On Screen: “Coyote vs. Acme”
Coyote vs. Acme
“Coyote vs. Acme” is a delightful late summer surprise.
This live-action animated misadventure originated in Ian Frazier’s 1990 humorous anti-corporate New Yorker satire, a mock court case in which Looney Tunes’ resilient Wile E. Coyote sues the Acme Corporation for all the defective mail-order products (rocket-propelled roller skates, jet-boosted pogo stick) that have malfunctioned as he relentlessly chased the Road Runner.
Written by Samy Burch — with many references to the myth of Sisyphus — and directed by Dave Green in the style of 1988’s “Who Framed Roget Rabbit?” as cartoon characters interact with human actors.
The “based on a true story” has Coyote hiring Kevin Avery (Will Forte), an Albuquerque lawyer at Avery, Jones and Maltese (named after animators Tex Avery, Chuck Jones and Michael Maltese). Sleazy Kevin is always ready to settle out of court for a token amount for his cartoon clients.
But stubborn Coyote refuses. His perseverance leads to a confrontation with Acme’s arrogant, high-powered attorney Buddy Crane (John Cena). So they’re off to trial although it’s almost impossible to serve a subpoena to speedy, ever-evasive Road Runner.
Then Kevin’s intern assistant Paige (Lana Condor) discovers a nasty corporate conspiracy involving whistleblower Bugs Bunny and Acme scientist Dr. Peter Lorre that unravels before the Judge (Luis Guzman).
What’s truly bizarre is that — back in 2023 — Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav shelved the completed $70 million movie as a tax write-off, only to be forced by persistent public protests to sell it for $50 million to Ketchup Entertainment, a tiny distributor who arranged a proper theatrical release.
Unfortunately, there’s little chance for an Animation Oscar nomination. Despite its extensive cartoon cast — Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Foghorn Leghorn, Tasmanian Devil, Porky Pig and Tweety Bird — according to Academy rules “75% of the runtime must include animation of the primary subject or subjects.”
On the other hand, it’s eligible for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Score, particularly since composer Steven Price weaves the Road Runner’s ‘beeps’ into the “1812 Overture.”
FYI: Much of the outdoor sequences were filmed in New Mexico, where the Greater Roadrunner is its official State Bird.
On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Coyote vs. Acme” is an egregiously explosive, yet slyly engaging 8, playing in theaters.
Susan Granger is a product of Hollywood. Her natural father, S. Sylvan Simon, was a director and producer at M.G.M. and Columbia Pictures. Her adoptive father, Armand Deutsch, produced movies at M.G.M.
As a child, Susan appeared in movies with Abbott & Costello, Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Margaret O’Brien, and Lassie. She attended Mills College in California, studying journalism with Pierre Salinger, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with highest honors in journalism.