SYNOPSIS:
Start
your engines and fasten your seatbelts for the high-octane adventure
Speed Racer, combining heartfelt family humor and groundbreaking
visual effects. Speed
Racer (Emile Hirsch) is a natural behind the wheel of his
thunderous Mach 5. With support from Pops and Mom Racer (John
Goodman and Susan Sarandon), girlfriend Trixie (Christina
Ricci), younger brother Spritle (Paulie Litt), and the mysterious
Racer X (Matthew Fox), Speed takes on fierce competitors to
save his family's business and protect the sport he loves.
When Speed steps onto the track, it's not just a race; it's
an adrenaline-fueled, high-speed charge to the finish.
Go, Speed
Racer, go!!
MOVIE REVIEW:
What a blast! From its very opening, Speed Racer
literally “goes”, never stopping for a single
moment to catch its breath until it reaches the finish line.
And you’ll be left breathless as Speed Racer loops,
dips, and drifts around each of the equally visually arresting
but always unique race tracks spun off the creative imaginings
of the Wachowski brothers.
Yes, this is the very duo that catapulted to fame in Hollywood
with the Matrix trilogy, the mind-bending futuristic thriller
that ignited a revolution with its philosophical underpinnings.
Yes, this is the very duo whose debut effort was the lesbian
crime caper Bound. What on earth you may ask are the Wachowski
brothers doing behind the helm of a big-budget, live-action
adaptation of a 1960s TV cartoon series?
Fear not, because everything that you have come to love about
the Wachowskis are intact. Most prominently is their gift
of storytelling, demonstrated also by their sharply written
V For Vendetta screenplay. There are a whole host of characters
here, Pops and Mom Racer, Speed Racer’s girlfriend Trixie,
younger brother Spritle and his chimpanzee Chimp Chimp, the
mysterious Racer X among others.
In the hands of a lesser storyteller, all these characters
and their subplots would probably end up in a tangled mess.
But the Wachowski brothers have effortlessly managed not just
to weave in seamlessly the back stories of Speed and these
various characters, but also to let their relationships evolve
naturally throughout the entire movie.
And it is in these relationships, especially with Speed and
his family, that the story truly shines. The pain that Pops
feels of losing his child Rex, the fear that Pops and Mom
feel of Speed following in Rex’s footsteps and their
indescribable joy of watching Speed triumph are all just as
tender and genuine. It is to the Wachowskis’ credit
that the more poignant scenes are never schmaltzy, but instead
sincere and heartfelt.
The Wachowskis’ are also aided expertly by director
of photography David Tattersall, such that each scene is always
fresh and inventive, the camera moving around, behind, in
front of the characters, while their background changes to
tell a backstory, or switch to the next scene.
As
in their Matrix trilogy, the Wachowskis demonstrate once again
that they are masters at using CGI to complement their vivid
colourful imaginations. Each race has a distinct look, using
images captured from different locales such as Italy, Austria,
Turkey and Morocco. The one standout is the Casa Cristo race,
where the cars zoom cross terrain from desert to glacier.
Every cast member in this movie is also perfectly casted.
Thanks to the excellent performances all round, each role
in the film (and there are many) comes distinctly to life.
Kudos go especially to the talented Emile Hirsch, who plays
Speed Racer with so much enthusiasm that so he never remains
just a character in a white jumpsuit.
Perhaps the only drawback of this movie lies in its frenetic
action. When the races begin, the visuals often fade into
a blur and you really have to focus hard to decipher what
is going on if you’re watching it for the first time.
Nevertheless, Speed Racer offers loads of action, humour and
most of all, heart to qualify as a bona fide classic family
flick. To all the critics who deride it for its simplistic
plot, I have this to say: this is NOT Iron Man. It is a family-friendly
movie that more than keeps the adults entertained. Appreciate
Speed Racer for what it sets out to be, because in every regard
as a family-friendly movie, it entertains and genuinely thrills.
SPECIAL
FEATURES :
Spritle in the Big Leagues: Paulie Litt, who plays
Speed Racer’s younger brother Spritle in the movie,
takes you around the various departments on the movie’s
set in Berlin. Nothing more than an entertaining trifle, one
wishes that there were a more in-depth behind the scenes look
at the film’s technical wizardry.
Speed Racer: Supercharged is a fictional
look at the various cars, drivers and sponsors of the WRL,
the main racing league that Speed Racer competes in.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
Great
visual transfer that complements the colourful world of Speed
Racer. The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track also adds immensely
to the enjoyment of the film’s many action sequences.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD RATING :
Review
by Gabriel Chong
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