Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)

A toon-hating detective is a cartoon rabbit's only hope to prove his innocence when he is accused of murder.

Director:

Robert Zemeckis

Writers:

Gary K. Wolf (novel), Jeffrey Price (screenplay)

Stars:

Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, Joanna Cassidy

Won 3 Oscars. Another 21 wins & 22 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bob Hoskins	...	Eddie Valiant
Christopher Lloyd	...	Judge Doom
Joanna Cassidy	...	Dolores
Charles Fleischer	...	Roger Rabbit / Benny the Cab / Greasy / Psycho (voice)
Stubby Kaye	...	Marvin Acme
Alan Tilvern	...	R.K. Maroon
Richard LeParmentier	...	Lt. Santino (as Richard Le Parmentier)
Lou Hirsch	...	Baby Herman (voice)
Betsy Brantley	...	Jessica's Performance Model
Joel Silver	...	Raoul
Paul Springer	...	Augie
Richard Ridings	...	Angelo
Edwin Craig	...	Arthritic Cowboy
Lindsay Holiday	...	Soldier
Mike Edmonds	...	Stretch

Storyline

'Toon star Roger is worried that his wife Jessica is playing pattycake with someone else, so the studio hires detective Eddie Valiant to snoop on her. But the stakes are quickly raised when Marvin Acme is found dead and Roger is the prime suspect. Groundbreaking interaction between the live and animated characters, and lots of references to classic animation.

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Plot Keywords:

roger rabbit | maroon cartoon | private detective | year 1947 | rabbit | 

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Taglines:

It's the story of a man, a woman, and a rabbit in a triangle of trouble.

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Crime | Family | Fantasy | Mystery

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

An elaborate funeral scene for Marvin Acme, set at the famous Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, was discarded from the shooting script in pre-production. The scene consisted of Foghorn Leghorn delivering the eulogy, and the Harvey Toons jack-in-the-box logo springing out of Acme's casket to the tune of "Pop Goes the Weasel", with a giant funeral wreath attached; also in this scene, were many cartoon cameos that were eventually cut, including Casper the Friendly Ghost (who eventually sends everyone fleeing), Tom & Jerry, Elmer Fudd, Pepe le Pew, Screwy Squirrel, Superman and Lois Lane, Felix the Cat, Chip and Dale, Baby Huey, Mighty Mouse, Crusader Rabbit, Little Lulu, Popeye, Olive Oyl, Bluto, Wimpy, Heckle and Jeckle, Cinderella, Alice, the White Rabbit, the Mad Hatter, the March Hare, Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, Peter Pan and Wendy, Herman and Catnip, and Little Audrey amongst others.

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Goofs

Assistant director visible in reflection in trolley car window as Eddie leaves the studio lot after his first visit to Maroon's office.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Mrs. Herman: Mommy's going to the beauty parlor, darling, but I'm leaving you with your favorite friend, Roger. He's going to take very, very good care of you, because if he doesn't... HE'S GOING BACK TO THE SCIENCE LAB.

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Crazy Credits

After the end of the credits, the Amblin logo plays cut short.

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Alternate Versions

Several brief scenes were cut after the initial release:

• The gorilla picking up Eddie by the lapels after the line "Who are you calling a chump, chimp!"
• The beginning of Roger's reaction as the weasels cross the road to Eddie's office
• A brief dialogue exchange between Eddie and Smartass while Roger is hiding in the sink

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Movie Villains with Dumb Motivations (2019)

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Soundtracks

Smile, Darn Ya, Smile
(Finale)
Written by Jack Meskill, Charles O'Flynn, and Max Rich
Performed by The Cast of Toons

User Reviews

Nothing short of miraculous

Stop and think about this movie for a minute, and you realize that we are unbelievably fortunate that it even exists.

Think about all the different cartoon characters who have cameos here. Think about how their respective owners had to put aside decades of competing against each other for gags that would last a few seconds of screen time. Realise that, before this movie, the idea of combining fully rendered animated characters with live action footage was considered impossible. And how the hell do you market a movie that includes both murder plots and fuzzy little cartoons?

This movie is a miracle.

I absolutely loved it as a kid, and although parts of it flew over my head I really did not care. I did know that this is what animation can do when all the "rules" are totally ignored. And why shouldn't they be?

Now, as an adult, I appreciate "Roger Rabbit" for its gutsyness. There is absolutely *nothing* like this anywhere. It gets a solid Ten.

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 June 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Who Shot Roger Rabbit?

Filming Locations:

2715 N Vermont Canyon Road, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$70,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$11,226,239, 26 June 1988

Gross USA:

$156,452,370

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$329,803,958

Company Credits

Production Co:

Touchstone Pictures, Amblin Entertainment, Silver Screen Partners III

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby Stereo (35 mm prints) Dolby SR (1995 Re-Release) DTS (Digital DTS Sound) (1998/2002 Re-Release) Dolby Digital (1998/2002 Re-Release) SDDS (1998/2002 Re-Release)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1