Directed by: The Wachowski Brothers
Premise: An adaptation of the Japanese
animation series. In a science fiction fantasy world where car racing is
an elaborate, multimillion-dollar industry, Speed Racer (Emile Hirsch)
emerges as a major talent. When he turns down a contract with a major
corporation in favor of staying with his independent family-based team,
Speed finds himself defending his family against one of the corporations
that controls the races.
What Works: Speed Racer is an
exciting film to watch for its insanely busy racing scenes and colorful
style. This film brings so-called “MTV editing” to a new level, but
rather than flash disposable images at strobe light speed, Speed
Racer uses the style to serve the storytelling, especially in the
first half, using eloquent transitions to jump all over the timeline and
convey large amounts of expository information with complete coherence
and great style. The film has an energy to it that starts from the very
opening and does not let up until the conclusion. As an adaptation of a
Japanese cartoon, Speed Racer translates the style of the cartoon
to live action, although like the Star Wars prequels, the film
begs the question whether it is a live action film with animated
elements or an animated film with live action elements. The distinction
may not be all that important, but it does demonstrate the plasticity of
contemporary film. Aside from all of the eye candy, the story of Speed
Racer has some nice character work between the family members,
especially between Speed and his father, played by John Goodman. They
have some excellent scenes together and their relationship brings flesh
and blood to the computer generated imagery and reality to the fantasy.
Also fun to watch is Paulie Litt as Speed’s younger brother. He pairs
with the family’s pet monkey to provide comic relief and Litt’s
delivery and sense of timing is excellent, especially for such a young
actor. Speed Racer is an interesting entry into the Wachowski's
filmography. Their previous work, including Bound, The Matrix trilogy, and V
for Vendetta, have generally subverted genre conventions and
crammed countercultural themes and references into the text. Speed
Racer is much more family friendly than any of their previous work
but the political subtext remains, although in a more subtle and less
confrontational way.
What Doesn’t: In adapting the cartoon to
live action, Speed Racer retains some of the physical comedy that
is unique to animation. It does not translate well, especially a goofy
fight scene between the family and a group of ninjas. Fans of the
Wachowski Brother’s other work might find Speed Racer a little
hard to swallow. Despite some underlying criticism of corruption and
corporate influence on sports and culture, the film follows basic sports
genre conventions and does not delve into the kind of subversive
territory of V for Vendetta or The Matrix films.
Bottom Line: Speed Racer is a lot of
fun and it is mostly a successful translation of the animated series.
While it might not have the heavy subtext of the Wachowski’s other
work, it does have some compelling themes, well drawn characters, and
superior technical craft that make it more than just another racing
film.