It would be easy to dive deep on the surprising heart in Coyote vs. Acme — the clear-eyed consideration of trust and friendship, the subtle exhortation to accept one’s true nature, the man-versus-machine appeal to humanity (and/or coyoteness) in an age of corporate anonymity. That’s all important in this unexpectedly beautiful feature. More important, though: It’s uproariously funny.
Wile E. Has Finally Had Enough in the New Movie Coyote vs. Acme
The premise, adapted liberally from a 1990 New Yorker article, is brilliant: Wile E. Coyote, finally fed up with decades of malfunctioning products from the Acme Corporation, enlists a low-rent lawyer (Will Forte) to sue for damages. It’s the precise sort of updated, fresh take on beloved material that a sturdy and enduring property like Looney Tunes should be doing.
What I didn’t expect, however, is how impressive the execution would be. Coyote vs. Acme — directed by Dave Green and written by May December scribe Samy Burch (with story help from James Gunn and Jeremy Slater) — is a marriage of the traditional Looney Tunes slapstick with Mel Brooks-esque gags and wit. It’s delivered in a delightful hybrid of animation and live action; the filmmakers have admitted that Who Framed Roger Rabbit was a touchstone, and Coyote vs. Acme recalls that film’s sharp, lively visual style.
The cartoon characters feel fresh and precise despite their age — yet they also seem more like themselves than they have in several recent outings (such as the messy Space Jam legacy sequel). The human performers, too, are just right; Forte gives what may be the best performance of his career, Luis Guzmán shines as a no-nonsense judge and John Cena nearly steals the show as Acme’s slick advocate. (A scene that features Cena arguing with Tweety Bird is the funniest thing I’ve seen in a long time.)
It is simply a great movie — and that makes it all the more shocking that it nearly vanished forever.
How Warner Bros. Fumbled Coyote vs. Acme — and a Small Studio Brought It Back
Coyote vs. Acme was completed in 2023. Warner Bros., in the midst of a largely callous and investor-focused cost-cutting effort, decided not to release it, opting to give themselves a large tax loss on the project. (I don’t really know how the economy works, but I know that this sort of thing is not actually supposed to happen in a functional society.)
After an outcry — which was heightened when the film was screened for industry insiders, who unanimously praised it — Warner Bros. allowed the filmmakers to shop the film to other studios. After years of uncertainty, Coyote vs. Acme was bought by the modestly sized studio and distribution house Ketchup Entertainment.
Not Netflix, not Apple, not Amazon and not Universal — Ketchup Entertainment.
It’s sad to watch a film as good as Coyote vs. Acme knowing that business-minded execs could watch it and decide to bury it rather than share it with the world. But there is something appropriate about the whole thing. A film about a hard-luck canine fighting a giant corporation is nearly killed by a giant corporation and eventually saved by a humble yet earnest group of film lovers.
The movie’s great — and I think the story behind it somehow makes it better.
Ridley Scott’s The Dog Stars Hits Theaters
Storied filmmaker Ridley Scott has made a number of good films in recent years, including the oddball historical biopic Napoleon and the elevated pulp drama The Last Duel. His latest, The Dog Stars, fails to meet his own standard. A post-apocalyptic drama about survivors of a devastating, COVID-like illness, The Dog Stars follows pilot and ex-mechanic Hig (Jacob Elordi), nihilistic former soldier Bangley (Josh Brolin), mournful medic Cima (Margaret Qualley) and suspicious Navy SEAL Pops (Guy Pearce) as they navigate a depressing, hostile existence. The cast is good, and one late sequence, featuring a bizarre cult leader played by Allison Janney, injects much-needed flavor to the proceedings. Mostly, though, it’s a dull movie about unhappy people.
Plus More New Movies
An unlikely indie hit cracked the Top 10 last weekend as Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, an uncanny take on film fandom and horror history, rode a wave of word-of-mouth into solid box office. Written and directed by I Saw the TV Glow creator Jane Schoenbrun, the film follows a trendy young filmmaker (Hannah Einbinder) as she heads into the woods to meet a reclusive scream queen (Gillian Anderson). What results from this meeting defies expectations, discards narrative logic and serves as an earnest and stirring celebration of movies and the way we attach to them. Even if the references escape you (or the fountains of blood seem a bit extreme), it’s worth a look — it’s one of the best films of the year.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day has won the past four weekends at the domestic box office; it now ranks as the second-highest-grossing film of all time in North America. Could it catch up to current champ Star Wars: The Force Awakens and claim the record? It has a solid chance, and it could well hold off Coyote vs. Acme and The Dog Stars to win another weekend. Here’s our review. Last week, we took a look at Tony, the solid feature about a young Anthony Bourdain; the review wasn’t rapturous, but it’s a pleasant enough time at the theater. And catch up to The End of Oak Street while you can — who doesn’t love dinosaur action from time to time
Keep exploring this summer’s releases with Sean’s line-up of the summer blockbuster season.
About the Author
Sean Collier is the editor-in-chief of Shady Ave and the arts and culture editor of TABLE Magazine. Before joining the TABLE Media team, he spent nearly 15 years as a writer, editor and columnist at Pittsburgh Magazine. As the in-house film critic for the top-rated WDVE Morning Show since 2009, he’s been Pittsburgh’s most widely heard voice on movies for nearly two decades. A Pittsburgh native, Sean has since 2020 appeared weekly on KDKA-TV’s popular Pittsburgh Today Live talk show. He’s the co-founder of Vigilance Theater Group and an active stand-up comedian and event host. He can be found on Instagram and Twitter at @seancollierpgh.
Story by Sean Collier
Photos Courtesy of Ketchup Entertainment
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