Speed Racer
As stated by a friend of mine on IM (just now) “going in to see a good movie and having it be good is not as good as going in expecting to see so-so and having it be a lot better.” The Wachowski brothers have done the impossible, which is to take a corny anime/cartoon and successfully transfer it to film.
A movie that appeals to both adults and children simultaneously. Speed Racer reminded me of a Pixar Animation except with real people. The colors are bright, primary and did I say bright? Ya, your kids will go ape sh– over the special effects and packaging that comes along with this and you nostalgic old schoolers will find yourselves saying “wow, this is just like the cartoon”. The trailers did not do well in conveying the impact of Speed Racer but once you take your skeptical tail to the box office and bone up the money to watch it you will thank me for the recommendation.
Speed Racer, for those of you who avoided watching it or you younger folks who are too lazy to YouTube it… Is a tale of a young man by the name of Speed Racer, (yes his surname is racer) who wants nothing else in life but to race, race, race. I’m sure he and Ricky Bobby could hang out hardcore, but Speed comes packaged with uber sexy/cute girlfriend Trixy and a family unit that is tighter than a (insert metaphor for tight here). When Speed starts to show his stuff at the races under his father’s company the big fat corporate giants take notice. The invitations start pouring in and Speed must choose between family loyalty and racing fame.
Toss in some cool kung fu moves, space-aged racing tracks and a badass driver who goes by the name “Racer X” and you got yourself a real fun movie. Emile Hirsch not only looks the part of Speed Racer but becomes the character, even locking in the textbook “Speed Racer pose” of cartoon fame… he ghost rides the whip! Christina Ricci’s version of Trixi is cute (yes I know i’ve said it before), strong and cute enough to be lovable, which isn’t a 100% version of the cartoon but it fit in well for this movie. John Goodman as Speed’s fat father wasn’t the greatest fit in my opinion, since the acting seemed a bit more forced than the other family members who slid easily into their roles. Cinematography was straight out of “Shark Boy and Lava Girl” which made me feel like I was watching one of these Saturday morning cartoon/cg abortions that plague kids television these days. This however does not take away from the movie as a whole, the world seem surreal (like a neon Jetsons) and the racing was just plain awesome.
If you like things that go boom, or things that move at over 800 mph… or if you like movies with a huge multicultural cast. Go support this film… if you are stuck on realism and like your coffee bland and black then stay far away from this one. I personally loved it, and would love to see a sequel or even more anime to movie films from these two brothers.Go Speed Racer, Go Speed Racer, Go Speed Racer, Goooooooooooooooooo! Woot!
STAR RATING: (7/10) ★★★★★★★★★★
Filed under Action, Family, Science Fiction · Tagged with anime cartoon, cartoon movie, christina ricci, emile hirsch, wachowski brothers
