Movie Review: The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie (2025)
Please go see this movie asap!
The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie is one of my easiest recommendations for everybody in terms of new releases this year because of not only serving as a love letter to the classic Looney Tunes & old-school sci-fi movies, but also being a spectacularly made film that offered one of the best cinematic experiences of the year for me so far.
To start things off, I have to say that this film contains excellent writing from top to bottom. As I mentioned earlier, you can tell that the team behind this film had a ton of affinity for these beloved characters along with the sci-fi films of the 1950s and a huge part of it comes from its screenplay. As a Looney Tunes film, The Day The Earth Blew Up pays a huge amount of respect to the legacy of this franchise through its delightfully zany sense of humor combined with properly capturing the essence of these characters while crafting a story that throws them into an idiosyncratic situation that is brimming with originality for them to be a part of. This makes for a plot that anybody who loves 1950s sci-fi would get a kick out of while also enjoying what an affectionate homage to the classic Looney Tunes shorts it is. On top of this, the story contains a lot of heart to it as we see Daffy & Porky as friends who grow up together raised by Farmer Jim, who tells them that “as long as they stick together, they’ll be alright”. This lends itself to a lot of heartfelt moments and care that you feel for the two as they try their hardest to keep their friendship intact, even when it is shaken up with the inclusion of Petunia Pig, who rounds up the trio nicely and has a lot of excellent interactions with the two.
Along with the writing, you can tell that the rest of the crew put a ton of love & passion into this project. Director Peter Browngardt clearly has tons of fondness for this franchise and it is evident through this film’s comedy. There are a ton of jokes/gags in this film that all hit the mark and capture the magic of the original Looney Tunes cartoons in spades. Everything from each fourth wall break, the visual gags, and slapstick are all perfectly delivered with sharp wit and immaculate comedic timing. Of course, he also allows for each heartfelt & character-driven moment to sink in and really make you connect with Porky & Daffy’s friendship so that you properly root for them from beginning to end. But not only is Browngardt’s direction a huge part of what makes this work, but the animation is just as important in this regard. Every single frame of this film is so beautiful to look at and is a huge reminder of why hand-drawn animation is one of the most timeless styles of animation ever. The fluidity of the characters’ movements & expressions, their designs, the movie’s color scheme, and the art direction all come together to make for a film that is filled with immense vibrancy & personality in every detail. Massive shoutouts to the sound design and musical score by Joshua Moshier for also bringing a lot of character & endearing old-school flavor to the film through how they are incorporated into the story.
The last element of the film that I will talk about is the voice acting, which I found to be magnificent work all around. For starters, you have Eric Bauza doing the voices of Daffy & Porky, and I found him to be terrific as both characters. Ever since he started playing the Looney Tunes characters earlier this decade, Bauza has been doing some incredible work where he does a wonderful replicating the characters’ voices while also capturing their roots. Not only does he do that all well in this film, but it is to a point where he is making the roles into his own, unique creations and I feel like that is something that Mel Blanc (the original voice actor for the Looney Tunes) would be proud of him for if he were still around. There is also Candi Milo, who provides some fun, likable vocal work as Petunia Pig, who is a character that shares some enjoyable chemistry with her co-stars, especially Porky. The scenes they share with each other, in particular, are extremely endearing and I found myself buying the relationship they end up developing with one another. Then there is Peter MacNicol as the movie’s main antagonist, The Invader, who is an evil alien who plans to use bubble gum to take over the world and turn each citizen on earth into a zombie. Not only is he a highly entertaining villain to watch on-screen, but MacNicol does a brilliant job in his portrayal of a delightfully slimy yet still funny character who has probably one of my favorite jokes in the entire film. You can tell that MacNicol had a lot of fun voicing this character and it shows through the amount of finesse & charming eccentricity in his performance.
As you can tell, I absolutely adored The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie and I already want to go see it a second time. I feel like it is the type of film that is easy to recommend to anybody and they will find at least SOMETHING to take from it. It is one of the most joyful, entertaining, & amazingly made films I have seen all year and I could practically write an entire essay on how fantastic it is from start to finish. If you can, please go see this film and support the phenomenal cast & crew that worked on this. It is worth the price of admission & then some.
The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie is out in theaters now!
That is it for this review! Do let me know what you thought of the movie (or if you plan on seeing it) in the comments section below! See you all next time!
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