From 'Hop' to 'Harvey,' 8 bunny movies for pre-Easter family viewing
With the coronavirus outbreak shuttering malls and other public gathering places, there will be no cute pictures of babies on the Easter Bunny's lap this month or toddlers searching for eggs at the annual park district hunt.
Perhaps, then, it's a good time to stream bunny movies from the past. Below are suggestions from Film Critic Dann Gire, updated from an earlier list put together during a far less complicated Easter season.
To find out where to rent, buy or stream the movies, check out reelgood.com.
1. “Peter Rabbit” (2018)
The release of the sequel has been pushed off during the pandemic, but this 2018 live action/CGI hybrid should entertain the kids until then.
James Corden voices Beatrix Potter's beloved bunny, who's as busy as ever messing with Mr. McGregor's garden and annoying his great nephew.
2. “Zootopia” (2016)
This wild and comic political twist on “Animal Farm” works for both kids and adults as a reaffirmation of equal justice and opportunity while rejecting racial and gender stereotyping. “Zootopia” wraps a Sunday school lesson in a mystery pumped with smartly observed jokes and dense, layered visuals as rural bunny Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) achieves her dream to be Zootopia's first rabbit cop.
3. “Hop” (2011)
A cute but unremarkable mix of CGI and live action tells the story of how an aging Easter Bunny (Hugh Laurie) wants his son (Russell Brand) to take over the family business, but he'd rather be a drummer in a rock 'n' roll band.
Adults might not appreciate the stereotypes. But kids will enjoy the action and the characters.
4. “Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit” (2005)
It took five years, 44 pounds of glue per month, 30 miniature sets, 2.8 tons of moldable Plasticine and 1,000 baby wipes per week to make this witty, astonishing part-CGI, part-stop-motion animated comedy the directors called “the world's first vegetarian horror film.”
Lovable Wallace (Peter Sallis) turns into a were-rabbit, wreaking havoc in the community just before the annual Giant Vegetable Competition. A wonderful family movie and winner of the Best Animated Feature Academy Award.
5. “Harvey” (1950)
The greatest bunny movie ever. This classic comic fantasy tells the story of Jimmy Stewart's Elwood P. Dowd, a gentle soul whose best friend is Harvey, a 6-foot 8-inch tall invisible rabbit. Dowd's social-climbing sister attempts to have him committed. A sheer delight featuring one of Stewart's many definitive roles.
6. “Bambi” (1942)
The world's most lovable rabbit (that's actually visible) is Thumper, the childlike best buddy to Bambi the deer in one of Walt Disney's all-time greatest animated classics. Thumper (voiced by Peter Behn) practically steals the movie from its titular character.
Who could forget that great comic sequence when Thumper teaches an unsteady Bambi how to navigate on the ice?
7. “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” (1988)
When Maroon Cartoons' superstar Roger Rabbit appears to have murdered his studio boss, Bob Hoskins' private detective Eddie Valiant sets out to crack the case. Another Hollywood family classic that brings together the greatest cartoon characters of the 20th century and mixes them with live-action footage to create a monumental work of entertainment and fun.
Especially when the alluring Jessica Rabbit (Kathleen Turner) says to Eddie, “I'm not bad. I'm just drawn that way.”
8. “Space Jam” (1996)
Chicago sports legend Michael Jordan probably thought he was the star of this highly entertaining merger of cartoons and live-action footage. But we all know Bugs Bunny is the main event in this joyful, action-packed sports movie masquerading as a science-fiction thriller.
When bad guys kidnap major basketball stars to play an unfair game against Bugs' animated pals, the wascally wabbit taps his pal Michael Jordan to tip the scales - and basketball - in their favor.