If you were to search “caricature villain” in a dictionary it would probably have a portrait of David Zaslav. He has already cancelled two Looney tunes feature films since he became president of Warner Bros. Discovery: one was the active production ‘Coyote vs Acme’, a live-action/animation fusion, while the other is the animated film, which never even started production. Even though both these projects are less known, they were supposed to be great. Last year, the animated Porky Pig and Daffy Duck short film, “The Day the Earth Blew Up,” was left unreleased and was later licensed for HBO Max production. It is still trying to find a distributor in the United States.
This, however, did not prevent the Annecy Animation Festival from awarding ‘The Day the Earth Blew Up’ its world premiere. And, one hopes, a more realistic opportunity of being released someday. (It will be distributed in German cinemas by WB on August 1, with several other territories expected to follow). Well, ‘Day’ is a lot funnier than any film the studio created ever since The Lego Movie 2 and gives viewers a rare chance to see Porky and Daffy in tom and jerry type plot. The movie duo, for t he first time, looks like us–twenty-first-century versions of Looney Tunes characters; and they have a reason Australian director Peter Browngardt created several of those 21st-century episodes quite recently.
The Day’s script includes as many as 11 scriptwriters who created a storyline with aliens controlling human minds with gum, gunked up with alien goo which is turning earthlings into love slaves. It’s not Shakespeare, but does seem suitably bonkers for a cinematic outing featuring the stuttering pig and the quaky duck who live in a two-story house that belonged to Farmer Jim, the burly (but sweet) father-figure who raised the animals as children (or, children and ducklings as the case may be).
Browngardt draws music from his experiences with Porky and Daffy as children as well as a string of ridiculous attempts to get jobs in a sloppy looney tunes style montage in the cartoons depicting the events. He does remember these two old pals and their familiar spuh-spuh-speech impedimenthhh but there is something about their educational aura that they have on them from Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon that has seeped into the Looney Tune-verse particularly sponge bob square pants. (Also not a coincidence since 5 of the screen writers have had some experience with that universe).
Just see how the characters speak in this cartoon then the last eight decades and yes, they probably spoke even more than the looney tunes characters did in the eight previous decades including the time when Candyman got a dozen nominations and picked up two. Eric Bauza who voiced them both, Porky and Daffy, is the vocal Mvp of the two, turning up the mania to 11 for the duo. And even Peter MacNicol who voiced Invader is much taller than most scheming characters you’d expect to appear in a “SpongeBob” movie until the last third of the movie. So in a sense changing a few things it would seem much easier to make it ‘Porky And Daffy’s Rippled Farmhouse’ than a pineapple under the sea.
To begin with, “Day” introduces two threats from outer space: an asteroid and an alien flying saucer, which throws a big blob of glowing jelly through Porky, and Daffy’s roof. At the same time, the ghostly ‘ectoplasm’ comes to him and later on possessed him, the white debauched scientist warring as Stereotypical Peasant. The glue is known to transform humans into zombies, which is not good considering the fact that the Scientist expresses the desire to mix this substance in with Goodie Bum’s newest flavor Super Strong Berry.
Before long the whole planet is enjoying the bubblelicious new product, which brainwashes them and makes them obedient to the Invader’s orders. As now, Daffy is a crazy conspiracy theorist who happens to be perfectly for this type of warped character. The issue arises when one thinks of persuading people that Goodie Gun has been balanced by aliens, which implies that Daffy, Porky and his new love Petunia Pig (Candi Milo) will have to destroy the entire planet on their own. Petunia is a taste tester of gum at the factory who’s had to try everything from socks to rotten eggs. To these two dimwits, she is a very advanced geek and together they form a good team.
As deranged as they may be, audiences are kept engaging in ‘Day’ as the movie has three significant pillars. First, there is the bond of friendship that Daffy has with Porky which is at risk because of the whole blowing up the Earth scenario. The second is the attachment they have towards the house which is under threat as well. And the last one is the fast progressing relationship between Porky and Petunia which brings some sweetness into the picture. After some time, Daffy (who just wants to take his wooden mallet and go berserk) is pretty much annoying but the whole project along with a few humorous breaking the fourth wall moments is made with a lot of care and respect for the brand. Wait for the end of the credits, and look for a promise of a sequel that the current WB fans will know is not being kept.
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