As Mais Incríveis Aventuras de Pernalonga E Sua Turma

Skip the unctuous opening and fast-forward to the highlights: Bugs battling a bull; Daffy Duck battling an unseen animator; and the all-time great WHAT'S OPERA, DOC?, in which the usual Bugs-and-Elmer chase is done in best operatic style

Yes, the gags are somewhat repetitive: Wile E. Coyote plunges to the ground 15 times, is crushed with rocks 11 times and baits the roadrunner three times with "Free Bird Seed." In all, 10 Acme products appear in this movie, in which Bugs Bunny and other characters sport clever disguises no fewer than 12 times. There are five "wabbit season"/"duck season" face-offs. Daffy Duck gets shot 10 times.

But it never gets old. I have loved this movie since I was a little boy, and have viewed it, literally, hundreds of times. That's the genius of Chuck Jones (animator) and Mel Blanc (voices).

The many shorts featured in this compilation include Daffy's battle with an off-screen animator, Bugs fighting a bull and getting revenge on a grumpy opera singer, two intergalactic run-ins with Marvin the Martian, "What's Opera, Doc?" (which is, as Bugs describes it, "the entire 18 hours of Richard Wagner's 'Ring of Nibaloone--Nibalane--Nibalu--Nibalung' ... squashed ... down to seven minutes") and a 20-minute segment of classic roadrunner gags.

Finally I got to see what I always wanted to see, the compilation of the best short films of Looney Tunes, the best jokes, best scenes, best characters, all the best. Highly recommend.

In "The Great American Chase", Bugs Bunny traipses through his house and tells us the story of chases. To make his point, he shows us several classic cartoons (some starring him) dealing with situations involving hot pursuits. Well, not all of them have chases; some are there just for fun. Bugs remembers how Chuck Jones sent him into space, where he met Marvin the Martian; then how Daffy Duck and Porky Pig tried to colonize Planet X and had to contend with Marvin the Martian; how Daffy (as Robin Hood) had a very hard time recruiting Porky (as Friar Tuck); how Daffy's scenery frustratingly changed every few minutes; how he, Bugs, ended up in a bullfight; how he and Daffy dug into Ali Baba's cave; how he and Elmer Fudd acted out "The Ride of the Valkyries"; how Wile E. Coyote tried and failed to eat him; and finally, how Wile E. decided to try something a little more his size, by which we mean the Road Runner. The Wile E. Coyote/Road Runner chase is really the best part of the movie. Overall, it's a pretty neat compilation of classic cartoons, and I liked the scene where Bugs remembers his "fathers" (Mel Blanc, Chuck Jones, etc.).

I personally enjoy the Looney Tunes compilation films, coming from a huge fan of the Looney Tunes cartoons. I hadn't seen this in a while until just about two days ago, but thought could it be better than Daffy Duck's QuackBusters?. My overall conclusion is that while Daffy Duck's QuackBusters has the best storyline I think The Bugs Bunny/Road-Runner Movie despite the misleading title is the most entertaining of the compilation films.

I've often seen these compilation films criticised for cutting/shortening the original cartoons. I admit it, they do, however I don't personally see this as a problem as such. Besides, I was busy being delighted at how many cartoons and Looney Tunes characters there were to savour.

Bugs is the star of the cartoon, and a wonderful job is done to keep him true to the characterisation immortalised in the original cartoons. And fans of either Daffy and Porky, I am of the former and quite like the latter although he is often sidelined, will be delighted to know they have plenty of screen time. Elmer is a delight to watch in the cartoons he's featured in, and likewise with the Road-Runner and Wile E.Coyote.

Spotting the original cartoons are a sheer delight. A vast majority of them are masterpieces, Operation:Rabbit, Long-Haired Hare, What's Opera Doc, Duck Amuck and Duck Dodgers in the 24.5 Century to name a few, and there are some very, very good ones like Bully for Bugs, For Scent-imental Reasons(possibly my personal favourite of the Pepe Le Pew cartoons) and Ali Baba Bunny. The Road-Runner and Coyote cartoons as an overall series is uneven but when they are good they are really good, some of the ones featured are so to speak Zoom and Bored and Zip N Snort spring to mind. The highlight of the film though is the long but very energetic and spirited chase that thankfully does have the classic feel of the originals.

The story is fast-paced and entertaining with seldom a dull spot. The animation is spot on both in the original cartoons and the links, which is an achievement because I remember 1001 Rabbit Tales and Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie having animation that was somewhat inconsistent in comparison.

The music is full of energy and liveliness, the writing is witty, fresh and hilarious very often and the sight gags are inventive. Not to mention the voice work, Mel Blanc voicing all the Looney Tunes characters except for Elmer gives a truly bravura performance here. Overall, hugely entertaining. 9/10 Bethany Cox