The Wasteland Reviewer

The Day the World Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie (2025) Written Review

What was your first experience with Looney Tunes? This is one of the greatest franchises in the history of entertainment. The Looney Tunes have been putting smiles on people’s faces for decades and decades at this point. Children grew up in their shorts from the start. Some people have even gotten a chance to grow up with the Tunes on the big screen with films like Space Jam. There has been a lot of controversy as of late with the big screen prospects of The Looney Tunes (which projects getting written off for taxes instead of for entertaining the audience). But luckily, we do have a new film to enjoy…The Day the World Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie.

Does this new Tunes flick bring the charm? There is a lot to appreciate and enjoy about The Day the World Blew Up. There is an interesting sense of humor with some gags that are hard to explain exactly how they are funny…but they sure are. There is a whole backstory given to the film’s duo of Daffy Duck and Porky Pig. The farmer that raised them is a portrait but has a moving mouth. This becomes obvious when he waddles away because he can’t move his legs (that is the kind of movie you are in for). There is some dark humor too (including the origins of Porky’s stuttering) which is a fresh surprise throughout the film. There are plenty of homages to plenty of science fiction films that inspire this silly romp with more flamethrowers than you will find in The Thing. There are some great needle drops including a hilarious butt-kicking montage to REM that make for some of the film’s highlights. The film never takes itself too seriously and that certainly makes for a good old time. 

Does the story capture the audience’s imagination? The idea of the film is quite simple. An alien invader influences the creation of gum that turns people into zombies. Who are the only heroes that can possibly stop this dastardly plot? Daffy and Porky of course. The biggest issue of the film is that you can feel that there are 10+ writers on this film. There are a lot of random gags and storylines that feel strung together and at times the film feels like it is patch work. Even if the film can feel a bit strung together and messy, it is still consistently entertaining. For a 90-minute film, there is a good chunk of time setting up Daffy and Porky well before they even cross paths with the alien force driving the main conflict of the story. Their dynamic is the heart and soul of the film (but that can also make other things feel less significant). The inclusion of Petunia Pig feels a bit threaded in, but she does have some fun moments with Porky as they go toe-to-toe with the zombie hordes. 

Who is the real star of the film? Eric Bauza. This man voices both Daffy and Porky…which means his voice is anchoring down the whole entire film. There are few characters as iconic in cartoons as the big Tunes and Bauza certainly rise to the occasion to bring both to life. These are two completely different characters who have conflicting personalities which show how impressive Bauza voice performer range really is. The central character conflict is between Daffy and Porky and Bauza has some pretty great chemistry with him. Most of the voice performers in this film are working voice actors and they do a great job and deliver on their jobs. One bigger name in the bunch is Sophie’s Choice and Ghostbusters 2 alum Peter MacNicol. He is certainly having a blast as The Invader. Big and hammy, MacNicol’s performance is plenty of fun and fits the silly tone of the film. 

Are The Looney Tunes back in action in a big way? The Day the Earth Blew Up is a bonkers good time with a pair of everyone’s favorite Tunes. The alien invasion story has been seen before but there are plenty of good gags and clever homages to make this a fun ride none-the-less. The duo of Daffy and Porky make for an excellent pair of protagonists to have a good time with.