I went to this movie today with my daughter, not expecting a whole lot. I saw the trailers and although it looked interesting I was afraid the story would be paper-thin but covered by a glaze of shiny goo.
I used to watch Speed Racer as a kid, I loved the Mach-5 and frankly seeing all those previews with the newer styled cars did turn me off somewhat.. this was blasphemy I thought, those Hollywood jerks always think they know what we like more than we do. I thought this would be another one of those re-imagined "updated" travesties cooked up to make a few bucks by sacrificing yet another beloved pop culture icon...
Right?
uh... no. I guess I have to eat my words. To be fair, this movie is not perfect and does tend to drag in places... and there is definite sensory overload at times with too many special-effects and overly artsy presentation... elements which should have been used a bit more sparingly because after a while they tend to lose impact and leaves you wondering if it was really necessary in the first place.
But that side... This movie is really terrific.
It nails every one of those old Speed Racer nuances... the complete arsenal of Mach-5 gadgetry and the Speed's costuming from the 1960s cartoon is well represented right down to Speed's snappy blue polo shirt and red neckerchief. The middle of the movie features a brilliant cross-country race segment that is ripped right out of the cartoon. Listen closely and you'll even hear all of Speed's trademark "Ohhs and Ahhhs" and that unmistakable soundtrack pops up exactly where it needs to. In my opinion, this movie grabs you in the middle and does not let go until the last checkered flag drops.
One other thing to mention is that this movie is perfectly cast and the acting was really well done within the context of being a live-action cartoon. Despite my earlier reservations, and thanks to my daughter's instance to go see it, this movie really won me over and I will surely own it on Blu-Ray when it becomes available.
Good job, Speed!
I used to watch Speed Racer as a kid, I loved the Mach-5 and frankly seeing all those previews with the newer styled cars did turn me off somewhat.. this was blasphemy I thought, those Hollywood jerks always think they know what we like more than we do. I thought this would be another one of those re-imagined "updated" travesties cooked up to make a few bucks by sacrificing yet another beloved pop culture icon...
Right?
uh... no. I guess I have to eat my words. To be fair, this movie is not perfect and does tend to drag in places... and there is definite sensory overload at times with too many special-effects and overly artsy presentation... elements which should have been used a bit more sparingly because after a while they tend to lose impact and leaves you wondering if it was really necessary in the first place.
But that side... This movie is really terrific.
It nails every one of those old Speed Racer nuances... the complete arsenal of Mach-5 gadgetry and the Speed's costuming from the 1960s cartoon is well represented right down to Speed's snappy blue polo shirt and red neckerchief. The middle of the movie features a brilliant cross-country race segment that is ripped right out of the cartoon. Listen closely and you'll even hear all of Speed's trademark "Ohhs and Ahhhs" and that unmistakable soundtrack pops up exactly where it needs to. In my opinion, this movie grabs you in the middle and does not let go until the last checkered flag drops.
One other thing to mention is that this movie is perfectly cast and the acting was really well done within the context of being a live-action cartoon. Despite my earlier reservations, and thanks to my daughter's instance to go see it, this movie really won me over and I will surely own it on Blu-Ray when it becomes available.
Good job, Speed!