The Cambridge art house’s annual wabbit-themed film festival is running this week
Bully for Bugs! The quirky cast of Looney Tunes characters and the Boston area’s most family friendly film festival are back at the Brattle Theater for another week of hunting those wascally wabbits.
First introduced in 1996 as one stop on a national tour, the titular hare once again makes Cambridge his home at the annual Bugs Bunny Film Festival until Sunday, a perfect activity for students on school vacation and longtime fans alike. Bugs may be the star, but he is accompanied by his familiar animated entourage.
“It is a Looney Tunes film festival, right, but when it started it was referred to as the Bugs Bunny Film Festival. I still think Bugs Bunny is the most known—like, you can say ‘I’m watching a Bugs Bunny cartoon,’ and people will know what you’re talking about,” the Brattle’s creative director Ned Hinkle explained.
Hinkle, a long time fan of Bugs and company, has been bringing the bunny back to Boston for the past 24 years. He feels as though there’s something evergreen about the content, enjoyable for young children and adults alike.
“He’s a fan favorite. Remember when Tasmanian Devil was popular? Or like, there was that time when Tweety was popular, for some reason. The characters come and go, but I think Bugs is constant. Times change, but Bugs Bunny? He stays the same.”
Families flood in to see the festival, a tradition so long-standing that attendees who once came as kids now bring their own children to share the show. Not planning on attending with the family? Not a problem, cinephiles of all ages can derive delight from the Brattle’s programming.
“We definitely have fans of the cartoons, absolutely families, and also people just like myself: I don’t have kids, but I love the movies, and I love to watch them on screen,” Hinkle said. “There’s nothing like seeing a movie, or several movies, with an audience, particularly when they’re something as fun and joyous as the Looney Tunes.”
Expect to see fans of the franchise arrive at the theater sporting Bugs Bunny ties, Daffy Duck jackets and more, a public display of cartoon chic. If you’re lucky, you’ll be greeted at the door by a ticket taker dressed head to toe in a complete Bugs Bunny costume.
Each new edition of the festival brings a completely unique set of short flicks, though favorites of both fans and Hinkle, who puts together the Looney Tunes lineup, always seem to sneak their way in.
“We do mix it up quite a bit. I mean, if it was all my personal favorites, I still think it would be full of bangers,” Hinkle joked.
The most unique part of this programming? The shorts are all screened on 35 millimeter film, which is then threaded into the specialty projector before flickering its way on to the big screen. Even rarer, The Brattle utilizes rear projection, a screening method that has become nearly extinct elsewhere.
“We at The Brattle feel like seeing films on film, particularly those that were made on film, is an important part of experiencing the movie 100%,” Hinkle explained. “Some of these 35 millimeter prints for the Looney Tunes that we have are maybe not from when they came out, but pretty close to it. So you’re seeing something that has been seen by people for 50, 60, 70 years, and you can see the accumulation of history. It helps me appreciate the dings and scratches on a film print because you’re literally seeing history.”
To Hinkle and the broader Brattle family, preserving these traditional methods of film screening goes beyond just an aesthetic appreciation. “The bottom line is, that is the way these movies were played. Originally, they were played on 35 millimeter film. They were generally part of a larger program, of a feature and a newsreel and that kind of stuff. That’s why they were created this way, and then they made their way onto television, where most people who are alive today were exposed to them,” Hinkle said.
Come get cozy and experience Bugs and friends on film as intended, running through this Sunday, Feb. 23. Tickets range from $13 for students, seniors, children, and Brattle members to $15 general admission. EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare cardholders can receive free admission for up to two adults and four children. At the Brattle Theater, 40 Brattle St, Cambridge; 617-876-6838; brattlefilm.org.
