We live in a world where the most successful are increasingly being lauded for their achievements no matter how they arrive at them. Please understand that I am not saying that everyone who can be counted among the elite class got there through nefarious means. God judges each of us on an individual basis, and because we are called to emulate Him as best we can, we should do the same. Still, we see how the most powerful are capable of the ugliest actions, while those who lack power are distracted by technology or the supposed threat of a minority group. As crazy as this might sound, all these themes are found in this weekend’s newest release, Coyote vs. Acme, a film Warner Bros. tried to shelve as a tax write-off. Thanks to others in the industry and fans, the movie finally made it to the big screen. If that little side story does not speak to the themes already discussed, then perhaps the rest of this review will do so.

The first thing to speak to in Coyote vs. Acme is a decades-long conspiracy involving the title cartoon company testing its faulty products on animated characters. It is 1993, and Dr. Peter Lorre (voiced by Eric Bauza), an animated scientist working inside the Acme factory, discovers something about his employer that he clearly is not supposed to know. With company security closing in, Lorre manages to smuggle a box of evidence out of the factory before Acme disposes of him by dropping him into one of its portable holes. We then jump roughly thirty years ahead to Wile E. Coyote, who has spent decades purchasing Acme contraptions in his unsuccessful attempts to catch the Road Runner (voiced by Eric Bauza). After yet another failure, Wile sees an advertisement for Avery, Jones & Maltese, an Albuquerque law firm that handles claims involving cartoon injuries. This brings him to Kevin Avery (Will Forte), a personal injury lawyer accustomed to settling such cases for a few hundred dollars rather than going to court. Kevin’s idealistic niece and intern, Paige Avery (Lana Condor), is less impressed by this approach. When Wile produces evidence of the enormous number of Acme products that have injured him, she sees the possibility of holding the company responsible. Kevin would prefer an easy settlement, particularly because Acme is represented by Buddy Crane (John Cena), his intimidating former Harvard classmate and professional rival. Buddy offers Wile $50,000 to make the matter disappear, but the coyote tears up the check. Hence, Coyote vs. Acme, and I suppose one cannot fault Wile for wanting justice even if all this started because he has spent his life trying to eat a bird. Kevin reluctantly prepares for trial, assisted by Paige and his colleagues. Their problem is proving that Acme knowingly sells defective products. Their investigation leads through several familiar Looney Tunes characters. Daffy Duck (voiced by Eric Bauza) provides a clue concerning something called Project Sisyphus, while Paige eventually speaks with Granny (voiced by Candi Milo), whose husband, Dr. Lorre, had worked for Acme before mysteriously disappearing. Granny provides further evidence about Project Sisyphus. Meanwhile, an anonymous informant feeds Kevin and Paige information about the company. This person is eventually revealed to be Bugs Bunny (voiced by Eric Bauza), who explains the real purpose of Project Sisyphus. Acme has deliberately been using cartoon characters as test subjects for its dangerous products, meaning all those explosions, crashes, and falling anvils were not simply the result of Wile being a terrible shopper. Back in court, Kevin attempts to expose the scheme, including calling the Tasmanian Devil (voiced by Jim Cummings), who works in Acme public relations, as a witness. Unfortunately, Buddy has the resources of a giant corporation behind him and is considerably more experienced in a courtroom. With the judge (Luis Guzmán) giving Kevin little room to maneuver, Buddy succeeds in getting the case dismissed. There is another blow for Kevin when he discovers that Wile has not been entirely forthcoming about why he brought the lawsuit. In short, the apex predator is trying to use the proceedings to lure his eternal nemesis into a trap. Yet, by this point the lawyer has been changed by his client and is interested in taking on Acme. One might even call it hope, though this Catholic would recommend choosing a more sensible object for that particular virtue. Rather than surrender, Kevin and Paige take their evidence public, generating enough attention to obtain a congressional hearing headed by Senator Elmer Fudd (voiced by Eric Bauza). Acme attempts to buy Kevin off, but he refuses, finally demonstrating some of the principles Paige had hoped to see in her uncle. Foghorn Leghorn (voiced by Eric Bauza), owner and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Acme Corporation, appears before the committee and unapologetically defends his products. While the giant rooster succeeds in getting the senators to drop their investigation, despite the Road Runner appearing in defense of Wile, the coyote has the last laugh by demonstrating to the committee the faultiness of Acme’s gadgets. Further, Dr. Lorre is ultimately found alive, allowing the truth about Project Sisyphus to come out and vindicating Wile and the other cartoon characters Acme used as unwilling guinea pigs. Buddy and Foghorn Leghorn finally receive their comeuppance, while Dr. Lorre is reunited with Granny. The victory also transforms Avery, Jones & Maltese, which suddenly has considerably more business from cartoons injured by Acme products. Most importantly, Wile has finally succeeded at something after a lifetime of spectacular failures. This does not mean he has abandoned his original vocation, if chasing the Road Runner can be referred to in that way. Instead, his relationship with his longtime quarry is somewhat recalibrated before the chase resumes. Apparently, perseverance can be a virtue even when applied to catching dinner, though this Catholic would suggest Wile might save himself considerable suffering by learning to enjoy vegetables.

While it is a charming thought to imagine Wile eating vegetables, Coyote vs. Acme is an example of a subgenre of films that rarely fails to charm in general. What I am referring to are movies that have animated characters acting alongside live ones. Perhaps the most prominent example of this is Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), and it even has some of the same cartoon figures. Another way in which Coyote vs. Acme parallels its predecessor is in the way it treats those who begin their lives as drawings. In this world, the Looney Tunes exist side-by-side with humans, though the former appear to be immortal and impervious to harm. That last bit is ultimately what costs Kevin his case. Put differently, it is no harm, no foul. Nonetheless, what wins the public back to the side of the cartoons is the way Acme portrays them as second-class citizens. I am, of course, reaching here because I am dealing with a technological side of the story. All the same, if we can pretend that they are sentient beings, then they are worthy of being treated with the same kind of dignity that anyone else should be given. In this light, a person like Buddy who would so callously dismiss Wile as little more than a creature is probably capable of being cruel in other aspects of his life. While it may be somewhat of a stretch to say so, what I want to emphasize is that his actions are not Christ-like. Granted, he is a cinematic villain, but he represents much that is wrong with society. A true Christian society is one in which all, rich or poor, animated or flesh, can coexist peacefully.

Another reason we can underscore from Coyote vs. Acme as to why society has not reached a state of Christian peacefulness is that there are those who are more willing to submit to the system rather than stand up for what is right. There are bad people like Buddy in the world, and we should do everything in our power to witness to them the love God has for them. The problem with people like Buddy is that they can remain obstinate in their sin. Because they have the power, they get used to having their way whenever they are challenged. The Kevins of the world see no hope in defeating them, so they let larger injustices go ignored in favor of their small peace of mind. Specifically, it is easier to win the little cases rather than take on the big ones and potentially lose everything. The oft-quoted phrase from the late Pope Benedict XVI, “. . . you were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness,” applies here. It is not easy to advocate for the weak and voiceless, particularly in the face of megacorporations, but doing so is its own reward. Church history is full of people doing this, like Dorothy Day, who took on entrenched systems while working firmly within the framework of the Church. Catholicism may have the kind of edifices familiar to an organization like Acme, but its heart is with the oppressed. To put it in the framework of the film, Wile is among those oppressed by Acme, and Kevin is his champion.

I would like to be one of the many who championed the cause of Coyote vs. Acme. The story of how it got to theaters is a good one, as is the film itself. If you get a chance, I recommend seeing this one in the cinema to honor it and the work that went into it.