After many delays, Space Jam: A New Legacy finally hit theatres on July 16. The movie has not been a critical success, being flogged down with criticism on plot execution, overbearing IP plug-ins and comparison to the original.
Is this criticism valid? Here are some points to consider:
Foundation: Space Jam vs Space Jam 2
As the movie title goes, Space Jam 2 seeks to create, or at least continue, the legacy of Michael Jordan’s Space Jam. The movie even opens up with a flashback to fictional James’ childhood, akin to Jordan’s in the first movie.
Jordan’s emotional connect with his father on screen, poignant of the fact that he had recently lost his father, is replaced with James being reprimanded for being distracted by a video game.
Already Space Jam 2 loses one of the few edges that Space Jam had — the first movie was made during a crucial point of Jordan’s life.
His father’s death, his subsequent retirement, his uncertain future and his shift to baseball were timely emotions to explore in the backdrop of the film.
And it certainly helped the audience make sense of the eclectic decision of pairing Jordan with animated characters to regain his confidence in the sport that made his life.
Plot
Space Jam 2 chooses to go down the road of James wanting his own son fulfill the legacy he has created.
In the end, it follows the same formula: Parent doesn’t understand kid, they squabble, then get stuck in a life-threatening situation, make it out alive, and then finally see eye to eye.
The trope of parents viscerally living through their kids has been seen enough in media, and this rendition does not improve of it.
Warner Bros IP? Present!
We also have the overbearing GCI to push the plot around. Now mind you, the work itself is a delight to watch, but its presence is often unnecessary.
In the movie, James is first called in to Warner Bros for a deal to use his likeness as a virtual avatar to star in numerous movies and TV shows.
Toying with this idea, the film features appearances of over 35 famous franchises (everything from Mad Max to the Justice League), which just seems like a roll call of all the IPs that Warner Bros owns.
The appearances are of little significance to the plot, and does the work that a Wikipedia page could do.
To Watch or Not To Watch?
The one idea that seemed fresh in the movie was introducing Don Cheadle’s Al-G Rhythm, making a formidable villain as a sentient AI who goes rogue after James calls the AI’s movie ideas “stupid.”
This aspect is oddly reflective of the times we’re living in — where media creation is certainly being influenced by the algorithm.
There are ways to appreciate Space Jam 2, especially as a one-time watch to entertain the family. Cheadle’s villain is amusing enough, and so is any comic relief brought in by the Looney Tunes themselves.
If you simply want to grab some popcorn and clean your slate a little bit, Space Jam 2 could be your weekend watch. If you’re looking for something more, press skip.
What’s ironic is that in the movie, Warner Bros use Al-G Rhythm to spin out new ideas to make their company successful. Perhaps the undoing of Space Jam: A New Legacy can be blamed on a rogue AI too.
About Space Jam: A New Legacy (Space Jam 2)
Space Jam: A New Legacy (also known as Space Jam 2) is an upcoming American live-action/animated sports comedy film directed by Malcolm D. Lee, from a screenplay by Juel Taylor, Tony Rettenmaier, Keenan Coogler, and Terence Nance.
The film is a sequel to Space Jam (1996) and stars basketball player LeBron James, as well as Don Cheadle, Khris Davis, Sonequa Martin-Green, and Cedric Joe. The film also features the Looney Tunes characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Marvin the Martian, Pepé Le Pew, Tweety, Sylvester, Foghorn Leghorn, Porky Pig, and Lola Bunny.
Like the previous hybrid films, it will be a combination of live-action and traditional hand drawn 2D animation with some CGI effects
Basketball champion and global icon LeBron James and his young son Dom (Cedric Joe) – who dreams of being a video game developer rather than follow his father’s footsteps – find themselves trapped in Serververse, a virtual space ruled by a rogue A.I. named Al-G Rhythm (Don Cheadle).
LeBron must save his son and get them home safe by leading Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Lola Bunny and the whole gang of notoriously undisciplined Looney Tunes to win a basketball match against Al-G’s digitized champions on the court, the Goon Squad.
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