Speed (Emile Hirsch, “Into the Wild”, “Alpha Dog”) eagerly anticipates racing his Mach 5, a car designed and built with the help of his dad (John Goodman) in the Crucible, one of the premiere events in the World Racing League circuit. As he waits in the locker room, mentally preparing himself for the upcoming race, he remembers back to a similar moment when his older brother, Rex (Scott Porter) once faced the same challenges…
Written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, the duo behind “The Matrix”, one of the most visionary films ever made, “Speed Racer” isn’t as bad as the third installment of “The Matrix” trilogy, but it has problems. I was hoping the brothers had worked the kinks out of their system, the same kinks that helped to create “Revolutions”, the third installment and one of the most disappointing sequels ever. They’ve worked out some, but not all of them.
…But Rex and his father had a falling out and Rex ended up having a bad accident during a race, causing his death. As Speed takes to the twisty, curvy track, resembling something out of a Matchbox set only a sadist could create…
The Wachowski Brothers are very visual filmmakers, interested in, possibly obsessing over all details of the looks of their films. This may seem like a ‘well, duh” statement, but the brothers have created many completely unique worlds for their films, making them seem believable, viable, possible. Of course, they become a filmmaking powerhouse after “The Matrix”, spending this cache to make two sequels to that film. Yes, I actually liked the second installment, “The Matrix: Reloaded”, but even I have my limits. These limits were surpassed by “Revolutions”. As the producers of “V for Vendetta”, they helped to stamp their signature on this project as well, creating a future look at a very Orwellian London. Now, with “Speed Racer”, they turn their unique eye on an animated series they grew-up with. “Racer” really does blow your mind with new and interesting visuals; there are so many interesting ideas at work in the film, it would take me hours to go through them all, so I’ll just highlight a few. The brothers use a ‘deep focus’ technique giving this film the look of animation. Generally, if a camera is focusing on one subject, people and objects in the background, further behind the subject in question, are blurry, allowing us to focus on the character in the foreground. If the attention shifts, the focus changes. In “Racer”, both subjects are always in focus and this gives the film a flatter appearance. Normally, this flatter appearance would be problematic, but it is intentional and the color palette of the film is filled with neon colors and brightness, making these same images pop off the screen. It’s a unique, somewhat strange effect. Because the images are a little flatter, and at the same time, they aren’t, they almost appear slightly 3-D.
…Mom (Susan Sarandon) and Speed’s gal-pal, Trixie (Christina Ricci) sit in the crowded stands, ready to cheer Speed on…
I know the Wachowski Brothers grew up with the original animated series and are trying to pay homage with this film. But they are, perhaps, paying too much homage and not trying to fix the things they should. Many of the actors portray their characters in a very, very broad way and this only makes them seem more like cartoons, less real and makes it more difficult to believe in the rest of the world the brothers spent so much time and effort to create. Paulie Litt who plays Spritle, Speed’s younger brother is particularly broad and cartoony and it doesn’t help that he has Chim Chim, a monkey at his side, throughout the entire film. There are a few nice visual puns involving Spritle and Chim Chim, but these characters place a strain on an already incredulous story. There are also a series of villains who growl and snarl at the camera as though someone is shouting out single word descriptions of their emotions, causing them to react. Hirsch, Sarandon, Goodman and Ricci do a better job with the material.
…Speed takes to the track and it quickly becomes evident the other racers are determined to do whatever they have to do to keep Speed from winning. This is like no race you have ever seen before; more like a wire cage match combined with NASCAR, the drivers have implements added to their cars to help them fend off attackers who have added dangerous implements to their cars, implements designed to do some nasty stuff…
And this film is like no film you have ever seen before. In addition to the crazy, interesting color palette and the crazy designs of the racetracks and cityscapes, they Wachowski Brothers use two interesting techniques throughout the film. Rather than use a normal dissolve or other typical transition to move from one scene to the next, they frequently use one or more characters, wiping them across the screen as the scene changes. Frequently, these characters are talking as well, providing some thought or snippet of information relating to the action on screen. This is an interesting technique, because it provides a lot more layers to the film, always, always giving us something interesting to look at. But it also an overused technique and ultimately becomes exhausting. Frequently, the characters used for this technique are the seemingly dozens of sportscaster, many from other countries, speaking in their native tongue. Because these characters appear randomly, sometimes shouting a line in Italian or Japanese, their appearance only serves to add to the cacophony of the film.
…But Speed is a great racer, possibly the best ever, so he is able to deflect the attackers off, flipping his car, jumping from one track to the next, the car spinning through the air with ease…
This is easily the best part of the film. The races are amazing to watch because they seem to be taking place on a Matchbox set in the film “Bladerunner”. It’s a little difficult to follow the action at times, but this helps to keep the viewers engaged.
...Speed’s antics attract the attention of Royalton (Roger Allam, “The Queen”, “V for Vendetta” and lots of British TV credits), a wealthy industrialist who is very interested in getting Speed to race for his company and help promote his new, unbeatable engine, which would conveniently be built into the car he wants Speed to drive.
And Racer X (Matthew Fox, TV’s “Lost”, “Vantage Point”) is a mysterious, “Robin Hood” type, out to help those who need it. He takes an interest in helping Speed especially when he declines to join Royalton’s team. After a series of events unfolds, Speed is able to race in the upcoming Grand Prix, the penultimate event for all racers. But Royalton unleashes the many henchmen…
Royalton’s henchmen eerily resemble the 1960s Television version of the Riddler’s goons.
…At his disposal to ensure that won’t happen. Will Racer X be able to help?
“Racer”’s problems are even more upsetting because I had such high hopes for the film. The trailers promised a mind-blowing, trippy journey. And the filmmakers deliver on this promise. But the story is lacking and the acting is uneven and an odd storytelling device makes the film a mixed effort, one many are clearly staying away from.
The odd storytelling device? The film opens with Speed sitting on a bench in the locker room, waiting for the next race, psyching himself up. As he sits, his back to us, he remembers back to similar events involving his brother, Rex, when he was much younger. So we watch a moment between Rex and Speed, then return to the current, thanks to Mom and Pops (Sarandon and Goodman) sitting in the stands, cheering in both scenarios. We watch a moment of the race, than return to the other story. Back to the race, and so forth. Much like the character transitions, this initially works and provides interest to the film, but it becomes overused and ultimately slows the film…
And this review…
…Down at a time when every minute counts. The same thing happens during the Grand Prix race. A few moments of the race, transition to another story in the past, back to the race, and so forth. This technique makes the Grand Prix, the big, ultimate, climactic race seem like the slowest race ever.
I also think it is a mistake to market the film as ‘family friendly’. This campaign is most likely driving away the teenage boys, afraid there money and time will be spent watching something too tame and sweet. Teenaged girls? Maybe. Little girls? Forget it. So, little boys are really the only audience suitable for this film. And they can’t buy tickets on their own. So it is left to the few people interested enough in the film, or nostalgic enough for the animated series, to buy a ticket for this film. And there are apparently very few of those people out in the world.
