Speed Racer (2008)

A young driver, Speed Racer, aspires to be champion of the racing world with the help of his family and his high-tech Mach 5 automobile.

Directors:

Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski

Writers:

Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski,

Stars:

Emile Hirsch, Nicholas Elia, Christina Ricci

8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Emile Hirsch	...	Speed
Nicholas Elia	...	Young Speed Racer
Susan Sarandon	...	Mom
Melissa Holroyd	...	Speed's Teacher
Ariel Winter	...	Young Trixie Shimura
Scott Porter	...	Rex Racer
Gian Ganziano	...	Everyman Announcer
Peter Fernandez	...	Local Announcer
Harvey Friedman	...	Harold Ledermann Announcer
Sadao Ueda	...	Japanese Announcer
Valery Tscheplanowa	...	Russian Announcer
Sami Loris	...	Italian Announcer
Olivier Marlo	...	French Announcer
Sean McDonagh	...	Celtic Announcer
Kick Gurry	...	Sparky

Storyline

The story begins with Speed Racer who is a young man with natural racing instincts whose goal is to win The Crucible, a cross-country car racing rally that took the life of his older brother, Rex Racer. Speed is loyal to the family business, run by his parents Pops and Mom. Pops designed Speed's car, the Mach 5. The owner of Royalton Industries makes Speed a lucrative offer, Speed rejects the offer, angering the owner. Speed also uncovers a secret that top corporate interests, including Royalton, are fixing races and cheating to gain profit. With the offer to Speed denied, Royalton wants to ensure that Speed will not win races. Speed finds support from his parents and his girlfriend Trixie and enters The Crucible in a partnership with his one-time rival, Racer X, seeking to rescue his family's business and the racing sport itself.

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Plot Keywords:

speed | racer | race | racing | mach 5 | 

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Taglines:

Go! May 2008

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Genres:

Action | Family | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for sequences of action, some violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [br] Warner Bros [fr]

Country:

USA Australia Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 May 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Speed Racer: The IMAX Experience

Filming Locations:

Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

$120,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£362,102 (UK) (9 May 2008)

Gross:

$43,929,341 (USA) (1 August 2008)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, Silver Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

135 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Rose McGowan was considered for the role of Trixie.

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Goofs

When Spritle and Chim Chim are "outside" tanning themselves, the stage ceiling can be seen in Spritle's reflector.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Race Announcer: All drivers to your cars, please. All drivers to your cars.

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Crazy Credits

Throughout the first half of the closing credits Japanese/English/French/Spanish/Portuguese dialogue from Speed Racer can be heard, depending on the language of the country the film released in.

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Connections

Referenced in Todd's Pop Song Reviews: Glitter (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Free Bird"
Written by Allen Collins and Ronnie Van Zant
Performed by Lynyrd Skynyrd
Courtesy of Geffen Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

A good family movie

I have to say, it seems that those who hated it were obviously not doing their homework beforehand to know that SR is not supposed to be a thought-provoking film like The Matrix. It is based on a wonderfully simple cartoon with a simple message for kids. If anyone knows anything about cult fans, they want films to reflect the original medium as much as possible. Thus, if you go to a children's movie based on a child-friendly anime, expect it to be such and not some mind-blowing,challenging film. Especially these days, we need films like this one to take our minds off the usual violence and such found in so many other so-called family movies. Take it as it is, a great family flick for ALL ages to simply enjoy.