The recent release of theSpace Jam 2trailerhas had the internet buzzing with reactions to Lebron James’s assumption of Michael Jordan’s iconic role, as well as the new, slick styled animation used to generate the Looney Tunes and other WarnerBrothers related characters. Immediately following the trailer’s release, viewers took to Twitter to point out the many easter eggs crammed into the two-minute and thirty-eight second preview. The familiar faces featured in the trailer, including Fred Flinstone, Marvin the Martian, and even Alex from A Clockwork Orange, drew viewer comparisons between the film andReady Player One.
In 2018, Ernest Cline’s 80’s pop-culture riddled bestsellerReady Player Onewas adapted to the big-screenby famed director, Steven Spielberg. The movie, much like the book, features a slew of 80’s themed references, from notable cultural contributions such as the Atari game simulator to niche pop-culture creations such asJack Slater III, a fake action movie franchise that appears inside real Arnold Schwarzenegger action movieThe Last Action Hero. While the novel received widespread adoration for its use of 80’s nostalgia, both ardent fans of the novel and fresh-eyed audiences alike were disappointed by the movie’s lack of narrative arc. Judging from the trailer, it seems as thoughSpace Jam 2mightsuffer the same faults asReady Player One, with little story to string together its series of cameos.
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The trailer forSpace Jam 2beginson a similar note as the original movie, with family friction heating up between a world-famous basketball player (in this case Lebron James), and his tweenage son (Dom, played by Cedric Joe). While the originalSpace Jambuilds off of Michael Jordan’s real-life attempts to switch sports mid-career, leading to frustration and tension in his home life,Space Jam 2begins with Dom pushing back against his father’s attempts to get his son to pursue basketball as a career path.
From then on, the trailer takes a sharp left turn into Tune territory, asDom is unexpectedly sucked into a Matrix-like portalon a mysterious floor in the Warner Brothers building. It is then up to James to retrieve his son from the movie’s reigning villain, Al G Rhythm (Don Cheadle). to retrieve Dom, James must assemble a team of cartoon critters to take on the Goon Squad- a series of animated opponents who serve as this film’s incarnation of the Monstars- in a game of basketball.
Ina review ofReady Player Oneon RogerEbert.com, Christy Lemire described the novel’s narrative along the lines of: “Here’s a thing you know from your youth. And: Here’s another thing. And: Here’s an obscure thing that only elite few of you will get, which will make you feel super-smart.” This appears to be the case inSpace Jam 2as well.
To be fair, the movie is faced with a difficult task.Succeeding the adoration ofSpace Jam(the original),Space Jam 2must not only pay tribute to its cinematic predecessor, but also create an exciting and engaging new storyline. The trailer appears to do this in part, with the conflict between James and his son serving as the movie’s central narrative. However, the remainder of the film appears to be a series of Warner Bros. cameos and a visual exploration of the greaterSpace Jamuniverse.
This also makes for some odd inclusions in what is ostensibly a film for younger audiences. For example, the aforementionedcharacters fromA Clockwork Orange. There they are in the background, cheering on a basketball game between cartoon characters. Meanwhile, anyone with any sort of film literacy knows the numerous atrocities they have committed.
Part of what makes the originalSpace Jamso unique and timeless is its use of real-life pop-culture moments such as Michael Jordan’s baseball career, combined with the kitschiness andabsurdism of the Loony Tunes animation, to create an unusual underdog narrative.Space Jampiggy-backs off of the cultural significance that the Chicago Bulls held in the 1990s by equating their athletic prowess with the supernatural capabilities of animated characters, lending the unlikely pairing between Jordan and the Tunes a strange sense of authenticity. As a result, what could seem like a random sequence of events targeted at children becomes an entertaining movie for the whole family.
It is too early to say whether or notSpace Jam 2will live up to its predecessor, or whether it will go the way ofReady Player One. Audiences can only hope that the movie ascends its easter eggs to create a story as silly and timeless as the original.
