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Despite LeBron James' best efforts to make a winning team out of the Tune Squad, Space Jam: A New Legacy trades the zany, meta humor of its predecessor for a shameless, tired exercise in IP-driven branding. Read critic reviews
LeBron James probably won't win any acting awards, but this is an entertaining all-ages movie with solid animation, a positive message for kids, and fun cameos for older viewers. Read audience reviews
Watch Space Jam: A New Legacy with a subscription on Max, Hulu, rent on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu, or buy on Amazon Prime Video, Vudu.
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When LeBron James and his young son Dom are trapped in a digital space by a rogue A.I., LeBron must get them home safe by leading Bugs, Lola Bunny and the whole gang of notoriously undisciplined Looney Tunes to victory over the A.I.'s digitized champions on the court: a powered-up roster of professional basketball stars as you've never seen them before. It's Tunes versus Goons in the highest-stakes challenge of his life, that will redefine LeBron's bond with his son and shine a light on the power of being yourself.
Rating: PG (Some Language|Some Cartoon Violence)
Genre: Kids & family, Comedy, Adventure, Fantasy
Original Language: English
Director: Malcolm D. Lee
Producer: Ryan Coogler, LeBron James, Maverick Carter, Duncan Henderson
Writer: Juel Taylor, Tony Rettenmaier, Keenan Coogler, Terence Nance, Jesse Gordon, Celeste Ballard
Release Date (Theaters): wide
Release Date (Streaming):
Box Office (Gross USA): $70.5M
Runtime:
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Warner Bros. Pictures Animation, Warner Bros. Pictures, Proximity, SpringHill Entertainment, Warner Bros. Animation
Sound Mix: Datasat, SDDS, Dolby Digital, Dolby Atmos
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)
The bar was set so low from it's predecessor that I came into this film quite unenthusiastically. Aptly named "A New Legacy" this film is clearly a G rated product intended for parents to take their children to see. The plot is structured around classic familial themes and leans heavily on a "video game" premise to cater to the smart-phone generation. However it's also disturbingly obsessed with flaunting WB's many owned IP's. I don't know if drowning the audience in referential humor and cameos was the way to go but I guess you can argue WB literally is the only company that has the right to do it, so why not? A lot of reviewers argue it diminishes and pushes back the Loony Tunes cast but if you actually watch the film it's pretty obvious they don't. Bugs and friends are constantly asserting their personality and putting their own whacky or zany context on other IPs. I would even argue they play a bigger role than the original where Roadrunner didn't even get screen time on the court. I think the only huge missed opportunity of the project was not making Bill Murray the main antagonist (Al-G Rhythm), that would've been golden. Space Jam: A New Legacy is good enough, it's visually engaging (classic 2D animation is great and the 3D is up to industry standards), the story is a serviceable family themed narrative and it's at least interesting to see the Loony Tunes cast trounce around in the world of WB owned IPs.
I'll be honest right off the bat and say that I've only seen the original Space Jam a total of two times. I find it to be mildly enjoyable, but it wasn't a film I ever latched onto. The nostalgia of the 90s is all over it and that's what makes it entertaining to this day, but I still don't think it's great. When I heard they would be making a very loose sequel and Lebron James wasn't going to be filling the shoes that Michael Jordan left, I was intrigued. With the technology today, this concept could be big and fun. Well, Space Jam: A New Legacy definitely had its moments, but it's ultimately just the same concept all over again. Here's why, unless you're showing it to your kids, it's really not that special. Here's the premise in a nutshell. Lebron James is having issues connecting with his son Dom and has nothing in mind for him but that he wants to make him a basketball star just like himself. After stumbling across a room on the Warner Bros. lot, Lebron and his son are sucked into what the film calls the "server-verse". This is where all the worlds from the movies Warner Bros. have ever made all exist. Being sent to the land of Looney Tunes by Al G. Rhythm, who runs the so-called "server-verse" and has challenged Lebron to a basketball game in exchange for his freedom, comes across Bugs Bunny. Bugs then helps Lebron assemble the rest of the "Tune Squad" and the second half of the movie is basically the basketball game. Other than some incredibly impressive visuals and a fun soundtrack, there really isn't much substance here. It's really just a story of a father winning the love back from his son. For that, this film is not that engaging and the screenplay is very, very standard as well. The final act of the film goes on way too long and it just felt like a massive commercial for Warner Bros. as a company. At least all their famous movies are good and have memorable characters, right? As far as the positives go, Don Cheadle as Al G. Rhythm completely held the movie together for me. His over-the-top and campy performance made me smile and he's in a lot more of the movie than I expected. I also really enjoyed the portion of the film where Lebron became a cartoon character with the rest of the Looney Tunes. That aspect was not a part of the original film and I found that to be a very nice addition. Other than that though, Space Jam: A New Legacy really doesn't have anything that suggests it needed to be made. In the end, the life lessons for kids throughout this film have all been done better in other family films. The aspect of meshing Looney Tunes with live-action Basketball still kind of has its charm, but again, the movie just feels like a giant corporate commercial. Lebron James is fine in the movie because he's in his element, but he's not the best actor overall. I smiled a few times and loved a cameo that occurs in the latter half of the film, but it wasn't enough to warrant a recommendation from me. It's just not that good of a movie. If you're a fan of the original, I'm sure you'll find moments to enjoy here, but it ultimately feels like a tired premise when looking back.
Very Disappointing follow-up! Dark Story Line with a confusing plot and LeBron isn't a good enough actor to carry a two hour movie. Not that Jordan was a academy award winner! Just ok! 07-18-2021
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