Space Jam isn’t a kid's movie anymore. LeBron James' “Space Jam: A New Legacy" is a haunted film that leaps beyond its origins and becomes an engrossing tragedy. It creates characters we come to care about. That’s because of the performances, because of the direction, because of the writing, and because of the superlative technical quality of the entire production. This film, and to a lesser degree “Shrek 2,” redefine the possibilities of the “kid's movie.”

“A New Legacy” is not a simplistic tale of good and evil. LeBron James is good, yes, Don Cheadle is evil, yes. But LeBron poses a more complex puzzle than usual, with all of civilization on the line.

The key performance in the movie is by LeBron James, as LeBron James. Will he become the first NBA MVP Oscar winner? His character arch draws power from the actual inspiration of the character in the silent classic “The Man Who Laughs” (1928). By the end, the whole moral foundation of the Looney Tunes existence is threatened.

Because these actors and others are so powerful, and because the movie does not allow its spectacular special effects to upstage the humans, we’re surprised how deeply the drama affects us. Bugs Bunny does an especially good job as the Toon's leader, whose character is transformed by a horrible fate into a lonely world. It is customary in a kid's movie to maintain a certain knowing distance from the action, to view everything through a kid's perspective. “A New Legacy” slips around those defenses and engages us.

Yes, the special effects are extraordinary. They focus on the expected explosions and catastrophes, and have some superb, elaborate chase scenes. The movie was shot on location in the cyberverse. Warner Brothers fans will recognize many places, notably Game of Thrones and Mad Max: Fury Road, but LeBron James is not making a Warner Brothers travelogue. He presents the cyberverse as a wilderness of universes, and a key sequence is set in the still-uncompleted Matrix universe. Through these heights, James moves at the speed that only a toon can in an unknown universe.

Something fundamental seems to be happening in the upper realms of the kid's movie. “Shrek 2” (2004) may have defined the high point of the traditional film based on animation. A movie like the new “Paddington 2” allows its director free rein for his fantastical visions. But now “Space Jam: A New Legacy” moves the genre into deeper waters. They realize, as some kid's movie audiences instinctively do, that these stories touch on deep fears, traumas, fantasies and hopes. And the James legend, with its origins in film noir, is the most fruitful one for exploration. It has become clear that James has taken the torch from his predecessor, Michael Jordan, and there can no longer be an argument.

In his two movies, James has freed the character to be a canvas for a broader scope of human emotion. For Space Jam's James is a deeply troubled family man, let there be no doubt, and if ever in exile from his heroic role, it would not surprise me what he finds himself capable of doing.