Amazon.com: An over-the-top, sensory overload experience determined to replicate its frantic, television-anime origins, Speed Racer is wild enough to induce a headache or wow a viewer with one dazzling effect after another. Adapted for the big screen as a live-action feature, Speed Racer is written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, the sibling team behind the intensely satisfying The Matrix and its busier, less interesting sequels. Where the rich mythmaking of The Matrix was entirely accessible, however, Speed Racer's overwhelming and gratuitously complicated story exposition is an enormous challenge to follow, let alone embrace. After a while, one simply surrenders to the unbroken din of dialogue concerning corporate chicanery, corruption in the sport of racing, and a value conflict between racing as a family business versus multinational cash cow. At the same time, the film's hyper-real equivalent of the old Speed Racer cartoon's great whoosh of color, motion, and edgy production design--such as inventive uses of scene-changing wipes, bold framing, shifting perspectives--are more overbearing than fun.
Emile Hirsch plays Speed Racer, younger brother of a deceased racing legend, Rex, and son of car designer Pops (John Goodman). The latter invented Speed's Mach 5, and is singularly unimpressed by an offer from a giant conglomerate that would lock Speed into exclusive racing services. Speed opts instead for family loyalty, incurring the wrath of the conglomerate's unctuous head (Roger Allam). With family honor on the line and the affections of girlfriend Trixie (Christina Ricci) behind him, Speed hits the track in hopes of fulfilling his destiny as a master racer. The cast is largely enjoyable, including Susan Sarandon as Speed's mom, Matthew Fox as mysterious Racer X, and a pair of chimps as the irrepressible Chim-Chim. All well and good, but in a movie that lives or dies by the excitement level of races that look like computer-animated Hot Wheels action, Speed Racer is a dreary adventure. --Tom Keogh
Warner Bros. Obviously Aren't Mac Fans; Glorious in HD No where on this page does is say that the second disc is a pretty boring DVD game. Nowhere else on here does it say the digital copy disc is only compatible with PCs.
Luckily, the actual Blu-Ray disc IS multi-regional. I live here in Australia and the disc works fine, just finished watching it. It's a beautiful film in high-definition and completely mind-boggling.
I'm not going to bore you with what I think the film is about or is like, but the Blu-Ray is a bit of a bummer. 3 stars for the whole shebang, but I rate the film four stars.
DVD Review ONLY This review is for the DVD packaging. I received my copy of Speed Racer DVD only to find the disc scratched (yes, it was still on the spindle). So I ordered and recieved a replacement, and it was scratched in exactly the same manner. Perhaps a manufacturing defect?
Family-Friendly Art Film? SPEED RACER? YES! My wife was a Speed Racer fan as a kid; she insisted on going to see this movie with me. I, having remembered MY experiences watching the original, agreed but recognized this as being one of those things a husband must do.
I have never been more fortunately wrong.
Speed Racer is not just a cartoon being brought to life. It's a story of a family, told with artistry drawn from the anime subgenre and with storytelling methods from all the eras of movies ever made. The sad thing is that this movie may make money, but it's almost dead-certain that the achievements involved in making it won't be really recognized... because it is, after all, "Speed Racer!"
What this movie does... is nothing short of magical. We are introduced to a world in which colors are brighter, where the 1960s meet the Bright Shining Future!!! envisioned in the 1940s, where -- it seems -- extreme auto racing has replaced not merely other sports, but even warfare. Corporations control almost every aspect of the sport, and the battle for supremacy on the track is echoed by the battles in the boardroom... or does the racing echo the boardroom?
It focuses on a family -- a startlingly well-adjusted, coherent, loving family, one of VERY few found in American cinema where usually families are fragmented, shattered, traumatized, and dysfunctional; overall, I can only think of a couple of other really overall "together" families in cinema -- and one of them is the Addams Family.
The Racer family LIVES auto racing -- racing at a level that normally is reserved for jet fighter pilots, on tracks that combine military-level equipment and Department of Transportation highway construction with roller-coaster design sensibilities and with cars that may exceed 800 kilometers per hour (500mph), cars sometimes armed and always with little surprising gadgets hidden away. The family does have an old tragedy in the background, but the focus of the family is on their racing -- building the cars, racing them, and keeping it a family business.
As one can predict, the family business and the huge corporations are destined to clash -- violently.
I'm not going to go into the details of the plot; it's not necessary. What's important is to know that the background is introduced seamlessly; you come to know this strange world, this unusual family, the power of the corporations, the sport that is central to the action, and all the conflicts that will emerge, in visual and dialogue sequences that interweave and lead into each other perfectly -- you ask a question, it is answered at exactly the right time, to produce exactly the right effect.
Not everyone will like this movie. But for those who can, it is perfect. I cannot think of a single aspect of Speed Racer that could be changed without lessening it -- and I don't think there is another movie I can think of about which I could say that. The Wachowskis set out to distill the essence of what made that silly cartoon somehow appealing to a group of fans even over a period of 40 years... and they succeeded.
Best Movie of 2008! I did not have high hopes for Speed Racer when I saw it at the I-Max in May 2008, but I was completely blown away by it. The movie is non-stop fun from beginning to end! It truly recreates the spirit of the cartoon and then some. The colors and style of the film are amazing! I watched it again on DVD last week and it still remains the best film I've seen this year. It's a shame that so many moviegoers listen to what critics say; they truly missed out on an excellent film! Go Buy Speed! Go!
Pleasantly surprised Speed racer was one of my favorite cartoons growing up. Having heard the generally negative to very negative reviews for the movie I passed on it in the theater. Those reviews suprised me because of the stellar director and cast.
Having just seen the movie on DVD I can honestly say I enjoyed it and appreciated the casting and nods to the original series. Emile did a fine job in the lead, Spridle was well done, John Goodman, Christinna, etc. The original series was always melodramtic and over the top with Speed saves the day or even the world but the film-makers took that and used it about as well as could be done.
The dialogue does make you cringe at times but overall it is a very enjoyable ride and fans of the original series will not be disappointed at all. We even get the Chim-Chim Spridle double-team in trench coat. As for the DVD itself; few extras, just a couple of entertaining shorts, and no commentary. Bottom-line as a fan of the series I am very glad I saw it. Much better than critics would leave you to believe. If you never saw the original series, still enjoyable. Great cast, some neat visuals, and likeable characters.
Anything Goes Trivia
Trevor
Megaton Man
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