Speed Racer (2008)

[Plain Old Tele]

Discuss.

[Alpha]

It's an underrated achievement in visual effects, and one of the most entertaining eye-gasms ever made. There's a LOT of notable problems in terms of plot, characterization and tone, but there's still a lot of heartfelt moments, the acting is all around good, and the races are both beautiful and thrilling. It may be flawed, but it's one of the most unique big-budget films in recent memory.

B+

Edited February 8, 2015 by Alpha

[Ethan Hunt]

B+

[Spidey Freak]

 There's a LOT of notable problems in terms of plot, characterization and tone...

 

Er no, that's a faithful adaptation of the crazy schizoid original series.

[Alpha]

Er no, that's a faithful adaptation of the crazy schizoid original series.

Still, that's important when making a movie.

[Goffe]

Er no, that's a faithful adaptation of the crazy schizoid original series.

lol

[CoolioD1]

Er no, that's a faithful adaptation of the crazy schizoid original series.

"No, you don't get it. it's supposed to suck" is always the best.

[Spidey Freak]

"No, you don't get it. it's supposed to suck" is always the best.

 

Nice try but I didn't imply it sucked in any way. It was as crazy awesome as it was supposed to be.

[Squaremaster316]

1/2* out of *****

 

An eye straining, seizure-inducing, monster headache of a film, with effects that looked borderline YouTube green screen quality.  A complete mess from one of the most overrated tandems in cinema history.

Edited February 12, 2015 by Squaremaster316

[Jake Gittes]

Lol. Just watched this for the first time since '08. It's a masterpiece of fluid editing and visual effects - which, because they are so stylized, haven't aged a day and will endure a lot better than the "realistic" CGI of most blockbusters - and, even more importantly, it doesn't have a single ironic or cynical bone in its cinematic body, which counts for more with each passing week. The plotting definitely isn't perfect (though this is only limited to the whole business with the Japanese company), but I hardly cared - it grabbed me right from that beautiful opening sequence, more specifically from the bit with Speed drawing smashing cars and the classroom around him turning into a race track. One of the main things that makes me admire the Wachowskis is that they're completely unafraid to go for pure, honest emotion, and in this movie they are basically doing it for two straight hours. I was completely won over.

[Jessie]

1/2* out of *****

 

An eye straining, seizure-inducing, monster headache of a film, with effects that looked borderline YouTube green screen quality.  A complete mess from one of the most overrated tandems in cinema history.

 

the only reason you don't like the Wachwaski brothers is because they made a film similar to Inception, and better.

[Goffe]

the only reason you don't like the Wachwaski brothers is because they made a film similar to Inception, and better.

or maybe he didn't like the film, which is perfectly fine because SR is a very flawed movie 

 

note: I really like Speed Racer

[Squaremaster316]

or maybe he didn't like the film, which is perfectly fine because SR is a very flawed movie 

 

 

This.

 

Also, The Matrix is ludicrously overrated, Inception is smarter AND more humble about it.

[Jessie]

or maybe he didn't like the film, which is perfectly fine because SR is a very flawed movie 

 

note: I really like Speed Racer

This.

 

Also, The Matrix is ludicrously overrated, Inception is smarter AND more humble about it.

Point proven

[Ozymandias]

Calling Inception better than the first Matrix is almost as funny as calling Speed Racer and Jupiter Ascending good movies.  I watched The Matrix a few weeks ago, its still just as amazing as it was 16 years and makes you sad there won't be another scifi movie as good as that for a very long time.  The Wachowskis may be 1 trick ponies, but you gotta give them credit where credit is due on that one.

[Goffe]

Point proven

Sorry, but It didn't proven anything

 

Besides, saying that Inception is better is perfectly fine because they're both excellent movies, it's not like he's saying that Battlefield Earth is better than The Matrix. We aren't talking about a Ethan Here.

[BadAtGender]

I'm not sure how many times I've seen Speed Racer. Not too many. But it's a film that gets better every time I watch it.

 

The first time, at the Metreon IMAX, it was a fun escape that a friend and I enjoyed, but didn't see as particularly memorable.

 

Over the years, I've gone back to it and it's grown on me. It's astonishing that the Wachowskis got a film like this made. A big budget spectacle that echews the standards that most big budget spectacles aspire to. It isn't realistic in any sense. There is no attempt to say that the world being created could actually exist. From the lack of physics in the races to the cartoon-presentation of the sets, Speed Racer exists in a world of its own making.

 

Several years back, I attended a talk by Donald Ritchie, and he said something that's stuck with me ever since about the difference between live action and animated films. Live action often attempts to be representational: the idea that what you are seeing on the screen could actually exist in that way. Animation, however, is presentational: the world on screen is entirely created and needs to be taken on its own rules.

 

Indeed, many animators will be concerned with displaying the truth of the thing rather than the thing itself. If you watch the background information on Finding Nemo, they found that they were able to represent an undersea environment nearly perfectly. However, this wasn't good because it undermined what they were trying to achieve, so they started tweaking with it until they could present their world as it needed to be.

 

Speed Racer is a rare film that is both live action and completely presentational. It seems more in line to compare it to animated films in its construction than live action. And on that basis, it succeeds admirably.

[Kalo]

It's an underrated achievement in visual effects, and one of the most entertaining eye-gasms ever made. There's a LOT of notable problems in terms of plot, characterization and tone, but there's still a lot of heartfelt moments, the acting is all around good, and the races are both beautiful and thrilling. It may be flawed, but it's one of the most unique big-budget films in recent memory.

B+

^ what he said.

[James]

Calling Inception better than the first Matrix is almost as funny as calling Speed Racer and Jupiter Ascending good movies.  I watched The Matrix a few weeks ago, its still just as amazing as it was 16 years and makes you sad there won't be another scifi movie as good as that for a very long time.  The Wachowskis may be 1 trick ponies, but you gotta give them credit where credit is due on that one.

    You should watch more movies.

[Ozymandias]

    You should watch more movies.

 

What the hell are you talking about?  Matrix Reloaded is okay, but its nothing like the universally praised masterpiece the first one was and Matrix Revolutions is horrible.  Speed Racer and especially Jupiter Ascending are awful.  I liked Cloud Atlas a lot, but thats not the kind of film I'd defend against someone who doesn't like it because it is a polarizing movie.  Wachowski fanboys crack me up, they think they're smarter than everyone else.

Edited February 14, 2015 by Ozymandias