Review of Cool World (1992) by Kaarina M — 14 Aug 2009

"Cool World" is a seriously troubled film, like "Roger Rabbit" it assumes that humans and cartoon characters can exist within the same reality, there is nothing wrong with this concept, what's wrong is the execution.

One of the obvious weaknesses of "Cool World" is the way it integrates animation and live action. "Roger Rabbit" was made with such precision and planning, it was a beautiful parring, a completely innovative experience. Let's start with the animation itself, which is terrible, the secondary cartoon characters are so plastic, so meaningless and uninteresting; many of them flying in and off the screen, screaming and hitting one another with safes, and anvils, for no reason except to kill time or cover an awkward transition.

The other obvious problems are the real characters. Brad Pitt, Kim Basinger and Gabriel Byrne, three actors that have proven themselves time and time again in Hollywood. Still, I guess they all had to start somewhere... The biggest problem is the writing, because even the best actors can't pull a badly written movie out of the water.

It's hard to comprehend what's going on in this movie, but I was also so bored while watching, that I had trouble finishing it. I put this move off for so long after I saw "Roger Rabbit" and we were all told that if you liked that film, you'll love "Cool World".... Well, I didn't, I'm sure I wasn't the only one.