of the 90's, and I can definitely attest to how much kids at the time were listening to and humming many of them. And I will say that I do still love the title song, by the Quad City DJ's. It's just so damn energetic, gets you so pumped up, and does its job when played up against the montage of Michael Jordan's greatest basketball moments, as it makes him come off as a god of the sport. The same also goes for Get Ready For This by 2 Unlimited, which I mentioned earlier was a piece of music I loved so much as a kid. Another bit of music that always comes to mind when I think of this movie is Pump Up The Jam by Technotronic, which plays in the lead-up to the start of the big game. It's just another cool bit on the soundtrack that gets you pumped up and ready for what's about to go down. Getting back to the actual songs, I think a lot of people also remember Seal's cover of Fly Like An Eagle, which you hear when Michael begins practicing with the Tunes and which also kicks off the ending credits. However, it's also a shame in retrospect that another of the movie's most remembered songs is R. Kelly's I Believe I Can Fly, which you hear twice, both at the beginning and when Michael arrives for his baseball game near the end. It sucks, because it is a good song, and it won Kelly a bunch of Grammys, but, still, you know... Basketball Jones, by Barry White and Chris Rock, is what plays during that montage with the down and out NBA players, and the way White's voice goes, "Yeah. Yeah, yeah," when the psychiatrist asks Patrick Ewing about other possible areas where he finds it difficult to "perform" makes Ewing's annoyed, "No!", come off especially funny. You also have For You I Will by Monica, which you hear a little bit of during the ending credits, and it's a shame they couldn't find a spot in the movie for it to play in full, as it's a really nice song. The same goes for I Turn to You by All-4-One, which plays out the ending credits. 

Other notable songs you hear include That's The Way (I Like It) by Spin Doctors and Biz Markie, which is heard when the Nerdlucks arrive at the stadium where the Knicks and Suns are playing; Upside Down (Round-N-Round) by Salt-N-Pepa, which plays after Pound steals Barkley's talent; Givin' U All That I Got by Robin S. when Daffy is showing off those different outfits; Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now), when Michael runs out onto the court to join the Tunes; a brief bit of Misirlou by Dick Dale during the Pulp Fiction reference; and Wild by Icehouse at the end, when Michael rejoins the Chicago Bulls. And finally, you do hear the classic Looney Tunes theme, The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down, when the Nerdlucks enter Looney Tune Land, very softly when Daffy shows off his rear Warner Bros. stamp, and at the very end.

I debated whether or not to mention this, as it's a little known, but still very unfortunate piece of Space Jam's legacy, and I also didn't want to close this review out on something of a downer. But, because I was so taken aback when I read this, I figured I'd share it here for those not in the know. I mentioned early on that Chuck Jones was not a fan of the movie, to say the least. Well, despite this, he was asked to attend a dinner with the animation team and the studio executives, on the Warner Bros. animation lot, and to give a speech that would congratulate the animators on their work. Instead, Jones expressed his disdain for the movie, but didn't get far into his speech before security was ordered to remove him from the lot. Now, on the one hand, I would argue that the concept of "time and place" does apply here. I've heard from those who knew him that, even when he was giving a negative opinion, Jones would do so in a classy and constructive manner, but even still, I don't know if those were the best circumstances in which to air his less than favorable opinions. But, that said, not only is forcibly escorting a man in his 80's from a studio lot when he really did nothing wrong already a bad look, but doing so to a certified legend in the animation industry, and one who made numerous classic cartoons from Warner Bros.' golden era, is just disgraceful. Again, it's not a well-known story, but it's a shame to know that a much-loved movie from my childhood has something like that associated with it.

Space Jam is a flick that you have to accept for what it is, and that is, indeed, a product primarily meant to bolster Michael Jordan's brand, with the Looney Tunes mostly just along for the ride. Not only does it deify Jordan to an almost nauseating degree, structuring itself as something of a biopic that chronicles his initial NBA career, retirement, and return, but the way Tunes are incorporated into the story is very strange, and they are very much supporting characters, including Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. Even then, there's dramatic potential in Jordan's story that the movie never capitalizes on, the visual style on the live-action is pretty generic for the most part, there are some very shameless instances of product placement, the depiction of Looney Tune Land is pretty generic, and there are instances of humor that don't work. But all that said, Jordan's performance is better than you might expect, Stan Podolak and Bill Murray are fun when they're around, Bugs and Daffy are utilized quite well, the animation is very well done, with an art style consisting of some very bright and rich colors, the melding of Jordan with the animated characters, especially during the climactic basketball game, is quite seamless for the most part, the same goes for when Bugs and Daffy are in the real world, the music score and soundtrack are awesome, and the movie keeps at a good pace during its tight, 87-minute runtime, and is consistently entertaining, more often than not. Of course, that could just be my nostalgia talking, but even then, I know that this is not a classic by any means. Really, if you weren't around at the time, this may come off as total cringe, but for those of us who were and liked it then, I'm sure that nostalgia will always linger, despite all the faults. (Though, if you think this is a cynical, corporate creation, it's got nothing on its belated "sequel," which we will get to at some point.)