GO, SPEED RACER, GO SPEED RACER, GOOOO!

Speed: What the hell did I just watch? HA HA
Trixie: The trailer for the Speed racer!
Speed: Interesting. HA HA


What you just watched was the trailer for the upcoming anime-to-live action movie, Speed Racer. So if you never been up late at night and came by it on Cartoon Network or older than 25, I'll let Warner Bros. tell you what it is.

Hurtling down the track, careening around, over and through the competition, Speed Racer (played by Emile Hirsch) is a natural behind the wheel. Born to race cars, Speed is aggressive, instinctive and, most of all, fearless. His only real competition is the memory of the brother he idolized-the legendary Rex Racer (Scott Porter..who?) - whose death in a race has left behind a legacy that Speed is driven to fulfill. Speed is loyal to the family racing business, led by his father, Pops Racer (John Goodman), the designer of Speed's thundering Mach 5. When Speed turns down a lucrative and tempting offer from Royalton Industries, he not only infuriates the company's maniacal owner but uncovers a terrible secret-some of the biggest races are being fixed by a handful of ruthless moguls who manipulate the top drivers to boost profits. If Speed won't drive for Royalton, Royalton will see to it that the Mach 5 never crosses another finish line. The only way for Speed to save his family's business and the sport he loves is to beat Royalton at his own game. With the support of his family and his loyal girlfriend, Trixie (Christina Ricci), Speed teams with his one-time rival-the mysterious Racer X (Lost's Matthew Fox) - to win the race that had taken his brother's life: the death-defying, cross-country rally known as The Crucible. - Warner Bros.

I could've wrote a generic version of the movie, but Speed Racer to me never really had a plot minus the racing against your brother's legacy. You take that out and it's just racing around for nothing but pride. LIKE NASCAR! Well, maybe not, because these cars are equipped to take out the competition or help you out. Probably would make it better to see Earnhart back flip over Gordon.

TRAILER THOUGHTS

I think it is a pretty decent trailer for the movie. I love all of the cast that was picked for it minus Speed and Spritle. No offense to the lil' kid but I don't see Spritle when I look at him. Same goes to Emile. He really doesn't scream Racer. I understand though, because who else could ya pick? Zac Efron?? It would've made more money. The teenyboppers love him. Emile is a good actor depending on the script. You give him a great script (Into The Wild) and he'll give ya gold. You give him a bad or mediocre one (Alpha Dog), he will suck like no other. Matthew Fox looks bad ass as Racer X. He seems to be kicking a lot of ass in the movie. That equals a good sign.

A lot of people are complaining over the stylistic CGI in the movie. They are saying that it is too fake and looks cheap. From what I heard, this is not a cheap move at all ($100,000,000 (estimated)). When it comes to the Wachowski brothers and you're a studio, you are guaranteed to break bank. Through the CGI, they are trying to blend live action and CGI together to create an aesthetically looking movie that looks just like the TV show. As anybody that is a fan of anime knows (me; not really), the show and other shows at the time were high on technicolor. It was loud and colorful as any poser who is trying to bring the 80's back. I said as far as bring anime to life, that have succeeded. That's exactly what it would look like. Unless you made an Akira or Ninja Scroll movie, there is really know what to get away from that.

Overall

I said it looks like pretty good. Depending on how bad the script is can make or break this movie. The only reason why is because of the lead, Hirsch, and he has to be able to pull it off. Everything else looks good. So, I give this trailer a 7 out of 10.


Directed by the Wachowski brothers

Starring Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, Susan Sarandon, John Goodman, and Matthew Fox

Release Date: May 9th, 2008