Coyote vs. Acme

The heir to Who Framed Roger Rabbit has arrived!

Canceled by Warner Bros. and rescued by Ketchup Entertainment, Coyote vs. Acme plays fast and loose with Looney Tune history, delivering numerous winking references all in the service of a decidedly modern narrative.

Working from a brilliantly simple concept dreamed up by New Yorker writer Ian Frazier in 1990, the script from Samy Burch (May December) posits what might happen if Wile E. Coyote had one too many Acme products go bad on him — and litigated. His action lands lazy attorney Kevin Avery (Will Forte) in the biggest case of his unremarkable career, up against the deep pockets and legal firepower of the world's biggest company, represented by his law school classmate Buddy Crane (John Cena).

It's a classic underdog story, one augmented by Earth to Echo director Dave Green’s terrific blend of animation and live-action in a world where cartoons live and work side by side with the human world. The gags are plentiful and mostly exist on the right side of corny without relying too much on nostalgia, though the number of classic characters and names (down to the partners at Forte’s law firm) benefit from a strong familiarity with this world.

From this firm yet silly foundation, the filmmakers concoct such hilarious fresh scenes as an edited version of DJ Shadow’s and Run the Jewels’ filthy “Nobody Speak” with Roadrunner “beep”ing over the profanity. And it all builds to an anti-monopoly climax that must have made Warner seethe yet feels more damning now than it might have at the time of the film's intended release a few years ago.

Grade: B. Rated PG. Starts Aug. 27 at AMC River Hills 10, Asheville Pizza & Brewing Co., Carolina Cinemark, and Regal Biltmore Grande.

(Photo: Ketchup Entertainment)