Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
05-20-08, 01:33 PM
#351
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Originally Posted by Brian T
We counted four of these walkouts-with-restless-kids. Don't know if there were more, but I doubt it, since that took care of virtually all of the under-8's in an expectedly one-fifth-filled auditorium, and not a moment too soon. Though I felt sorry for the parents being out that money, the peace and quiet was a relief. Surely not isolated incidents with a film this unnecessarily long and simple-minded. My girlfriend and I -- who normally trust our instincts to avoid overtly family-oriented films until they've either neared the end of their theatrical run or have come out on DVD -- contemplated leaving a couple of times thanks solely to needlessly long exposition. What the hell was the dramatic reasoning for so much talk? I'd agree that the same thing seriously hobbled the Matrix sequels, only there it was a sour cocktail of philosophies and pseudo-philosophies intended for adults; here it's just childish westernized "movie" homilies about "doing what's right" that don't require so much elaboration and which would, in a shorter film, at least appeal to those young minds who are instead being taken home early, presumably to now lose interest in some of the mountain of tie-in toys their parents probably regret having paid full price for. A film like this didn't have to lose anybody before the credits rolled. It sure looked kooky, though. I'll give it that. 
05-20-08, 02:09 PM
#352
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Originally Posted by lawyer goodwill
I can see young people losing interest during the course of SR. Also, I think mostly fans of the 60s 'toon (or folks at least familiar with it) will enjoy it more. But speaking for myself, an adult and a fan of the cartoon in syndication while growing up, it hit the spot.
I too watched the TV show. As a child. This movie is decidedly marketed to children, and yet it's long, and preachy, which apparently makes at least some of them restless (and probably more than just the ones whose parents take them home early). The TV show was preachy too, but mercifully short, though I can see where the nostalgic yearnings common to some grown men might make the time spent in "Speed's world" go by at a very fast 130+ minutes. For me, it was a repetitive crawl with fantastic action sequences and production design.
I also suspect the now-sizable amount of negative publicity surrounding the film has suffienciently lowered the expectations of many people such that they can willfully overlook its flaws and be endlessly entertained.
Last edited by Brian T; 05-20-08 at 02:14 PM.
05-20-08, 02:10 PM
#353
DVD Talk Legend
Originally Posted by Giantrobo
I agree 100% GatorDeb!! Especially the part about Iron Man. Although I thought Iron Man was good, frankly IM was a bit boring to me and nowhere near as fun and exciting as Speed Racer.
I was on the edge of my seat and having a good time from start to end. This film had a lot of heart, and the emotional scenes with Speed and his family and Trixie were fantastic. I admit I choked up....no racing pun there...on the parts with Mom and Pops talking to Speed in their separate scenes. I believed in the Racer family and Trixie because all the actors were great. I thought the plot fit the film and it it had a great message about doing what's right even when it may cost you, and doing your part to change things for good.
I thought the Mach 4, Mach 5, and last but not least the Mach 6 where awesome. They did a great job with those cars and the race scenes more than satisfied. I got a chill every time I heard the old sound effect when Speed hit the "jump" button!!!! I also got chill when the tech was explaining Speeds new features on the Mach 5!
Unfortunately I'm guessing we won't see a Speed Racer II due to poor box office and that's a damn shame.
I was on the edge of my seat and having a good time from start to end. This film had a lot of heart, and the emotional scenes with Speed and his family and Trixie were fantastic. I admit I choked up....no racing pun there...on the parts with Mom and Pops talking to Speed in their separate scenes. I believed in the Racer family and Trixie because all the actors were great. I thought the plot fit the film and it it had a great message about doing what's right even when it may cost you, and doing your part to change things for good.
I thought the Mach 4, Mach 5, and last but not least the Mach 6 where awesome. They did a great job with those cars and the race scenes more than satisfied. I got a chill every time I heard the old sound effect when Speed hit the "jump" button!!!! I also got chill when the tech was explaining Speeds new features on the Mach 5!
Unfortunately I'm guessing we won't see a Speed Racer II due to poor box office and that's a damn shame.
The film taps into an child-like innocence and hope that is a stark contrast to a cynical jaded world.
I don't understand the need to have a film 'cranked to 11' from start to finish with no let up. The alternating and contrasting between the quieter more reflective moments with the pedal-to-the-metal adrenaline rushes made the time go by very quickly for me.
05-20-08, 02:31 PM
#354
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Originally Posted by Matthew Chmiel
Speed Racer being a serious movie, as I've said before, would've been a massive failure in terms of the storytelling process. Honestly, who knows if it would've done better or worse box office wise.
05-20-08, 02:39 PM
#355
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Originally Posted by sracer
You nailed it 'trobo... on all points!
The film taps into an child-like innocence and hope that is a stark contrast to a cynical jaded world.
I don't understand the need to have a film 'cranked to 11' from start to finish with no let up. The alternating and contrasting between the quieter more reflective moments with the pedal-to-the-metal adrenaline rushes made the time go by very quickly for me.
The film taps into an child-like innocence and hope that is a stark contrast to a cynical jaded world.
I don't understand the need to have a film 'cranked to 11' from start to finish with no let up. The alternating and contrasting between the quieter more reflective moments with the pedal-to-the-metal adrenaline rushes made the time go by very quickly for me.
This film didn't need to be "cranked to 11" (have people been suggesting that in this thread? I haven't read the whole thing) to be more entertaining. It needed to be dialed DOWN from 135+ minutes. There's much to enjoy in it, even (grudgingly) the "child-like innocence" that seems to make some adults all warm and mushy inside but understandably does virtually nothing for the children at whom the film is targeted. Kids don't like to be patronized, even if they don't know what the word means. Adults yearning for "simpler times" which only exist in their own perception can be completely enveloped by the ruse; others less so. It's too long, too preachy, and is faithful to a not-as-widely-remembered-as-you-thought-it-was TV show, but it looks absolutely phenomenal, not unlike those video game whirligigs so popular with jaded, cynical kids these days. The box-office figures both domestically and internationally clearly suggest the picture needed more a lot more work before it went out.
Last edited by Brian T; 05-20-08 at 02:49 PM.
05-20-08, 03:01 PM
#356
DVD Talk Legend
Originally Posted by Brian T
The box-office figures both domestically and internationally clearly suggest the picture needed more a lot more work before it went out.
05-20-08, 04:03 PM
#357
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Originally Posted by sracer
Ah, you're from the "box office numbers are a direct reflection of a film's merits" school of thought.... got it.
No I'm not. Nice try, though.
I suppose that smarmy presumption was just too good to pass up.
As I said before, and which you apparently missed, I think SPEED RACER has just enough to make it worth seeing at least once (theatres, video, TV, whatever). I also think the film has HUGE flaws that undermined its potential to entertain a vastly larger crown than it did (myself included, at least partially), not the least of which are its length and flabby exposition. Therefore, it IS lacking in merit in my eyes (and probably others' eyes as well), and the boxoffice does attest to something being wrong whether you liked the film or didn't, but apparently saying so is only worthy of a putdown. Lots of movies flop regardless of their merit, but SPEED RACER was spectacular considering the massive marketing and licencing push behind it, as well as the confidence of all involved that it was a guaranteed blockbuster.
Last edited by Brian T; 05-20-08 at 04:15 PM.
09-17-08, 12:48 PM
#358
DVD Talk Godfather
I ended up renting with via the good ol Redbox yesterday rather then blind buying it like I was planning to, and ended up enjoying it. I'm really surprised this bombed the way it did, because I found it to be a pretty entertaining movie and not anywhere close to being a "bad" movie. Seems like it just missed catching the hype for kids and younger audiences, because i'm sure most would have had fun with it.
Great visuals, some cool race sequences that surprised me by NOT being hard to follow, and the leads were all solid in their roles. It probably could have trimmed 10-15 minutes, and some of the scenes were hokey (ninjas? really?) but I don't have too many other complaints other then Spirtle, who needs to be beat with a stick.
Great visuals, some cool race sequences that surprised me by NOT being hard to follow, and the leads were all solid in their roles. It probably could have trimmed 10-15 minutes, and some of the scenes were hokey (ninjas? really?) but I don't have too many other complaints other then Spirtle, who needs to be beat with a stick.
Last edited by fumanstan; 09-17-08 at 03:42 PM.
09-17-08, 03:37 PM
#359
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I ended up renting with via the good ol Redbox yesterday rather then blind buying it like I was planning to, and ended up enjoying it. I'm really surprised this bombed the way it did, because I found it to be a pretty entertaining movie and not anywhere close to being a "bad" movie.
At home, this would probably be a less boring movie. You can talk to the next person, get up and grab a drink, etc. In a theater, good movies are better and bad movies are worse. That would make Speed Racer even more mediocre, I guess.
09-17-08, 09:42 PM
#360
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09-22-08, 02:29 PM
#361
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Just watched this on dvd from Netflix and LOVED it. I really can't believe how much I did enjoy it considering all the lukewarm-to-bad reviews I had read on it. If you can appreciate the movie for what it is... a recreation of a cartoon world... it is very enjoyable. Loved every second of all the races and the various stuff in between wasn't bad at all. I was surprised at how well the family closeness aspect was done. Touching without being too over the top. Definitely will be buying a copy. I actually rated it 5 star on Netflix. Thoroughly enjoyed this movie! Way to go Wachowskis 
09-22-08, 08:03 PM
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Just watched this on dvd from Netflix and LOVED it. I really can't believe how much I did enjoy it considering all the lukewarm-to-bad reviews I had read on it. If you can appreciate the movie for what it is... a recreation of a cartoon world... it is very enjoyable. *snip* Thoroughly enjoyed this movie! Way to go Wachowskis
03-05-23, 10:26 PM
#363
DVD Talk Hero
re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
This movie is great. More should watch. I ignored it for 15 years. Hm.
Also the forum search showed that it opened within a couple weeks of Iron Man. Always fun to see those things in hindsight.
Also the forum search showed that it opened within a couple weeks of Iron Man. Always fun to see those things in hindsight.
03-06-23, 12:31 AM
#364
DVD Talk Hero
re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
I agree. This movie was a delightful love letter to the cartoon that itself deserves more love than it gets. I was always disappointed that WB gimped the BD with a lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 track, rather than gracing it with Dolby TrueHD.
Last edited by RocShemp; 03-06-23 at 04:46 AM.
03-06-23, 12:59 AM
#365
DVD Talk Legend
re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
Weird this was playing on HBO Zone today.
Maybe I will give it a second chance and watch it for the first time in HD but probably that won't improve the movie.
Maybe I will give it a second chance and watch it for the first time in HD but probably that won't improve the movie.
03-06-23, 09:34 AM
#366
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
It's more than just a love letter to the original cartoon, it's basically a live action (modern day) anime.
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RocShemp (03-06-23)
03-06-23, 02:06 PM
#368
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Re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
Yep
03-07-23, 07:37 PM
#371
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
I remember thinking it was visually stunning but a bore otherwise. I see this is on HBOmax. I may have to give it another shot.
03-07-23, 07:55 PM
#372
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
If I had to explain its failure, I’d say it’s a very good and very very un-grounded film. While everyone is trying to ground genre films in reality, this was so far from it.
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Kurt D (03-08-23)
03-08-23, 05:10 AM
#373
DVD Talk Legend
Re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
Bought Speed Racer (3-disc BD) at a flea market because I was curious and it was cheap as dirt. My wife and I had a lot of fun with this movie, I'm glad I finally saw it, and will gladly watch it again when it comes up in the rotation...
03-30-23, 04:41 AM
#374
DVD Talk Legend
Re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)
I watched it again on HBO and this time on a bigger screen and in HD but this movie is still corny as hell. 
When they show the characters moving across the screen when they are talking WTF?
At least the car looks cool but not worth buying or watching a 3rd time.
When they show the characters moving across the screen when they are talking WTF?
At least the car looks cool but not worth buying or watching a 3rd time.
08-29-23, 05:35 PM
#375
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Speed Racer (d: The Wachowskis)