Looney Tunes has fallen on hard times in recent years. In relation to animation, David Zaslav’s feckless regime at Warner Brothers saw the whole process as simple, leaving the historical library until recently. One of the closest victims of this situation was this film: directed by Peter Browngardt of a film made with love. 2020 series of Looney Tunes Cartoons, a classic collection of cartoon shorts that brought the creativity of a new generation of artists who studied at the altar of Chuck Jones, Bob Clampett, Friz Feleng, Tex Avery and their contemporaries. The layout of The Day the World Exploded he feels it suits the characters who were looking for a new home; Daffy Duck and Porky Pig must save their house from condemnation. They are thrown off their journey because they desperately need to raise money to repair the damage after a cruel inspector threatens to censure and take away their home. Unfortunately for Daffy and Porky, their first good hope for a stable job is also the front line of an alien invasion.
After decades of being friends, here Daffy and Porky are made into a family, brothers adopted by a kind farmer. This reworking of their relationship is at once hilarious, and, of course, an opportunity for plenty of daft comedy. That fun and silliness often go hand in hand, Browngardt includes the opening of their childhood and a number of Looney Tunes staples (such as characters flying off walls, leaving behind a beautiful shadow).
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After this a moment that confirms that Browgardt is in safe hands: Jim, who is the adoptive father of Porky and Daffy, is presented as a very detailed drawing that seems to be motionless, except for his lips – when he moves, it’s as if a cardboard cutout is moving forward. The silliness continues to transition into incredibly smooth animation as he turns to face his boys, before suddenly disappearing into the sunset. (Later, a flashback sequence set for Bryan Adams recedes.) A sequence of gags that feels like a complete modernization of the visual chaos of the old masters: cleverly combining new spirits and techniques in a picture that is not easy, even its interpretation. 3D the animation feels seamless. The Day the World Exploded it’s much better these times, dropping a series of visual gags that could only work in animation, and a handful of meta jokes that are part of these characters.
Some of the gags are less inspired: one time Daffy twerks for money and gets it .‘cancelled’ and the aliens crave bubble tea. But these jokes are interspersed among so many others that they are completely inaudible The Day the World Exploded fully compromised by efforts to be .“current”.” Admittedly, this is a matter of taste – Daffy throwing asses might work for some.
Browngardt’s work is flexible in every sense of the word, incorporating many different types of tones and gags, but it also seems flexible as it keeps the visual history of these characters in mind. Daffy, Porky and Petunia Pig are characterized by cute exaggerated voices and moving with charming stretch, Daffy rubbing and stretching to keep up with the time, his eyes literally following suspicious characters around corners. That art keeps the film moving and engaging, the animation is what keeps the chaotic spirit of Looney Tunes on full display. It’s a clean, fun cartoon, the likes of which have no time to expire.
