Thanks to (gestures at everything), the phrase “too on-the-nose” is a criticism that outlived its usefulness far before a movie about how corporations are bad was shelved for a tax write-off by a real-life corporation. It’s still funny though! Coyote vs. Acme is only in theaters because a dedicated, vocal fanbase and grassroots movement got it released. This is what counts as a win these days, people. So, I don’t know, vote or something?
Although its title suggests a canid courtroom thriller, this Who Framed Roger Rabbit–adjacent Looney Tunes riff is mostly about the millions of Davids living beneath the feet of Goliaths. Honestly, even that description sucks because the handful of tiny, man-baby billionaires who name their corporations after the villains in sci-fi novels are just happy to be compared to something big. Coyote vs. Acme isn’t some brilliant satirical takedown nor a madcap, hilarious romp. It’s just quietly kind and respectably funny, which is more than enough to justify its existence.
The legal standing in the film is arguably stronger than the basis for recent Supreme Court cases that have shifted constitutional rights. Wile E. Coyote has used Acme products in an effort to catch the Road Runner for ages. All of them fail. All of them injure him. He learns that Kevin Avery (Will Forte), a two-bit lawyer, will sue the mega-corporation on behalf of injured cartoon victims. In accordance with the Muppet Commandments, no reason or explanation is given for why cartoons and humans coexist. Perfection.
Kevin doesn’t actually want to go to court. Ever. He just wants Acme to give him penny-ante settlements to help keep his struggling firm afloat. But the coyote is out for blood. He rejects a deal and sets in motion a major lawsuit, pitting Kevin against Buddy Crane (John Cena), who legally represents the evil organization led by CEO Foghorn Leghorn. May every executive see themselves in that chubby chicken, who was once a mascot in our world for KFC.
Riddled with cameos and quirky quips, Coyote vs. Acme never spills its hand-drawn ink into a puddle of outright hilarity, but that’s okay. Watching Bugs Bunny act as a whistleblowing Deep Throat is charming. Hearing John Cena berate Tweety Bird is a delight. The inevitable heartwarming resolution to an albeit admittedly abusive relationship between Mr. Coyote and Mr. Runner is sweet.
When I was a kid, I used to love Looney Tunes. Because we are all forced to retreat into nostalgia for comfort, I still do. I am comforted in seeing familiar icons present their charming, silly shenanigans in service of a story that at least invites us to thumb our noses at the tiny cabal of capitalists ruining everything so that they can add a zero to their net worth in a foolish effort to close the unclosable hole in their hearts. Honestly, my biggest complaint was no Marvin the Martian. Give the people what they want.
Grade = B
Other Critical Voices to Consider
Rebecca Harrison at Writing on Reels says “With all the colour drained out of its characters atomised lives, and corporations and state legal systems indifferent to Wile E.’s plight, the film needed to do more to convince us that cartoons, and cinema, matter. Wile E. might be content to return to his endless chase of the Road Runner, but for the rest of us there’s no straightforward escape from the cycles of consumerism and catastrophe in which, like Acme’s glue product, we seem to be forever stuck.”
Ayomikun Adekaiyero at CBR says “Coyote vs. Acme’s biggest flaw is that it ties too neat a bow on its ending. The movie gives viewers a heartfelt, difficult and realistic conclusion to the conspiracy-filled court case that is sure to move audiences. Then it immediately replaces that conclusion with a simple, clichéd ending that feels like a completely unearned victory.”
Angelica Jade Bastién at Vulture says “Coyote vs. Acme does what it needs to do and does it mostly well. It’s fleet, funny, and self-aware without being smug. It’s a warmhearted, humorous take on a legal thriller more than anything else.”