10 Fan Theories That Make Comedies Really Depressing
6. Who Framed Roger Rabbit – An Allegory For Jim Crow Era America
Robert Zemeckis’ 1988 classic Who Framed Roger Rabbit was a ground-breaking movie combining live action and animation that found comedy in a world where cartoons and real-life people coexist – what fun, right?
Maybe not. If we entertain a fan theory that poses the movie is a metaphor for the USA’s tumultuous Jim Crow years with the toons representing America’s black population, you might think twice next time you find yourself giggling at the film’s terrible treatment of its animated actors.
Toontown, on the verge of being razed to the ground to make way for a freeway for Los Angeles’ wealthier residents, could easily be an allegory for the segregation and gentrification of black populated neighbourhoods while the exploitation of the toons as a source of entertainment could be a nod to minstrelsy and the real-life exploitation of black culture for white amusement.
At least Who Framed Roger Rabbit features a happy ending with Toontown saved and private detective Eddie Valiant getting over his prejudice against the toons. Shame we can’t say the same about the real-life version of events.