plot summary

The Racer family has been building and racing custom cars for years. Racing is in their blood and a daily part of their lives. Speed Racer, the middle son of three, is a born race car driver. When he masterfully wins the race at Thunderhead, he draws the attention of Royalton Industries.

The owner of the megacorp makes Speed an offer to drive for his team. Speed refuses, and he and his family become targets of a vengeful corporation. The only way Speed can ever hope to take down the corrupt Royalton Industries is to race cross country with former rival, Racer X, in the infamous Casa Cristo, the same race which took the life of Speed’s idolized older brother Rex.

There’s more at stake than the family business, however, and Speed must discover the true reason to why he races in order to save not only his family, but racing itself.

review

Speed Racer proves Americans can not only make live action anime, they can make fantastic live action anime. But what it really takes to make it work is love. Love of anime and love for film making, two things renown anime fans, the Wachowski Brothers have in spades.

The movie was in a word, amazing. I went in with no expectations and went away with a glowing feeling of satisfaction. Everything that is anime is translated, almost verbatim, into live action. The colors, movements, action and perspectives, which are the hallmarks of this medium, are defined beautifully in a movie that has no right to be as good as it is.

Let’s face it, the original Speed Racer anime was bad. Although the anime is a “classic”, the concepts were bad, the animation was bad, the execution was bad. But this movie has taken a broke down, shoddy piece of “classic” anime and transformed it into something which is more “Anime” than the original.

Fans may be temporarily taken aback by the wash of vibrant colors that fills the screen. Yet just like watching your first anime series, what seems strange at first starts to feel comfortable, homey even. This is what real life anime should be; loud, sexy, fantastic and a little overwhelming.

The visuals aren’t just a homage to anime, though, they are anime. The beautiful people and creative character designs populating Speed Racer are what make anime so appealing and unique. But you don’t have to be an anime fan to appreciate a movie this engaging and fun. It’s hard not to get swept up in the excitement of a race, or a fight with ninjas and colorful villains. The theater audience was cheering as Speed flew down the impossible race tracks- everyone was in on the action. The pervading bubblegum feel of the movie didn’t feel childish, however, just fun. Adult fun. Fun like we imagined adulthood would be like but never was. Fun with an edge, sexy fun but not too naughty.

Speed Racer has something for everyone; bright colors and monkey mayhem for easily distracted youngsters, hot young actors and plenty of race car action for easily distracted adults, and plenty of plot and story for the serious minded movie goer.

Character Development

It was shocking how good the story was. I didn’t even think there would be any story, but Speed Racer had a human, touching plot: A family, torn apart by miscommunication and perceived betrayal, begins to heal, only to be threatened again by the same things which nearly destroyed it before.

It’s also a coming of age story. One in which Speed Racer must deal with his own inner struggles and decide which path he’ll set his future down. There was a subtle maturity to the plot which was slightly masked by the overt visuals. It still managed to shine through, however, and was more of a plot than the entire anime series had combined.

Speed Racer had good depth and was brilliantly fleshed out in well plotted flashbacks. His brother, Rex Racer was an even deeper character than Speed, and given just as much thought. The story centers much upon the brothers past and the terms upon with which they both lead their lives.

Character Design

The movie had a delightfully international cast. It was impossible to pin down where, geographically, the movie was taking place. Judging by the amazing array of nationalities, the story could be set anywhere and everywhere. And the international appeal wasn’t watered down. The various languages weren’t subtitled, which lent an exotic hint to the audio. The viewer was left wondering at an accent or a language. Where’s that guy/ gal from? It was all woven together so well, it added color and depth to the details, and details make or break a movie.

Character designs adhered to the original anime, but were given a boost. The designs looked good, not cheesy. Trixie looked fantastic, better than she should. Her short skirts and adorable bob hairstyle are offset by alluring makeup and bright lipstick. The men look a tad bishounen. There was a balance of Japanese and Western aesthetics to the appearance of the cast. They were all attractive when they were meant to be and appropriately creepy elsewhere.

Certain fight scenes have action lines, much like the original anime did. The effect pulls the movie that much closer to anime. The colors are all anime, however. In any other movie, the colors would be an instant fail, but in Speed Racer, nothing else would have worked.

Visuals

This movie gets high marks for flawless visuals. The CG was fantastic and worked well. The Wachowski brothers have honed their style down to an art and Speed Racer could well be their masterpiece. The action was heart-pounding and not distracting in the least. Visuals pull you in and put you right there in the center of the action, not just watching it.

Music

Michael Giacchino scored Speed Racer with music simultaneously orchestral and electronic. The score lent Speed racer a mature, yet fun vibe.

Acting

Emile Hirsch did a fantastic job as Speed. He came across as appropriately conflicted and innocent and balanced the emotions well. He even managed to put in some of surprised “Oh!” gasps from the anime’s English dub without making it come off as hokkey.

Christina Ricci also did a good job but she managed to annoy me with her character. Her energetic/ sexy/ cute version of Trixie was confusing and attractive, which had the combined effect of annoying me.

Matthew Fox, who portrayed Racer X, did the best job interpreting the anime version of the character. His monotonous and mysterious voice was one I remember well. Matthew Fox did a very convincing job overall as Racer X.

The rest of the cast were also good, but the main characters outstripped them all.

Conclusion

This was an anime live action adaption with a holistic approach so thorough, it touched on everything which is anime and then some. Speed Racer is what live action anime should be, and was as much fun and engaging as any anime, if not more so. There was some pandering to younger audiences in certain scenes, which was distracting and unnecessary, but not overly so.

Looking beyond the visuals, the story was anime as well, as was the storytelling. I was beyond merely entertained with this movie, I was engaged and charmed.

Rating

Speed Racer gets 4.5 outta 5 Hammies!

The first time I saw a Speed Racer trailer was online some months back. My first impression was “Cool!” Since then I’ve readjusted my initial opinion of “Cool” to “Uhhhh” and “Reallly?”, mostly based on trailers I’ve seen on TV. The web trailer I saw was short, well edited and had a “mature” vibe. The ones I’ve seen on TV aren’t.

There are at least four Speed Racer trailers I’ve viewed thus far, and three of those don’t make me want to jump up and throw down $16 to see this thing. If anything, they make me want to stay far, far away from any theater playing Speed Racer since the place’ll be crawling with tiny human larvae, i.e. kids. Is that the main audience for the movie, kids? Because I thought this is the Wachowski brothers we’re talking about. You know, the guys who brought us the Matrix?

I saw a trailer of Speed Racer one Saturday morning, which played over and over, featuring Chimchim and Spritle doing slapstick comic relief. I wanted to weep for how bad this movie turned out if this short preview was any indicator of the quality of the movie.

Truth be told, I will go see Speed Racer in theaters May 9, but not because of the trailers. The trailers have little (some, but not much) to do with my personal decision to see this movie. I’m going because it’s a live action anime, big budget production directed by renown comic geeks and released by a giant American movie studio. That just doesn’t happen every day. Oh, and the visuals look hardcore awesome even if the story seems nonexistent. So despite my visceral reaction to save my hard-earned and forgo opening night on this one, I’m going to be in line May 9th.

How about you? What are your reactions to the Speed Racer trailers? Do they make you want to reserve seats on opening night or do they fill you with the desire to flame the Warner Brother’s website? Are you inspired by the trailers, or do they have the opposite of their intended effect? What effect do the Speed Racer trailers have on your desire to see the movie?

Tell us your thoughts below on the Speed Racer trailers and their effect on your desire to see the movie in theaters!

Akira

Akira isn’t the only anime to get the American live action (LA for short) treatment. We also have this summer’s release of the equally debated, Speed Racer, another iconic anime, at least to some. From the minds that brought us the gits inspired Matrix, the Wachowski brothers, is this over the top CG enhanced live action rendition of the old anime. On to the next American helmed live action anime, Dragonball Z.

This anime turned 100 million dollar American-made LA anime in the works, will chronicle the story of Goku and company on the silver screen. All I have to say about a live action DBZ is, “Why?”

All this American support for live action anime productions means potential cash in the studios’ pockets, but what does it mean for American anime fans, besides getting to watch some LA anime? With the way the anime distribution industry is headed, could these films raise awareness of the medium and pump some much needed funds and interest into a flagging industry?

I guess it all depends on how the studios approach the films. If studios pay heed to the feel of the anime and don’t pull any punches in the way of dumbing down contrasting cultural views, will these movies still appeal to Johnny Midwest and, in turn, will anime also be appealing?

It seems it’s already a given that places and names will be changed in the movies to better connect with American audiences. And none of the series chosen so far for the LA treatment have too much anime-ness which could potentially turn off viewers, moe and the concept of bishounen being examples thereof.

All these movies so far have subject matter the average American movie goer can connect with: action, sci-fi action, and racing. Seems pretty straight forward. Except when you get to the age of the heroes (15), Neo-Tokyo (in the case of Akira), and the concept of a hidden power being unleashed. Can these themes work? Will movie-goers be open to remade Japanese media, like they were with the Ring? Are Americans ready to embrace different themes?

All things to ponder as you sip your Ramune at an anime club meeting. Perhaps the question US anime fans should most ask ourselves in the midst of this flurry of live action anime production is: “What does live action anime mean for America?” Does it mean quick cash in Hollywood’s pockets? Are they simply easy movie inspirations for a bored and spent writer’s guild? An influx of Japanese influences in storytelling? A shot of silicon for a sagging distribution industry? More anime for fans? What does live action anime mean for America?

Share your thoughts, your concerns, or your hopes in the comments below on the impact (or not) of live action anime in America!

Live Action Speed Racer Go! Go! Trailer!