That Was Surprising
Watched Speed Racer last night over at Badgerhaus with Badger, Merrie, Luna and the late-arriving Melinda. And...it was good. Really good.
Get past the fact that it's Speed Racer, and the trailer was awful, and it's the Wachowski brothers, and there's a chimp whose poo-flinging actually turns into a pertinent plot point. In terms of interwoven flashbacks and a non-linear narrative, it's got one of the most complicated narrative structures I've seen in ages, and it pulls it off seamlessly. (Seriously. Flow chart it. I dare you.) It's visually gorgeous. It's well-acted. Tim Curry channels Christopher-Hitchens-as-plutocrat flawlessly. And it is entirely, utterly devoid of self-conscious hipness that would have brought the whole thing down. Clearly, the Wachowskis loved Speed Racer for what it was - a ridiculous cartoon about a guy in a ridiculous car racing other ridiculous cars in ridiculously violent races - and respected the source material instead of trying to prove their coolness by putting down something they loved. (You see that a lot in schoolyards, when the third grade kids dismiss all the stuff they loved as second graders as no longer cool enough for them. Hollywood, you may want to take note.) The visual storytelling is superb; what could have been massive infodumps instead gets transformed into single shots that explain everything. One great example comes when Speed's engaged in a rally race in a team with two other drivers, and members of some rival racing teams try to kill him. In brief cutaways, we see each of the teams wordlessly bribed to kill Speed in a way that makes it absolutely clear what's going on but manages to maintain the live cartoon aesthetic.
And, of course, they gave a little nod to the Mammoth Car. How can you not love the Mammoth Car?
So if you haven't seen Speed Racer, and are willing to watch it for what it is, instead of what it isn't, there's a good chance you'll enjoy the heck out of it.
Edit - It's not Tim Curry, it's an entirely different British character actor who looks and sounds like Tim Curry. My bad, and thanks to badger for the correction.
Get past the fact that it's Speed Racer, and the trailer was awful, and it's the Wachowski brothers, and there's a chimp whose poo-flinging actually turns into a pertinent plot point. In terms of interwoven flashbacks and a non-linear narrative, it's got one of the most complicated narrative structures I've seen in ages, and it pulls it off seamlessly. (Seriously. Flow chart it. I dare you.) It's visually gorgeous. It's well-acted. Tim Curry channels Christopher-Hitchens-as-plutocrat flawlessly. And it is entirely, utterly devoid of self-conscious hipness that would have brought the whole thing down. Clearly, the Wachowskis loved Speed Racer for what it was - a ridiculous cartoon about a guy in a ridiculous car racing other ridiculous cars in ridiculously violent races - and respected the source material instead of trying to prove their coolness by putting down something they loved. (You see that a lot in schoolyards, when the third grade kids dismiss all the stuff they loved as second graders as no longer cool enough for them. Hollywood, you may want to take note.) The visual storytelling is superb; what could have been massive infodumps instead gets transformed into single shots that explain everything. One great example comes when Speed's engaged in a rally race in a team with two other drivers, and members of some rival racing teams try to kill him. In brief cutaways, we see each of the teams wordlessly bribed to kill Speed in a way that makes it absolutely clear what's going on but manages to maintain the live cartoon aesthetic.
And, of course, they gave a little nod to the Mammoth Car. How can you not love the Mammoth Car?
So if you haven't seen Speed Racer, and are willing to watch it for what it is, instead of what it isn't, there's a good chance you'll enjoy the heck out of it.
Edit - It's not Tim Curry, it's an entirely different British character actor who looks and sounds like Tim Curry. My bad, and thanks to badger for the correction.