A Nostalgic Slap-Stick Animated Treat

Review: Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988)

By Meg Davy

Who Framed Roger Rabbit? is widely known as a classic to most that brings a huge feeling of nostalgia to those who rewatch this renowned childhood film. However, for many of us -including myself-this was our first time watching it. To start, even for what I thought lacked a little in the storyline, it made up for in creativity with the once-in-a-blue-moon style of mixed animation and live-action. The way the characters interact with the real world around them shows the out-of-the-box thinking that goes into each scene. Each little movement of something the characters interact with had to be precisely planned to make it seem like the cartoons really were real. This just makes the movie all the more enjoyable. Plus, the characters in themselves were entertaining as well. From what I’ve read, Who Framed Roger Rabbit? is one of the first movies to ever have Disney star Mickey Mouse and Warner Brothers star Bugs Bunny on screen together and interacting. It was a lot of fun picking out and spotting all of the different cartoon characters I grew up with.

Now, there’s another thing that’s always brought up about this movie: its notorious PG rating. During discussion, we did wonder how Disney, a company that’s well known for its strict rules on staying appropriate and kid friendly, was able to make this movie that had many instances of alcoholism, language, and sexual references. Hearing Mickey Mouse say “you could get killed!” in his happy mannerism definitely seemed a bit odd to all of us too. Nevertheless, it’s still a great watch… just maybe not a great kids watch.

Lastly, what really makes this a loveable movie is its use of classic 40s film noir mixed with cartoon comedy. The huge contrast between the seriousness of both genres really stands out like when Detective Eddie Valiant is telling the story of how his brother was murdered by a toon who… dropped a piano on his head? It really just makes for unique storytelling and it also created a fun dynamic between Roger Rabbit and Eddie Valiant. Overall, this was a great movie to kick off the 2023 spring semester for Clemson Reel Dialogue because it’s one that helped us take a step back, not take life so seriously for an hour or two, and just enjoy some classic, slapstick comedy.