Why 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit' is Way Better Than You Remember Part 1: The Triumph of Eddie Valiant
Who Framed Roger Rabbit has been back in the public consciousness again for a multitude of reasons. It's up on Disney + (in its full 'PG' glory). Cakeworthy just released a clothing collection. The film celebrated 30 years in 2018, and just in the last couple of months, received a flashy 4K Blu-Ray release.
Back in September, it was revealed that Disneyland's Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin would be getting an update, girlbossifying Jessica Rabbit (who doesn't need such an arc, but we'll get into that in a bit), after removing Jessica from the trunk of the weasels' car in one scene. She has since been replaced with barrels of dip, which is a fine change, but I had wished they would have replaced her with Roger, since canonically, Jessica hits him over the frying pan and throws him in the trunk of their care for his own good to save him. The scene where she conks (I am assuming is Greasy) over the head remains. There you have it. You fixed your issue. Plus, she ends up saving herself.
Click to viewOf course, the new art for Jessica as the Private Investigator greatly downplays her figure. I have a lot of issues with this, not because giving her more traditionally "masculine" clothes not only reinforces that masculinity is the only form of strength, but also that women's bodies need to be covered up because they're inherently vulgar. One of the key narratives in the film is that men cannot control themselves around her body, which she hates, but she maintains complete control of any situation at all times.
You don't need to girlbossify her, she is already the boss.
It's almost as if the people who run Disney or design attractions now don't....actually understand their source material?
Of course, it was also announced over this last weekend that there would be updates to ToonTown in Disneyland. Roger looks conspicuously absent, which genuinely makes me sad.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit is now considered "not kid friendly," despite largely being considered a kids' movie for much of its existence. The PG of the 1980's was a much different PG than we have now. Films like The Goonies, E. T., Gremlins, and Labyrinth all have PG ratings, and all contain elements that would now never be included in kids films. In fact, very few movies being released still have G ratings. While goal posts and cultural values change, I also think that movies from the 1980's and 1990's had greater respect for its audiences, especially its children audiences. But I digress.
Nostalgia may be a liar, and whilst 80's and 90's nostalgia is in full, obnoxious force, Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a much better than anyone remembers. To say it was anything less would be bad faith revisionist history.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a brilliantly written, complex, nuanced, and empathetic exploration of prejudice, otherness, appearances, pre-judgement, trauma, PTSD, and loss. It does not receive the credit it deserves for the complexity of its writing, nor its cultural impact on film making.
Obviously below there will be spoilers.
Before moving forward, I just want to mention thatWho Framed Roger Rabbit is based on the lesser known book, Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, and is one of the few times the film is better than the source material.
One of the most salient diversions the film takes is with the character of Eddie Valiant. Bob Hoskins' performance in the film is nothing short of breath-taking. He absolutely deserved an Oscar for that role, and he wasn't even nominated. (He was nominated for both a Golden Globe and a Saturn, which he did not win, but he did win at the Evening Standard British Film Awards.) No one else could have performed that role with the level of respect, nuance and depth that Hoskins did.
Before moving forward, I just want to make a disclaimer: I have an incredibly strained relationship with alcoholism. I do not drink alcohol. I cannot have alcoholics in my life. I am the adult child of an alcoholic I am estranged from (whom I was both neglected and terrorized by). I have alcoholic family members I do not have any contact with, and former friends I no longer speak to. I understand that alcoholism is a disease, but it's not something that I have to or want to deal with; I associate it with poverty, trauma, and violence. That being said, I am going to try and talk about this subject with as much compassion and empathy as humanly possible.
It is immediately established that Eddie Valiant,a private detective, is an alcoholic. His opening shot is of him having observed Roger failing yet another take Somethin's Cookin', and taking a swig of alcohol muttering contempt towards "Toons." Valiant is bitter, resentful, and openly bigoted towards Toons, and it's hard to imagine why, until his girlfriend reveals to the bar patrons that a Toon murdered his brother, his former partner. It's later further revealed that Valiant was there when his brother was murdered, and was also injured during the process. Eddie Valiant clearly suffered from PTSD, survivor's guilt, and grief he can't come to turns with. The film is set in 1947, where heavy drinking and smoking was a norm, both in film and real life, but it's established that Valiant's drinking is seen as excessive and a problem. Even though it's a well-established that his drinking is rooted in trauma, many of his colleagues and former colleagues treat it as a joke. What has always struck me about this film is how realistic, despite being about, well, cartoons. Valiant's complex trauma and never ending grief are handled with such nuance and care, not over-dramatic or sensationalized. Because real life is messy.
After a Toon murders his brother, Valiant possesses a deep-seated disgust and prejudice towards all Toons. Naturally, this means he must be stuck with the most obnoxious of all Toons, Roger Rabbit, and must learn to unpack and examine his biases and trauma whilst trying to solve a murder mystery with the world's most annoying partner (who is the one being framed for said murder).
This movie makes a lot of incredibly brave choices. Having a movie about cartoons give one of cinema's most compassionate and realistic depictions of PTSD is certainly one of them. One of the most profound moments in the film is when Valiant has to go back into Toontown for the first time since he lost his brother to confront not only the Toon murder who shot R. K. Maroon, but his own trauma, his bigotry, and his alcoholism.
In Part 2, I will further break down the brilliant performance by Bob Hoskins as I go over the incredible technical achievements in the film.