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Capone says SPEED RACER doesn't win, doesn't place and doesn't even finish the race
SPOILER ALERT !!
Hey everyone. Capone in Chicago here.
I can almost hear how the pitch began: Let's take a half-hour cartoon series (more like 20-plus minutes without commercials) and stretch it into a two-hour, 15-minute feature film with production design so colorful and sweet people will want to reach out at the screen and eat it like candy. What could go wrong? Allow me to begin the list. For many years as a kid, "Speed Racer" was a show I simply never missed. I was too young to see or care how simplistic the storylines were, how crude the art work was, or how truly annoying Spritle and Chim Chim were. Somehow, the makers of that show made me believe in a future that seemed completely and utterly centered on auto racing without rules; and the high velocity, gadgets and over-the-top villains were simply the icing. I was also particularly obsessed with any episode featuring Racer X, the masked driver who was secretly Speed's older brother Rex and kept his identity hidden for reasons that either were never explained or were utterly ridiculous (much like the movie).
I'll admit the trailers for SPEED RACER have been making my eyes explode with glee. The prospect of having the The Wachowski Brothers (makers of THE MATRIX films) helming this movie seemed almost too good to be true. Add to that Christina Ricci as Trixie (a role she was beyond born to play) and Emile Hirsch, fresh off his extraordinary performance in INTO THE WILD, as Speed, and I think my expectations were cautiously high. But something about the trailers and commercials bothered me: the acting seemed stiff, and worse than that, the dialog was cookie-cutter awful. Still, the visuals were simply too glorious to care about such petty elements as the acting or the script. But when you expand those flaws for more than two hours, they become impossible to ignore. As a result, SPEED RACER is tedious beyond words, and when there wasn't racing happening, I was either ready to fall asleep or kill someone, more than likely myself.
There's no denying that seeing all of these beloved characters come to life was thrilling, and it was a thrill that lasted all of about 15 minutes. Susan Sarandon and John Goodman as Mom and Pops Racer are perfection. It feels a little weird seeing a gifted actress like Sarandon in a role that requires her to do little more than be a Stepford wife, but she's still beautiful, so who cares? And Goodman captures Pops' constant state of non-threatening rage beautifully. It's tough picking on the actors in this film when they have such a limp script to work with, but Hirsch is stagnant here for some reason, like he's not quite in on the joke. He pulls off looking intense behind the wheel of the Mach 5, but when he's called upon to emote, something doesn't click. My guess is that he's simply not invested in this character, despite an elaborate backstory forced down our gullet involving the "death" of Rex Racer (I'm sure all the children in the audience are going to love that element of the movie). His line readings felt more like a recital of an unrehearsed monologue. Ricci fares slightly better, but only because she's cute and shows a lot of leg.
How about that plot involving a racing conglomerate attempting to get Speed on its team? Ugh. In my review of last week's IRON MAN, my only real complaint about the film was that the "secret" villain was so obvious from the first time he steps on screen that it was laughable. Imagine that times 50 in SPEED RACER. Forgetting for the moment that the trailers have all shown us who the film's villain is, Roger Allam as Royalton (head of Royalton Industries) could never be anything but the bad guy, even when he's attempting to charm the Racer family. Give us some drama, people. Some of the wacky evil racers Speed goes up against are pretty funny in a ROAD WARRIOR final race kind of way, but we all know happens to the drivers who try to kill Speed. I didn't mind Matthew Fox as Racer X, although his costume looked so much like Cyclops from the X-Men that I had to keep reminding myself that James Marsden wasn't in this movie.
If you're made of stronger stuff than me and can make it through the non-action scenes without contemplating suicide, the pay offs of this marathon endurance test are the races and wildly imaginative cityscapes. These races go across tracks that look like they were designed by a mental patient. The lights, the turns and the jumps are all unbelievable. The only way I'd sit through Speed Racer again is with the sound turned off, watching an IMAX print, just so I could really examine the backgrounds. The artistry on display here is mind-boggling. But even as I sat in amazement watching all the pretty pictures, I began to notice something: the special effects consume the performers and story, rather than enhance it. I adore movies with lots of effects, but even I had to say, "Hold up, buddy" to everything that's going on in SPEED RACER. It's not confusing so much as it's overwhelming and exhausting.
I don't make a habit trying to predict what demographics are going to like or hate about a particular movie, nor do I ever attempt to anticipate box office tallies for a given opening weekend. I'm sure SPEED RACER will do quite well for a while, but it's not the type of film you'll feel compelled to go back and watch over and over again. It physically hurts me to watch so many people try so hard to entertain me and come up with something so astonishingly mediocre. Here it is, people: the first turd of the summer has been hatched.
Capone
capone@aintitcoolmail.com
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http://tinyurl.com/yoczvz
Haters, I implore you, DO NOT WATCH! This is not a dare. -
You do that
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That's worth admission alone
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If you wanted one of your quotes to appear on the commercial, I would have opted for another one.
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I never watched the show. Kinda wanted to see the movie. Didn't know Racer X was Speed's older brother.
Thanks.
(Spoiler alert, maybe?) -
Way to long. If this is supposed to be aimed at kids and family then it should have been 90 min tops. Just scene after scene of hyper-kinetic racing with a attempt at a story thrown in. If you cant entertain a 11 year old then you have done something wrong.
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It's stunningly beautiful to watch, but why is a kids' movie...a movie aimed at pre-teens, with pre teen humor and a CHEATERS DONT WIN message literally spelled out at the end - saddled with an incomprehensible storyline about fixing races to make stock prices rise or fall ??? It was tiring to watch this movie, HOWEVER - the last 30 minutes were brilliant - finally the heart of the movie came together as Speed echoed Rex's leaving, and the final race was exciting, the moments with Speed flashing back, finding exactly who he is and why he's doing what he's doing, are great, and Racer X's final scene is excellent...but it takes way to long to get there. It's a brilliant payoff to a muddled beginning and middle. But Giacchino's score is fabulous, Sarandon is HOT, Goodman is good, the monkey is Chimp A Riffic...but damn this movie needs some editing and a rewrite
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I think kids will love it. I will love it for the sfx design.
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The fact that people don't die but rather fill up with green foam and bounce away is completely against the spirit of the cartoon and means I will not watch it. What is the point of xtreme Speed Racer style racing with no crashes? WTF?
Lightstormer, "Racer X is Speeds older brother" is not a spoiler. It never was, it never will be, and it never should be. For the reason why, watch any episode of Speed Racer. Sometimes they said it twice in one episode!But you did give me my first laugh of the morning...Spoiler warning for Racer X being Speed's older brother! HA!! Good one! -
And I don't want to see Christina Ricci's legs, I want to see her hoo ha's. Thank you very much. I'll pass.
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how anyone above the age of 10 can enjoy this piece of shit is beyond me...
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how anyone above the age of 10 can enjoy this piece of shit is beyond me...
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I'm confused. Stiff acting, weak script, predicable....I mean fuck, you talking about the movie or the cartoon?
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your head is so far up your ass you mus see green foam all the time leaking from your cheeto infested outer intestine. As far as spoilers, many people know different amounts of stuff from pop culture. If it wasn't talked about in interview regularly or in the trailer for more than a frame, ITS A SPOILER. My dad won't even look at the previews. I guess thats old fashion, and you are a douchbag.
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Epic Win for the idiot who didn't know Racer X was Speeds brother...which you learn way before Racer X even meets Speed in the movie.
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its the only way to get everything out of the visuals, and be occupied with contemplating your life or belly button during that long soliloquy about cheating.
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May 10, 2008 9:25:57 AM CDT
It's kind of funny to me that everyone bashed Episode 1 in 99
by cotton mcknight
And there were CONSTANT references to the Matrix. How it should have been like the Matrix, that the matrix represented the "new sci fi" etc. In particular, people bitched about how Star Wars was a kiddie movie and that there was this uber long race scene in the middle of it. The acting/dialogue was stilted and the special effects were nothing more than eye candy. Nevermind the fact that the matrix sequels were crap, what do the brothers follow that movie up with? Oh.. a kiddie movie with colorful eye candy, stilted dialogue and an uber long race scene.
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For a $100 million film. Still, I predict an ultimately-underwhelming $60 million domestic gross, but more than double that overseas.
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you are a very observant person. Time and money will change any cross-dressing, shut in, team of brother action directors. You see it all the time here in San Francisco
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That's not really fair to say. The movie succeeded in doing what it aimed to do Capone. How many exciting family films are out there that don't involve a flying dog or some dog playing (insert sport here). The movie was weak nor did it suffer from Stiff acting that was the acting they were going for. The "tone" for the film.
IT may not be Iron Man but it sure as hell ain't no 10,000 bc. -
THE MOVIES WAS AWSOME I WAS ON VICODIN CUZ I COULDN'T SCORE SHROOMS BUT IT STILL INHANCED THE VISUALS A BIT I STARTED SWEATING COLD AT THE MIDNIGHT IMAX SHOW! I LOVED IT AND THE STREET FIGHT BETWEEN ALL THE GOONIES AND THE FAMALY WAS AWSOME!!!!
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Yeah you're right. We should all walk around curtailing everything we do and say for retards like you. I mean, somebody has to keep you alive.
By the way, Obidiah Stane is the Iron Monger in Iron Man.
Moron. -
Right from the beggining all I ever heard was that The Matrix brothers were making a new kind of kids movie AIMED at kids.
Also have you gone back and watched SPEED RACER,its a really awful cartoon,it really is.
I think only HE-MAN and the master of the universe matches the awfulness.
Yeah I agree it should be trimmed by 25 minutes,but its not the worse thing out there.I think that should go to 10,000 BC -
Was only good because the stole the script from somebody else. V for Vendetta was only good because they had almost no control.
What else have they done? Bound? Assassins? Crap and crap.
Hacks both of them. Plagiarizers. -
this movie was pure fun. Yes, I think it could have benefitted from a bit more realism here and there, I thought it was perfect for it's target audience: families with pre teen kids. Older grumpy, cynical dudes need to go watch Indy 4 and complain about how Lucas and Spielberg are still making movies that could have been made in the 50's. My only complaint with this movie was the swipes. They were hard on the brain. But my daughter, that's daughter and all her friends, loved it. In fact, they clapped.
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That why we as adults need to be discerning as to what we expose them to.
People who are given quality entertainment as children grow up to be adults who demand quality.
Movie are in the shitter right now because people in their 30's and later grew up watching 30 minute animated commercials.That's why Hollywood is doing nostalgic remakes because most of generation X has about as much creativity a potato. -
Pariah74, go masturbate to that bad lesbo porn you have on the next tab. Why? because you insults are uncreative as a cartoon about racing witch has 2 characters with the word race in their names. you are one of those nitpicky little shits who gets tossed around in real life so you jump on some old fart that doesn't know the basics about speed racer. You know what little turd, don't wack-off, go get laid...seriously if you actually had sex with a real person, that intimacy might keep you from being a SUPER SPLOOG FROM THE STAINS ON MY FUCK RAG
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I'll put some cheddar down on that one.
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Yeah, there's never been a movie made for children that has been well-acted, well-written, or well-directed before.... This movie bored me to tears any time there wasn't racing on screen (and then I was too busy trying to figure out what the hell i was watching), so I can only imagine how an 8 year old's attention span would hold up. And Capone was dead-on about the stock-fixing plotline. I can't believe they actually expected kids to be able to follow that. Not terrible by any means, but I'm not in any hurry to watch it again.
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god dammit, i look educated....
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What a hilariously arrogant little geek you are. Just because YOU know everything there is to know about Speed Racer, you think that makes it fair to spoil it for everyone else. I hadn't even heard of Speed Racer when I watched this film. The film is clearly designed to to make the true identity of Racer X a BIG DRAMATIC REVEAL: they even double bluff you, as Speed suspects his identity early on, but is then thrown off the scent. Therefore it most definitely IS a spoiler. If it wasn't a spoiler, then why would you have a key sequence at the end of the film, set to dramatic music, showing who Racer X really is? If everyone is meant to know already, then this would be as stupid as having a BIG DRAMATIC MOMENT at the end of Spiderman revealing that his true identity is Peter Parker! It doesn't surprise me though, there is something in the geek mentality that finds it necessary to relentlessly spoil details like this.
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I feel like that girl you knew in high school, lots of options ahead of her, but always falling for the abusive boyfriend, deluded by denial into thinking her life was as good as it could get. I LOVED the Speed Racer.
I'm not sure how the film has gotten almost universally panned by the major critics, while Iron Man a week earlier took home major plaudits. The "moral tale" in both is admittedly unidimensional and a bit hokey - but that's what summer blockbusters are for (or at least that was my impression). Why for one it's overlooked while for another its stoned (particularly where the source material for Speed is filled with less substance that the source material for Stark, giving the Wachowski's less to work with) is beyond my imagination.
Do the effects really overwhelm? Like racing and this Wachowski approach to film making, the art lies in harnessing the chaos, in being able to allow the car to tale spin through a turn before regaining control and taking into a straightaway, in being able to let the lights and colors blitz the screen but maintain the solid lines and colors of its characters. I think this is most evidently revealed in the foreshadowing worked by young Speed's flip-book animation on his standardized test and the Zebra "running" in the background of the final race (which on a moment of static movement shows alternating still images of a neon zebra with legs straight and then extended such that when the cars race by them the images appear to run with the competitors). That is the fine line between an MTV buck shot of noise and flash and the Wachowski's ground to air missile aimed with impeccable precision.
As to acting, Capone notes the casting was apt. Every character, even RAIN, seemed picture perfect. Here the film shares much in common with Iron Man from last week. Admittedly the Speed Story and dialogue is a little more stilted for such actors to really shine, but more importantly for me they embody the original characters and feel of the source material perfectly. Speed is handsome, youthful, nervous, and becomes powerful by the end (the final scene is almost transcendent ala NEO - and maybe that's why everyone else but me is hating it). Pops is overbearing but cuddly (who dares to not love John Goodman!). Yet there are those who even get beyond even their animated surroundings and source material limits. Richard Roundtree deserves, at the very least, a Golden Globe nomination for supporting actor in a musical or comedy for the speech he gives Speed in his office about the secret of the World Racing League. And believe it or not, the child actor who plays Spritle and his Chimp pal were FANTASTIC. In these types of films, usually one bemoans the need to include the "kid" element to please family audiences - a la Jar Jar Binks. However, the quality of the comic timing and genuine naive but heartfelt defiance of his performance was really a joy to watch. -
Tron was an awful movie that has somehow managed to get a good shot of nostalgia for its effects.
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he's a prick
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is what one reviewer said about speed racer, which scared me. very much.
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they are complete hacks. like it was already said, they stole the ffirst Matrix, destroyed the sequels and V For Vendetta was terrible! why would you put their name in your advertisements. you might as well say "made by Uwe Boll and endorsed by George W. Bush".
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...if you go in wanting to hate it, then you probably will. But if you can manage to get yourself into the mindset of a 10 year old kid (and I realise thats a quite a big ask lol) then you will love it. Sure, some of the visuals are kind of tasteless and garish, and some of the humour early on falls flat. But there is a real emotional thoughline to this film, and it actually manages to pack a little emotional punch at the end, something I would never have suspected from the trailers. The final race is brilliantly staged, the climax gave me a RUSH! GO SPEED GO!
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The Speed Racer was before my time and from what I've seen of it it's a pretty silly cartoon . Robotech however is way cooler! The first time I was really exposed to "mecha" was what really got me about Anime! I know "Robotech Generation 1" was actually Macross in Japan but for American kids like me it was a revelation. Tobey Maguire as Rick is questionable but they better pick the right actress for Lisa! Someone who not only is hot but got some brains and personality.
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Anyone who thinks she still is or ever was is an acquired taste.
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May 10, 2008 10:33:27 AM CDT
obviously Capone is having terrible personal issues these days
by ludmir88
i'll wait your wall-e review.
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Fools.
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I knew this would suck, despite Harry (and others) fellating it. Its just dumb. And don't call this the new Tron, Tron was awesome.
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Assume any review, tagged or not, contains massive spoilers including how it ends. More fools.
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Be careful what you wish for. It's being made, at Toby Maguire's production company with him attached to play Rick (17 year old) Hunter.
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With the gift of Hyperdrive.... these cowboys STILL ride horses (robot ones.. given)
Let's see this one next eh!
Or C.O.P.S!!!! Kick ass
Speed racer is a song.... at best... -
I don't know what movie YOU saw, you mobster prick, but *I* saw a hit movie that kids will love, from which they'll secretly learn how valuable family is in life, and that ANY adult with half a heart still working who grew up on the original will find a reasonably faithful and fun two-plus-hour light-speed fun-ride. Those who have said that this movie is a live-action CARTOON based faithfully and unashamedly on a 1960's anime CARTOON hit the nail perfectly on the head. It's not meant to be f*cking Shakespeare, moron, and if I wanted a film with substance, an intelligent and sophisticated script and great cinematic potential, I'd go to an art-house film and sit through something in French. In short, Capone, get bent, jackass. That is all.
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Floptastic.
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They "wrote" the screen play but it was hyped that they were the ones behind it...but they actually did very little. Which is why I said what I said.
As for the other sad little fucks who are mad because they I called them stupid. Oh well. Your insults weren't even clever but they did make me laugh a little. I'm sorry the epic that is Speed Racer is now ruined for you! Like I said, not all of us are smart enough to make the jump that Speed's older brother "Rex Racer" is now the mysterious "Racer X" despite the fact that it says it everywhere!
Oh and Prince Caspian blows Susan's horn to summon the children. -
I watched it yesterday with my family and we all loved it. My kids are 5 and a half and 2 and it was obvious that kids are the target audience.
I seem to remember the show being an hour long when I was a kid (not sans commercials). We watched it on the IMAX and I’m not sure exactly that’s the best way to see it since everything is right in your face to begin with.
To each his own I guess .
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Sure sign that movies are dead is when a gem like this is popular to hate on. Fuck all you haters, this is one of the most entertaining movies of recent history and it's undeniably an achievement of technical merit. What the fuck is wrong with everybody?!
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is boring as hell. Now that you've gotten older, rent it again.
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How was the production design? The Mid Century furniture and crazy clothing? How well were the action scenes choreographed? I still haven't gone yet but FUCK I am sick of all the reviewers just ragging on the running time and CGI f/x. No real meat in these reviews...."If you loved the cartoon" blah blah blah. Maybe I'm too observant when I go to movies but every review goes no deeper than the fucking trailers we've seen. Not a whole lot of artists review film obviously because there is no mention of set designs etc....Of course a real artist wouldn't be reviewing movies for a living, they would be CREATING something for the world to enjoy rather than shitting on someone else's creation......
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I've been aghast all week about how much this place loves this turd. I saw it on the Warner lot, with industry people and their kids, and even they were far from entertained once the 2nd hour began.
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.. then by all means go ahead, I personally am WAY into Tina Fey these days, but why do people keep insisting that she's "born to play Trixie"? Based on what exactly? Ricci bears no overwelming physical resemblance to Trixie in any discernable way, is this just the thing to say now? I've noticed many people making this point and I simply don't get it. Ricci is fine as an actress, she seems game and all that but give it a fucking rest with the: "It's the role she was born to play". I hope to god not, Trixie always was a barely developed character anyway, I hope Ricci's career has more legs than that, she better hope so too.
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I really need to see it in an actual theater to really take in the visuals. But in my opinion it wasn't that bad, I saw Iron Man opening day and although I really enjoyed it, I don't feel the desire to see it again anytime soon, I don't know, for some reason Speed Racer really stuck with me, and I'm totally unfamiliar with the cartoon/anime
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is hotter than fuck. Watch any interview with her where she's not blathering about politics, or even if she is, she oozes sex from every pore.
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I kinda agree. I really liked Iron Man but I'm in no rush to see it again. I will buy it on Blu Ray but as far as going back to the theater.....No desire. Why is that?
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film not knowing what audience it was made for = EPIC FAIL
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loved it both times. Even laughed out loud at the same joke both times. Thought it was great!
No real judgment on this yet, but the fact that racers don't crash and burn leaves me cold. Isn't Speed Racer notorious for killing like 2 or 3 people just in the opening credits? I mean c'mon?! You don't have to show blood, or even show them die...show them spin of the cliff and explode! -
I totally agree with you, Capone! The first turd of the summer. Couldn't have said it more to the point!
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I am ALMOST tempted to go see it at the local IMAX. Just because.
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God forbid, a movie based on a cartoon that's...CARTOONY? Stop the presses!
It's cute, popcorn fun. If the Wachowski brothers' previous films made you expect something deep, serious, or even witty, that's your own problem, not the film's. If the same film had been created by almost anyone else, it wouldn't be getting this much crap.
Not that I'm saying it was amazing-- but if you drop all the pretentious elitist junk, it's a perfectly fine, very fun movie.
Unless you're epileptic. -
Friday grosses: Iron Man $15.3 million. What happens in Vegas $6.7 million. SPEED RACER $5.8 million. This could be the biggest bomb of the summer
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still exist and you are allowed to enjoy them anyhow. That's a great thing. If Speed Racer becomes a "cult" classic or a huge Blu-Ray seller, it will be considered a success. "The masses are asses" is a phrase that is proven all year long. Look at the films that people spend their money on! Meet The Spartans?! The latest PG-13 teen "horror" movie?! Scary Movie XXMCVI?! I am amazed all year long at the number 1 films every weekend. I will gladly join the crowd that loves Speed Racer if the masses hate it. Sign me up!
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but has a budget rumored at nearly 3x Night's 2006 film. I wonder if people will pretend that the Wachowski's didn't make a huge mistake.
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There is no sense of danger, no sense of choreography, no sense you are there with them, Sorry, just the way it is.
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being crap but in this case the public was right. Speed racer is utter crap. Your logic that if the public doesn;t like then it must be good is flawed. But i guess you should check out speed racer for yourself but I can almost gaurentee ou will come out of the theater saying "what the fuck" and not in a good way
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Is that it should have been released in march or December. So there weren't other big action movies that critics and people will sit around and talk about what they want to see more. Because after watching this movie I was like no wonder they had no idea how to market this. And since it comes out in second week of the summer people are going to refuse that we can get two amazing summer movies back to back. This needed to come out during a down period where people are kind of forced to see it and generate word of mouth sort of. I took my buddy to see it, and he was totally against it. He had Capone attitude about it, and when he left he thought it was awesome. Yeah there are some problems with the movie, but overall its a much better summer movie then most of what comes out, its better then anything that came out last summer (though that could be said for pretty much anything this year). I don't know what Capone is saying that he didn't want to see this again, I wanted turn right around and watch it right away (but in IMAX). With Iron Man I saw it and said, OK now that we got that out of the way lets make an amazing sequel and maybe I'll catch it on FX or something down the line. I caught Speed at the midnight show and never once started to fall asleep, and i am terrible about that. Had I got to see Iron that late I would've been passed out. Wasn't on drugs either, had eaten a big meal and had a couple of beers and tired from playing Wii boxing.
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According to Friday's receipts, Speed Racer in on pace for less than 20 million, finishing behind Iron Man and What Happens in Vegas.
Yep, It's a Turd! -
May 10, 2008 12:28:01 PM CDT
giapet, you're like these cunts running our schools...
by poeticwarriorii
anymore, let's just get rid of letter grades, I mean after all we don't wanna expect too much. Let's just get rid of common sense and taste, I don't wanna overload those buckets of shit the Wachowskis try to call heads by expecting them to make something watchable. Looks like I was right, this movie will be WAAAAYYYYY under 30 million for the weekend.
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...is that he's not an 8-year-old boy. Newsflash: The source material was utter garbage. With that in mind, I thought Speed Racer was decently entertaining, if you don't go in expecting your childhood to be validated, and just treat it like the kid-centered summery fluff it was meant to be. It's no better or worse than the Spy Kids flicks. In other words, Mostly Harmless. There's no reason to threaten suicide over it.
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maybe when she was 12...but then she grew huge boobies...and trixie is flat as a pancake...oh, and the german screener is up...god, i love the internet
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$5,8 million on friday. Which most probably means a $18-20 million weekend gross. And I highly doubt this turkey will make more than $40 million domestically. And did somebody say this film would at least rock the overseas box-office? Please. Apart from Japan, this thing will tank everywhere. Simply because nobody outside of the U.S. and Japan knows anything about the cartoon this film is based on. I saw it yesterday over here in The Netherlands - and the kiddies in the theater didn't understand it at all.
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Look the excuses have already begun to trickle in. Hey, it's not the wretched shit fest everyone thinks it is!!! It's kids summer fluff, that's it!! SUMMER FLUFFFFFFFFFF!!! I can picture the Wachowski's at their next meeting yelling that in panic.
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I have no interest in defending the Wachowskis. I thought the last Matrix was a colossal, embarrassing bomb. I'm just calling it as I saw it. Speed Racer was a visually interesting kids' flick that kept me reasonably entertained and showed me something I'd never seen before. No more, no less.
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I have three sons, 6, 8 and 10 years old. Only my youngest wanted to see SR. They don't want to watch people racing, they want to play racing video games (ironically they are playing the free SR games online right now). ALL of them wanted to see Iron Man. ALL of them want to see it again (and most important to the studio, they also want all the toys). This movie would not exist if not for Cars making mucho bank in '06 (mostly from merchandising). I think the word of mouth is really hurting this film, and they will have a good Saturday and drop like a stone after Sunday. It may be sensational, but I (and a lot of other parents and potential ticket buyers) ain't seeing or hearing it. Hey, at least I got a $20 super-cool Mach 5 vehicle because this movie was made...
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..according to box office mojo.
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My wife (who did not see it yet) and I went to see Iron Man again last night - packed theatre, wife loved it. It got legs, folks. Looked in on a screen showing Speed Racer? Three people, maybe four. Crickets, people.
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Now THIS is a review I can get behind. The obnoxious colors and the ridiculous leaps in logic make this one a shitter for me. They look like they are driving in hamster tubes in a gay pride parade. Nothing wrong with a Pride parade, I just don't want in my summer blockbusters.
I guess there are NO black people in Speed's world?
Sense when is Christina Ricci cute? I guess if you are into bulbous foreheads and mousy voices.
The Wachowskis need to go away, they've had their fun, now they are just being assholes.
Hey remember when summer movies used to be good?
1982....an untouchable year for the real movie fans out there. I pity all of you born after that seminal year. Sucks to be you... -
The film is absolutely stunning in every way.I think the films highly divisive nature is testament to the groundbreaking, experimental style the film employs.
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expect much from the makers of the matrix? i mean the promos for this "film" look soo awful and annoying... it looks like a video game... why go see a video game when you can play one?
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This whole "turn your brain off and enjoy it" argument will NEVER hold water with me. "It's based on a cartoon! Lighten up!" Come on. Batman and Iron Man is a comic book. Indiana Jones is based on movie serials. You CAN create great entertaining movies from wafer-thin source material.
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Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
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For the love of God, PLEASE. SHUT. THE. F. UP!!! SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!!
My God ... The Godfather would be a great movie if only ONE PERSON ON EARTH saw it. The Last Action Hero is absurdly bad, even if EVERY HUMAN BEING WHO'S EVER LIVED EVER sees it. Even if they revive corpses back to life, sit them down and charge them $1 million dollars a pop to rewatch it over and over again for all eternity.
Why ... in HOLY HELL!!!!!!!! ... are film geeks going online, taking the time to get an AICN account, and spend their weekends talkbacking about how much studio execs are making or not making as if it has anything whatsoever to do with the qualify of the film!?!
Is it at all funny, or ironic, or ... anything at all to you guys that there's a Donnie Darko sequel being discussed? (To say nothing of a SR sequel, which - no matter how many times you declare it "teh worstest movie evers" - has enough support that they're not going all Incredible Hulk reboot for part II.) Does it maybe say something about how films take time to be recognized as either successful or not? Maybe that the ALMIGHTY, HOLIEST OF HOLIES first weekend BO receipts maybe DON'T tell you everything there is to say about the essence of a film?
Please, please, please either stop pretending your a fan of movies or go to HollywoodSaloon.com and listen to the Apocalypse Hollywood podcasts.
Goooood night, what's wrong with y'all!?! -
Box Office Mojo's Friday estimates...Iron Man 15 million, Speed racer a paltry 5 million (and in third place behind that Vegas movie). NO Speed Racer, NO!
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/daily/chart/?sortdate=2008-05-09&p=.htm -
because I guess that would make you a hipster who doesn't know how to have fun.
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and given that the guy was a lazy, cowardly, whiny, nerdy, all around pathetic axcuse for a human being, i was rooting for the hot, successful girl to tell him to fuck off and get a life.
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saw this last night and thought it was great, entertaining, different, and well done... get over it you blow hards
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so who is this movie for? even when i was a kid i thought it was a shit cartoon. He-man looked like Pixar compared to that shit.
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Joining the ranks of Lost In Space, The Avengers, The Saint, the career destroying Josie and the Pussycats, Eyes Wide Shut, Catwoman, The Invasion, the list goes on and on....
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May 10, 2008 2:18:06 PM CDT
"The FX consumed the performers and story". Just like the matrix
by mike_d
loved the first movie, hated the sequels. I can never watch another movie where its completely filmed on a green screen.
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It would have cost 1/3 as much, been 100 minutes tops and had an audience that still remembered the original cartoon. Anyone who watched that relic is like 40 or 50 now and has stopped giving a shit about an antiquated, low-budget cartoon from their youth. Exactly whom did WB think would go see this shitburger?
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seriously? wow....i knew this wouldnt be a huge 90-100 million in the first weekend movie but i figured it would do pretty well anyway. i was expecting a good 40-60 for the weekend but if it only made 5 friday, then it'll be lucky to hit 30 by sunday night. as for the constant bitching over box office, while it does not determine the quality of a movie, it does determine how many people saw it and how often. so if a movie has a shitty box office then few went to see it, and if so few went to see it then that's not a good sign.
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I couldn't agree more.
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Bastards! What summer popcorn flick would ever do such a thing?!? Oh, wait, actually that is a dumbass criticism. Nevermind.
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aging fan boy...ran home everyday from school to watch the manga block on uhf (you guys remember the uhf band...dont ya?) channel 44...started with kimba, went to speed, then johnny socko and then finally....ULTRAMAN...so the studio was banking on guys like me to bring the kids (or grandkids, depending on how young you were when you got married) but heres the prob (and also the prob with capones review) as one ages, one also loses the ability to enjoy a roller coaster ride...has something to do with the deterioration of the inner ear (its what causes the elderly to fall so easily) and this movie is basically a roller coaster ride...capone was looking for substance, but the source material had no substance, just alot of hypervisual scenes (as was the case with all the old manga toons)...and im sure they will recoup costs on the dvd/bluray market...this will be a great diversion for the kids, while mom and dad head off to the bedroom...as for the grosses...look for a bounce on sunday
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I'm not surprised that it's off to a sluggish start, as they did a really poor job of selling it on anything other than the eye candy factor, and frankly it wasn't a sure-sell in that regard. I was really intrigued by the look in first glimpses, but the more I saw of it the more it reminded me of a young artist who first finds access to Photoshop filters... it takes a while for taste and restraint to override the wow-neato! factor of using them.
However, I can forgive overblown visuals if there's something else there, and there seems to be a strong segment of the audience who really just had a blast with this. Assuming they're not all druggies, it raises my interest in seeing this film sometime. -
$6M opening day.
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Here's the problem with making a kids flick based on a character only people over 30 recall: kids dunno who or what Speed Racer is! If they'd done a Yughio or Dragonball or Dora the Explorer or whatever else little kids know, know and like for cartoons these days they would have had a built-in audience. Instead the package nostalgia for 8 year olds. Nostalgia for 8 year olds! Anyone else see how wrongheaded that is?
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I would like to thank every person who's ever beaten you up, ridiculed you, made you feel alienated, and called you a fag. I'd also especially like to thank your father for those 3 years he disowned you and wouldn't speak to you. All for posting that Iron Man spoiler.
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until some video or something came out on MTV. And as a kid, I actually watched a bunch of stuff.. Battle of the Planets, etc. I have no idea when Speed Racer was popular. By the time I saw it, it was nostalgia.
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This wasn't a horrible moive, i mean they did an excellent job translating the cartoon world onto the silverscreen. But this movie is BORING AS FUCK!! What a letdown after seeing Iron man. Stay away from this movie.
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Would have been perfect with a script by Frank Miller or or Whedon or Brain K Vaughn who could have created a good story.
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but not if its 2 hours long and dumb as shit. i liked the visual style. it is unique. but fuck it. I hate the Wachowski bros anyway.
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Any child worth his/her salt will go bonkers over this. It's fun, imaginative and it's got a far more important message than Dreamworks cutter-cookie crap like BEE MOVIE - which I believe Capone liked.
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...you begin by saying that you loved the cartoon so much that you ignored how awful (by that I mean campy awful) it really was and then you berate the film for the exact same flaws. I'm the sure the cartoon wasn't written by a literary genius. You just seem to completely contradict yourself with this statement. How can you expect something more from source material that didn't have much there to begin with?
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19.5 million. The execs at Warner's are breaking out the Maalox right about now. Poor bastards.
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The GGI looked liked it belonged on a PS3 or on a t.v. show, not a $200 million dollar film. It's like they chromakeyed the whole film on an Imac.
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Mom Racer, Trixie, the Mach 5 and Chim Chim would be 'god damned whores!' And the movie would be totally in black and white save for Speed's red kerchief.
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Amen, brother. Amen.
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What you're saying is what they were going for. They weren't going for realism. Obviously you didn't like it. That's fine, but the movie went for a certain look and they achieved it.
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Thanks for the review, Capone. I respect your opinion, but I respectfully fall on the other side on this film. Not ever having given a shit about the cartoons in the 80's, maybe I'm a little more at ease with the visuals and story.
So Capone, I hope your apartment's fully recoved from the "accident" a while back. Keep writing those fabulous reviews. -
Not sure why, it just bugs the shit out of me. So tired of hearing how this flick is "a sugary burst of bubble-gum, soda-pop, cotton candy-infused visuals, with taffy swirls and fructose-syrup-coated wads of skittle-bomb snak-packets for your eyes! It's a sensory wash of fruit-roll-up-wrapped gumdrops splashed with kool-aid and pop-rocks!"
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From the great Comedy Central toon of yore, Dr. Katz, speaking on opera: "Look how much it takes to bore me."
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so ner!
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It's now "The Wachowskis" and not "The Wachowski Bros." The reason being should spoil any family outing to this movie.
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I walked out of iron man around 11:50 pm, and there was a long mazed off section for the expected line. There was nobody, just 2 guys standing at the front of the 'line' with blank looks in their eyes. It was very sad.
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Check the credits at the end of the movie.
Just an internet rumor, guys. -
crap has never been so incredibly beautiful.
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Fuckin' Blows! Capone you are a goddamn plant (a bad plant by the way). This movie fuckin' rocks. It has a great casting, a compelling story and great sequences and VFX. This page has been going downhill for a while now.
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this movie was merely fun and trippy, until about the last leg, starting from where he confronted Racer X at the tracks, yeah. That's when this movie got pretty fucking brilliant. It has 80s cult classic status written all over it. Unfortunately, I did have some tetrahydrocannabinol in my system last night, so my opinon may change on a second, THC-less viewing.
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For the life of me I can't understand why people go apeshit over someone's opinion. That's just what it is, THEIR opinion. Some of you people need to sit back, relax and take some Prozac. And one more thing, just because tne Wachowski [Bros.] made a revolutionary film like the Matrix it doesn't mean all of their movies are going to be good. Remember Steven Spielberg made 1941 and Hook. That being said, IN MY OPINION, Speed Racer ias a spectacular, neon-coloured pile of shite!
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In addition to his spot-on logical evaluation of a movie's eventual value to the world, I wholeheartedly endorse and support his message to all SR haters out there : For the love of God, PLEASE. SHUT. THE. F. UP!!! SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!! That is all.
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as the shit I took this morning. It's not going to be groundbreaking. It's not going to be landmark. It's not going to advance film in any way, shape, or form. It's a horrid POS movie that never should have or would have been done but for two self-masturbatory lunk heads to involved with how awesome they are to realize they shit poop just like everyone else.
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sweating their balls off over that shitty cartoon in that shit tank they try to call a film studio after this fucker bombed to the tune of MAYBE a 20 million dollar weekend.
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Orionsangels, I liked the "hyper-real" style, but I did not like the poor CGI and greenscreen work; it looked like a t.v. show, not a $200 million dollar movie.
Yes, I know it was a t.v. show, but I doubt it was their intended effect to make it look like "spy kids" level of CGI. -
All you haters missed the point here. I think the film captured the look and feel of the cartoon perfectly. The source material never had great depth to it, the dialog was stiff, this was (I though) translated well onto the screen. It was a fun film, slow at points, but still entertaining. What more could you ask from a film interpreting cheesy 60's Japanese animation? Relax and enjoy, people.
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She was born to take a massive beating from my love truncheon.Still even footage of a naked Ricci doing her Rabbit couldn't drag me to see this awful shitstorm of a movie...
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Damn You Michael Bay
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colorful diarrhea. Oh yeah.. I never watched the show as a child... and i know who the hell Racer X is.
Are grown ups really pining for their childhood so much as to believe a pool of vomit like Speed Racer is actually good?
The movie is awful nothing about it is good. If you enjoyed this movie and defend it you should be ashamed and just know that you know nothing about what makes a good movie... even for children. -
Seems like a Saturday comparison might work better for this one, not that I plan on seeing it in a theater.
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This movie was simply fun. everything about it from the Racer Family, the racing and Racer X. Even the bad guy "Royalton" was fun to watch. We knew who the bad guy was from the get go. what mattered was getting there and seeing everything play out. Everyone shined in this movie. Capone, I have no idea what you were expecting from the this movie, but this was a true golden masterpiece from the Wachowski Brothers. It really felt they made the Speed Racer they felt was a true representation of the cartoon in a real-time form. And it really felt like the cartoon in every shape and form. Only in this version the action is actually fun to watch. Plus the movie never took itself seriously and was able to have fun with the time on screen and let people in on the joke. You really just can't seem to enjoy yourself anymore. It's really very sad.
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Just wanted to say that my partner and I loved it. I would definitely see it again. It was a colorful, kinetic, heartfelt, live cartoon adrenaline rush the whole time.
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It makes the assumption that the people who disagree with you aren't as smart as you.
Plus the whole "it captured the vibe of the show - which was cheesy" defense just sounds silly doesn't it? That is like making a TV show called Gigli and wondering why people don't like it and then arguing "well it captured the vibe of the movie perfectly" -
It feels like a lot of people are jumping on the second week of the summer this movie has to suck band wagon. First off anyone saying that this cartoon is too old don't realize that it really doesn't matter. Alvin & the Chipmunks is pretty old as well. Both shows have been around forever in either repeats or updated versions. Same with Transformers. Transformers and Alvin were both huge hits last year, granted pretty much every big movie last year sucked. You can't compare Speed to Iron Man because cartoons and comic books are two different realms for storytelling. about 90% of cartoons go no where, there isn't any character development, just different situations. Comic book characters grow and change, huge difference when starting with source material. In fact the only cartoon I can think off (outside of Animie) in which the characters grew and changed is Transformers, Doug and Rugrats. This is going to be the band wagon movie to hate this summer and it really doesn't deserve it. Also we all know the W's like to steal ideas from Asian because most Americans don't think that they do anything but make our shit. So if any of you have seen Cashern knows that this movie had to have been a huge influence for the W's for Speed. And yes both movies are overly long, but Speed is a lot more exciting and original then Cashern. If you are shitting on this film and haven't seen it, they your a follower. The only reason I would tell someone to not see this film is if A). They look down on kids things because they are too mature and cool or they saw TMNT and didn't like it. Because next to Speed I would say its the best Cartoon to movie flick, and anyone who says that the old Turtles are SO much better then TMNT needs to stop watching so much VH1. Bottom line is, if the only video games you play are Medel of Honor, Halo, GTA and Call of Duty. And you only watch shows like Lost, Greys Anatomy, Battlestar, 60 Minutes. And only listen to stuff thats on the billboard 200 then this movie won't be for you. Like the problem I had leaving that movie was that I felt sorry for all the marketing people involved because they are probably going to lose their jobs after this because this has to be one of the hardest movies ever to sell. I mean its not like Redbelt where they didn't have to give a shit because it was cheap to make and you could make it look like a cheap fighting/DTV movie like the trailer and banner ads make it out to be. They were told that this had to make money. But whatever hate the movie, I know I hate plenty of movies for no real good reason besides the fact that I hate it. I just really liked this movie. And for people who say its like Tron, thats right except its not going to suck when I re-watch it after some time like Tron always does. Go rent it, Tron sucks and its wicked boring.
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It's now an endless array of pre-teens that didn't see the film telling everyone how bad Speed Racer is and people that actually did see it defending it. Boring.
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May 10, 2008 7:33:23 PM CDT
Still SPEED RACER has to be better than BAYFORMERS, right?
by violator90
Hell, I wan't that much into the cartoon but I still liked it for what it was, a cartoon. That said, this thing was always going to have a 50/50 chance that it would work. So that's still a better chance than most of the shit that awaits use this and next year. Sure the commercials alone give me seizures, but its based a cartoon. The SAME fucking arguement that people had with BAYFORMERS, so if people can use that to justify liking TINO2, hell at least that's my reason to see it. Well at least I know what I'm getting myself into this time. No JOE or TINO2 for me. I learned my lesson.
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Hollywood is creatively bankrupt. So the studios rape some ol' cartoon/TV show then make a movie and count on people being nostalgic and willing to shell out the cash to reminisce about their long lost childhood. So by the year 2020 we should be seeing "Sesame Street: The Movie".
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IN EVERY EPISODE of the cartoon, that's EVERY EPISODE, they said that Racer X was Speed's older brother who ran away. Fucking crybabies.
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Just wanted to put my 2 cents in.
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May 10, 2008 8:01:10 PM CDT
I'm sick of the phrase - "It's like nothing you've ever seen bef
by orionsangels
From Dick Tracey, Sky Captain to Sin City. "It's like nothing you've ever seen before!" Yeah yeah yeah! We get it. It's some form of CGI to make it stand out and grab our attentions. It's gonna make us say, wow! Is this the future of movies? NO!
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Cheers from Germany. It´s my first time, but I felt, this trashing of SPEED RACER needed reaction.
I never watched the show, I´m not even into car races, but I loved SPEED RACER from the bottom of my heart. I will definitely buy it on DVD. Man, I´ve never seen something like this before (and working in the movie business I see a LOT of films).
Despite the candy-cartoonish-look (I guess, it was not a mistake, but on purpose, man) SPEED RACER has more soul than the calculated SPIDERMAN PIRATES OCEANS threequels and TRANSpirationFORMERS combined.
Good night
Morrik -
May 22nd 1999 Talkback on The Phantom Menace. One of the longest most brutal talkbacks in history! I was there. Many lives were lost.
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I think every time Speed would race Racer X the VO told you he was his brother who ran away from home. I think the fact that is the spoiler of the movie is in the spirt of the cartoon. Ultraman used the same gimmick. I downloaded the 7 minute HD clip and watched it on my HD DVD player and this is going to look nice in Blu-ray ( too bad I don't have a BR player). I won't be seeing the movie 'till tuesday but from the short clip and based on re-watching a few episodes of the original 'toon it seems to me they did a great job. It was not done the way I would of done it but they did work in all the elements I wanted to see in a SR movie so I'm happy so far.
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He reminds me of the two 3-year-olds who were in the theater I was in who couldn't sit still while dialog was happening on screen. God forbid any exposition to give the film meaning.
I loved it and can't wait to see it again. -
it was fun, if it was a cartoon, but it fails as a movie.
I mean, if you look at it, the premise is cartoon movie with actors. it works if that's all it wants to be. Speed racer isn't a movie. -
a weird fucking movie, and kind of creepy.
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I'm actually looking forward to seeing this movie, maybe more so now that I've seen all of the hate filled reaction its caused. Maybe I'm a masochist. How can anyone not justify spending 3 bux to see this on the big screen once it hits the cheapies, if only for the hyper kinetic visuals. And if the word of mouth continues as it has, I probably won't have to wait long either.
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Hey, I'm glad you mentioned Sky Captain. Speed Racer DID remind me of that, as well as Sin City, The Cell, 300, and so on. Personally, I find the images and kenetics of such movies somewhat artistic, and I have to give pros to the vision and creativity of the studio . . . . BUT these movies don't work. Speed Racer, Sin City, Sky Captian, etc DON'T WORK as movies because the creative juices stop dead cold once the idea leaves the Art Departmnet. And as creative as such a team of artists and designers can be, they add no substance. Hell, sometimes the Art Department actually restrains the rest of the movie, bending actors into wooden performances and limiting the possibilities of cinematographers working to visualize a green screen. They even requre the script to be rewritten to include the visual content. They are all Style and no Substance, and I say that any movie that tries to sell itself based on the work of its Art Department (above directing, acting, writing, etc.) is an utter piece of shit.
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contrast that with movies that have used their Art Department to further the story, as opposed to taking it over as the prime impetus . . . Gladiator, Lord of the Rings, The Holy Trilogy, perhaps even the first Matrix and Iron Man, and so on. Hell, look at Ben fucking Hur and imagine a movie where the impetus is chariot design, the historical details of the slave galley, Rome's outfits and archetecture. Can you see the difference?
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May 10, 2008 9:31:19 PM CDT
Didn't anyone notice that Pariah74 used BOLD in one of his posts
by thebearovingian
As in a BOLD font. How?! Isn't that the Holy Grail of TBs?! Everyone (okay, most everyone) knows about paragraph breaks but BOLD is the crown jewel.
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Went to see it today. Acting:7, Story: 5, SFX: 10+ It's a must-see on a big screen; I wished I had seen it on Imax. P.S. Monkeys rock!
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yeah, that's a fucking lie. I've read all the mother of the matrix postings, she's an insane liar. Bound is one of the best modern noir films, and this movie blew me AWAY.
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Yeah, we *really* don't get out that much to any movies, however, for the 4 year old, it was long, for the 11 and 14 yr olds, it was great! They both loved it! Yeah, it's hokey, but wow! Visually it's just amazing. John Goodman was FANTASTIC! and Paulie Hitt as Spritle was just a Hoot! Emile Hirsch (Speed) was good, could have been better, and it's sad, because he was the MAIN character, however, everyone else was GREAT! The story was fine. Not something to go ga-ga over, but c'mon, we go to a movie to just relax and enjoy ourselves. This movie will be out on DVD soon based on the mixed reviews and the fact that there are just some kick-ass movies that ARE coming out soon, but for now, this movie is just a fun little flick. Definetly a matinee goer, but hold your big bucks for the later shows for another show.
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so did my three friends. We are in our twenties and are unfamiliar with the show. If you didnt like it, you are an ass.
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when you go to the IMAX.
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and I never really do that in the theater. I think it was too much to take in visually. But I also barely remember the show, so I thought it would have been perfect for the fans of it. I didn't like that villain guy and wish I'd known who those other racers were. I think we got more background on the podracers in TPM, which was something I couldn't help be reminded of in 'Speed Racer'. It wasn't a bad movie, I just didn't know what the hell was going on.
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May 10, 2008 10:06:27 PM CDT
When I saw Iron Man a dude in the next row fell asleep.
by thebearovingian
12:30pm showing. Where are the l33t? ||BOLD||
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May 10, 2008 10:14:53 PM CDT
i love the people attacking capone or anyone who doesnt like thi
by bouncy x
god forbid he should you know, have his own opinion of the movie and it should be different than your own. you people are funny, no wonder i read talkbacks a lot.
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It does help to get blazed out of your mind before you see it. That makes the movie a pretty amazing experience IMO.
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with the original theme song playing over the credits...however, you can save your money and see that on youtube...god, what a mess the movie was...shoulda made it a porno and let trixie blow the monkey
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is why Capone is the most grounded reviewer here. Cheers.
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Really? REALLY?
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is the title of my talkback post. Yep - that's what I chose to call it. You have no right to tell me it's stupid, and that it doesn't apply to the discussion. I don't care. It's saturday night and my wife's asleep, so if I want to make a post called "Sardine and Onion Sandwiches," and drift off into internet oblivion before I get too tired and fall asleep to Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure again . . .then gawdammit, no one's going to stop me.
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i guess they wont be making the big screen version of ultraman or johnny socko and his flying robot...darn
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You say this then you go on to say the cartoon was utter shit, and the utter shittiness of the cartoon was captured perfectly by the movie yet you are puzzled about why the fucking thing is a goddamn bomb at the BO??? Jesus H. Christ, are some of you fucking morons retarded or are you just 12?
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...but I completely fell in love with this movie from the first frame on, I recommend it to anyone but I guess I'd say leave your cynicism at the door. This movie blew me and my friends away, it took us many hours, after the movie, to just come down from the cloud we were on after watching it. To each his own I guess.
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me too. don't feel bad.
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And he absolutely loved it. But there wasn't 20 people in the theater. Saw Iron Man last week, same time, and house was full. The 7 year olds must not be getting the message out to the paying parents.
As for the movie, it was ok enough to see. Certainly not entralling like Iron Man, but about as interesting as any kid movie, which this obviously is. I was about equally bored and entertained as I was at Horton, which my son also liked. Jaded film reviewers have to take that into account. For it's target audience, it's the first time they've seen a plot like this. -
Because it's a pile of stinking fecal matter that should never have been made in the first place. That would be my first guess but I'm sure there'll be those that make their excuses.
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I'm a hardcore film fan and rarely write into this site, but I feel this review was such a misfire. And the talkbacks are misfiring as well. Please don't go off the trailer and see the movie. The opening frames tap into childhood, then it takes you for a brilliant ride. Not only does the opening race thrill you, it interweaves a story, using CINEMA!!! The W's are not limiting themselves to simple story telling here. They're using techniques we haven't seen on the screen in a long long time, if ever. And they are notes we've heard before, but they are notes played brilliantly. That end race was a god damn moment of zen for me. The theater I saw it in went ape shit. Granted there are a lot of goofy scenes, but if you love film, go see this movie. Plan on seeing it again in the next week.
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Raise your hands if you saw this coming.
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Tequila slurpee doesn't undress Ricci enough to endure this bomb.
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I'm so sick of hearing everyone saying that this movie "looks just exactly like the original cartoons". NO it does not.
The colors and the cityscapes do NOT look right. In the original cartoon the colors were not nearly as bright. They were much more pale, almost like pastels.
And also the original cartoons did NOT have super-futuristic looking cities. They were just regular, plain-old looking towns and cities.
And there's one more big thing that this movie's missing that the original cartoon had: the WAY dialogue is spoken. In the cartoons all the characters had a really funny and oddball way of speaking. That in fact was one of the biggest reasons why the original show was so fun and entertaining to watch! Unfortunately, that aspect is missing in this new movie. -
Skinny, bug-eyed, has to appeal to somebody I guess but not exactly oozing sex appeal while the eorld is still inhabited by the likes of Monica Bellucci, Sophie Marceau, Salma Hayek or Jessica Biel. If Susan Sarandon could go back in time, eat some meals and grow a butt, she's probably make Milf level by now! Couldn't give a flying bogey for Speed Racer, it was never a regular cartoon on TV in the UK so they might as well release it straight to home video.
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I thought it was a brilliantly campy, insane, cool and hilarious work of pop art. A truly, truly psychedelic and insane movie. I loved every second of it. Even the awkward exposition felt right and very in line with the show. It was effing brilliant, don't hate. That said, I understand how something this experimental and out there would confuse some people. Still, it was fucking amazing. I loved it.
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Really, the word-of-mouth amongst families is going to be horrendous. This is the biggest bomb of the summer movies. It's just so dull.
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This movie is a gleaming jewel in the ever-marching pageant of cinematic history!
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May 11, 2008 5:43:38 AM CDT
Iron Man, Wall-E and Dark Knight will be the hits this summer
by prof. pop-cult
Speed Racer will be the biggest box office disappointment. Indiana Jones will open well but quickly taper off in the following weekends. I'm uncertain about Hancock, but I just have this feeling it will disappoint at the box office, and reviews for it will be so-so.
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I pity the people who didn't have a good time with this. It tells a story that is driven by characters and races. It's simple and it fucking works. Oh and I agree with The Wolf at the Door. Shut the fuck up about box office numbers. You don't fucking care about the producers wallets. You only care about using the numbers to justify your feelings. That's fucking lame.
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I was bored. I've seen the trailers and there's nothing ground breaking or pioneering about blue/screen stuff. In fact I find it ugly and boring. I think this film will only appeal to those who know anything of Speedracer and children younger than 1 years old.
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on opening weekend will make some suits nervous enough to look at the want ads.
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May 11, 2008 8:33:54 AM CDT
Interesting movie that will appeal to a small demographic.
by the founder
Sorry to the fans and i'm not a 100 percent sure that hardcore fans will enjoy, but i did. I liked a lot. The beginning was slow, not bad but overall i enjoyed and it was different. it won't be a huge hit. It'll appeal to the fans of the show, which in book isn't even enough. I personally didn't likethe cartoons but i liked the movie as I've said before.
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May 11, 2008 8:36:03 AM CDT
160 million?? Good Lord WB didn't shell out that much did they?
by the founder
Someone should have sat down and really thought this over. This was a risky project and the long running time doesn't help. About 30 mins could've been shaved off.
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budget ran over 100 million and they spent $80 million on marketing. but various grants from Germany helped offset some of that cost from the books.
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Because I couldn't see the FX for the pigging CG!!!I don't know how the Wakowski nutters directed this (If at all) because how do you direct an FX guy to go THAT mental!?They simply must have farmed out all the long, franetic race sequences to as many CG guys as possible with a note attached saying ''Make it look as bright, fast and crazy as you possibly can then add a dash of WTF I can't see what's going on!'' and then sneaked acid and speed in their drinks.The only good things were somehow the anoying fat kid and his Chimp and mom and Pops Racer.Too long, Too wordy, Too Speedy, Too bad!my kid couldn't look at the screen, got fidgety, fell asleep.
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no way in fucking hell will I see this movie.
Not now, not later, not ever. -
May 11, 2008 9:58:06 AM CDT
So this talkbalk (of a negative review) should not be used to di
by chewtoy
So people should not respond to discuss their personal disappointment with the flick, as that just shows that they are "dead inside" and should be pitied. Nor should anyone bring up the solidly negative critical consensus at Rotten Tomatoes, because the critics don't get that it's supposed to be a cartoon and therefor not supposed to be "good". And no one should ever mention box office results (or the truly startling lack thereof for 'Speed Racer') because those don't matter in any way, shape or form to anyone who cares about movies or follows them. So, um... I guess... How's the weather where you folks are?
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And I still am curious to see the flick now that so many people who have swear it's much better than it is given credit for. I just find those who feel like they need to defend this movie are kind of grasping for a leg to stand on, to mix a metaphor or two.
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We found it very tongue-in-cheek, intentionally over-the-top and stylized. I think what it was supposed to achieve was achieved. Is it a masterpiece? Not by any means. But I totally dig it for what it's supposed to be. But then again, I think monkeys are comedy gold!
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I'm not putting down Speed Racer or defending TRON but comparing the two has got to stop. They have absolutely NOTHING in common other than the fact that they both employ CG. You might as well compare it to Pirates Of The Caribbean.
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I went and saw this last night at a late IMax showing near Atlanta. The theater was completely packed, and the audience loved it. I dont think I have ever seen a movie audience seem to be having so much fun with a movie. This was a good well mixed suburban audience ranging from kids to middle aged adults. few seemed to have any preconceptions. The chatter on the way out was how amazed everyone was that it was sooo much better than what the reviewers were saying. Personally I loved it.
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Meaning a movie that was nearly universally panned by critics and the general public who never even saw it because of some kind of mass herd hysteria. With Ishtar, the hysteria effect was a combination of the outrageous budget, grudges within Columbia Pictures itself, a media backlash against Warren Beatty(think Barry Bonds), and resulting bad media buzz. People who actually saw Ishtar enjoyed it, unless they went into it with bad feelings already. Comparing to Speed Racer, its mass herd hysteria effect is most likely due to a Wachowski Bros. backlash and the oftheard rallying cry "it looks like a video game!" (which is what I've heard from everyone I know refusing to give this film a chance). Ah, well. If it is a great film (I haven't seen it yet, will tomorrow), it will or should eventually find its way to the top.
I remember I had to drag a group of friends at gunpoint into the opening day of Iron Giant when they all wanted to go see Sixth Sense. They were bitching and moaning the whole first two minutes until they shut up and 90 minutes later, they were in tears (some of them), while one or two held their stance that we should have seen Sixth Sense. Iron Giant still bombed (I think less than 30 mil tops), but it's now become a cult classic and looks where Brad Bird is now. Sometimes, it's best to go against one's better instincts, lest you live all your life in a cage. That group of friends have me to thank for forcing them to see Iron Giant that day, because there's nothing like seeing that film on a multiplex screen with surround sound.
I'm hoping for that same experience with Speed Racer. We'll see. -
Meaning a movie that was nearly universally panned by critics and the general public who never even saw it because of some kind of mass herd hysteria. With Ishtar, the hysteria effect was a combination of the outrageous budget, grudges within Columbia Pictures itself, a media backlash against Warren Beatty(think Barry Bonds), and resulting bad media buzz. People who actually saw Ishtar enjoyed it, unless they went into it with bad feelings already. Comparing to Speed Racer, its mass herd hysteria effect is most likely due to a Wachowski Bros. backlash and the oftheard rallying cry "it looks like a video game!" (which is what I've heard from everyone I know refusing to give this film a chance). Ah, well. If it is a great film (I haven't seen it yet, will tomorrow), it will or should eventually find its way to the top.
I remember I had to drag a group of friends at gunpoint into the opening day of Iron Giant when they all wanted to go see Sixth Sense. They were bitching and moaning the whole first two minutes until they shut up and 90 minutes later, they were in tears (some of them), while one or two held their stance that we should have seen Sixth Sense. Iron Giant still bombed (I think less than 30 mil tops), but it's now become a cult classic and looks where Brad Bird is now. Sometimes, it's best to go against one's better instincts, lest you live all your life in a cage. That group of friends have me to thank for forcing them to see Iron Giant that day, because there's nothing like seeing that film on a multiplex screen with surround sound.
I'm hoping for that same experience with Speed Racer. We'll see. -
A movie far ahead of its time that was meant to be a blockbuster, failed at that, but became a beloved cult hit, and thereby turned a profit, albeit over time. Still watched in dorm rooms well into the 2020s, stoned/tripping undergrads laughing with glee at the sheer explosion of psychedelic pop art awesomeness on the screen.
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It's ahead of its time. I'm not surprised today's mouthbreathing unwashed masses don't like it.
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Oh for fucks sake... but I can see your point.
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May 11, 2008 12:14:58 PM CDT
$20.2 million boxoffice take, barely beating out What Happens in
by pennsy
The 21st century Heaven's Gate, anyone?
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If this movie didn't make you feel like you were five years old, playing with your matchbox cars, you are dead inside. end
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It's good to know that your inner-child is dead.
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internationally, it has no brand recognition. if it hasn't done well in the states you can guarantee the same across the world. the trailer did it no favours
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I would have used great box office numbers to brag, therefore making me? You sure about that? Read my post again. I specifically stated "justify your feelings." That means ANY kind of feeling, positive or negative. So yes, I mean that people that used terrible returns to rub it in how they hated a film are just as bad as those who use great returns to exalt how great a movie was. In conclusion, you don't know me, shut the fuck up.
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therefore making me a hypocrite?
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May 11, 2008 1:00:52 PM CDT
i keep on thinking of aquas barbiegirl video when i wtach the tr
by mr_x
http://tinyurl.com/ek4q3
i dont know what it is! -
I have to raise my hand and say that I think anime is boring. In my limited experience, a character in an anime has two emotional states: Completely calm and serene, with a hint of mournful (but mysterious) sadness, and crazy emotional, cheap-comic-effect stupid and over-cute. Based on recommendations, I have seen Evangelion, Gunsliner Girl, Full Metal Alchemist, and (most of) The Lotus War thing. I wanted to try, I really did. . . but Jesus. Oh, I did watch 3 episodes of The Slayers. I may be a snob, but I am also a good friend to watch that stuff in the first place. I just have to admit that my friends are weird and into their own thing, and I'll be happy watching Deadwood and Weeds.
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I just saw it today and thought it was a marvel. A live-action cartoon with all the physics, characters and loudness you'd expect. Villains are always obvious in cartoons, Capone...just FYI
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who is nearly seven. I fell asleep for a few minutes waiting for the action sequences. My biggest gripe is that the makers created all these wonderfull tracks and cars, but due to the editing during the races, we were able to have a good look at nearly nothing. The cgi may have been great, but it was wasted. I asked my son what he thought. His response was "good, but confusing. You couldn't tell who was who in the races".
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Huge flop. Massive. Heads will roll.
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Hee~hee, IRONMAN WINS!
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legs. None at all. It was still born. Dead at conception. A non-factor. It was a stupid idea that noone bothered saying no to because somewhere someone was receiving slobber covered hand jobs from the bros. Fuckup. This won't have any effect on other movies. I think people generally understand this was destined to fail.
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Are we supposed to be in awe? Who the hell needs someone to tell them a 2008 adaptation of "Speed Racer" is shit? WB will be making up losses with TDK.
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hope everyone read what the kid said...its why the movie is tanking...the wachowskis set out to make a kids flick, but have no clue how a kid views a movie or tv show...did they do no pre-screenings? did they do no focus groups? if they had sat a theater filled with parents and kids, i am sure the following wouldve been said...its too long, the action sequences are too confusing, who the hell is rain, why did racer x wear a mask when he already had changed his identity and face, is one of the wachowski bros really a sister?
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http://tinyurl.com/5u6su5
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http://tinyurl.com/5u6su5
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Yeah tell that to the people whose head will roll this week, that'll make up for everything. 250+ mil, who needs them?
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It's not "deeper" or "more mature" -- It's made for kids in Japan, and it just reflects a different set of cultural norms. The animation itself is subpar, usually because it consists of lots of still images in which only the mouths are animated, followed by "action" sequences that can only get their message across by drawing tons of motion lines and blood.
The characters are almost all facially identical, with the same nose, eyes, and mouth. Sometimes they throw a bigger nose or smaller eyes on a comic-relief character, though. The hair is oft-times ridiculous.
The plots are almost always the same, with the same themes and goals. All they change are the players, and the specific circumstances in the story that get you to the inevitable confrontation with the bad guy.
I was really into anime until around 1996, when I realize it was all the same. Shit. Shit. Shit. Just nothing worth bothering to dedicate time towards. Even the best anime pales in comparison to western animation when it's done right. I would much rather watch "Fritz the Cat" than "Akira" any day. I'd sooner watch "The Tick" or "The Venture Bros." than watch "Dragonball Z" or "Ranma 1/2". Why? Because the western-style stuff has a decent plot, good characterizations that don't all fall into pre-set archetypes, and maintains continuity that doesn't treat the viewer like a child.
Any given episode of "King of the Hill" or "Beavis & Butt-Head" would be better than watching yet another martial artist with weird hair meet his so-evil-its-gaudy rival and battle in a slo-mo fight filled with lots of metal-clashing, explosion-type sounds and motion lines galore. I don't care if it's "Inuyasha" or "Cowboy Bebop".
Been there, done that, and saw the mouth-breathers who decided to keep going with that hobby while I backed away. It's a fad, and nothing more. American weeaboos are just the same as people who were HUGE fans of disco. Some of them might be clinging to their silly costume and bad entertainment decades from now, but most will have moved on and asked themselves, "What the hell was I thinking?" -
was posted here last week already...
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I'm not saying that this wasn't an epic failure. It was. Im sure right now someone is getting the axe. But the studio knew all along that TDK would be their big draw this summer. Still, I think Joel SIlveris going to take a hit here seeing as he constantly backs the bros in their ventures.
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spouting some stupid shit about TDK making you feel any better or did someone punch you in your twat last night and now your cranky? Personally I don't give a fuck if you're in awe or you just wiped the sweat from your bf's balls off your chin, you'll always be a goat fucking shit nugget. And who needs to be told it's shit, apparently you do since what I said has touched that soft yellow female PMS spot in the middle of your back fuck wad.
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you rancid twat, that you're going to hang yourself when TDK pulls a SR? Maybe if you did something besides deliver pizzas for a living you wouldn't have so much of your self-esteem tied up in WB.
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But at least you didn't post those Black Delliah manips that show up in every TDK tb since last year.
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is a moron. Don't flatter yourself PW. Nothing you said has convinced anyone of anything. You don't need to look under the lid of every trash can to know there's grabage inside.
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...but I'm going to be a bit of a contrarian here. I remember watching Blade Runner--and in fact, there's no reason to be so high-handed about this--I remember seeing movies like Phantasm, Escape From New York, Assault on Precinct 13 when I was young and loving them. Box office and critical flops they were, at the time they were released. But they were what moved the movies in the direction they've gone. Now some may say that wasn't the best thing in the world, and there are certainly current results of it that I don't like myself, but when I watched Speed Racer with the kids Friday night, I had the feeling I was seeing that some kind of thing. Not for me. But the kids (9 and 6) loved it, and, though it has already flopped critically and seems likely to add a bad BO to go with that, I have the feeling that a couple decades down the road there may be some young grown-ups who have a markedly different opinion about this film.
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I've said it before, fantastic first 1/4 that falls apart for the last 3/4. Sloppy editing, poorly choreographed fight scenes and a plot that was all over the place. Scarecrow was wasted as was the final "battle" on the train that lasted for 15 seconds....Nice finale Nolan. Thanks.
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But with an uneven film like BB, why does everyone assume TDK will be so great? Ledger looks and sounds amazing but it will take more than that.
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Maybe the Wachowskis need to make their next film a low-budget affair like "Bound". Ditch the visual effects (except the lipstick lesbians) and just put their energy into the story and the characters. Just a thought.
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You want to know why Box Office Numbers matter? Because they determine what is made and what is not, effecing what we see and what we don't. That is why we will all be subjected to see another "Transformers" and not another "The Island". Speaking of which, maybe if they had made the Mack V change into a robot it would have done better. Who knows. But I do know, we are all at the mercy of Box Office Numbers. It is a fact of life. And if you don't understand this, then you know shit about movies and what it takes to get them made. As much as you would try and hide your head in the stand, remember...this is a business. Period. And stop telling other people to "shut the fuck up". It's morons like you who should keep quiet.
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Poeticwarrior...I'm not saying TDK will be good. I'm saying it's going to make money. Truthfully, to me, it looks like nothing new. I think the biggest thing for people is seeing Heath Ledger who, as i've said before, was never too impressive to begin with. He probably gives a decent performance. I'm saying that people will probably turn out in droves to see TDK. People go crazy over the first (god knows why). I'm more of a Keaton Batman type of guy.
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Agreed. But after this disaster they will have no choice BUT to make a low budget indie. Unless they decide to Matrix prequel. Lucas knew this enough to go back to the well after flops like HOWARD THE DUCK & WILLOW. Just wait, in a year or so we’ll all be hearing about THE MATRIX: LOG ON - WAR OF THE MACHINES! Ugh. I can hardly wait.
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I agree with a lot of the comments made about Anime. There does seem to be this rediculous snobbery about a form of art from a different culture. Quite frankly I neither get it or like it much. That Spirited Away was overhyped tripe.
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I wrote prequel, not sequel. To see how the Matrix was created maaaybeee is kinda interesting, but a sequel? I could care less whether the "truce" holds up or not. Both Neo & "Trin"(ugh) are dead. And should stay dead.
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Easy…
It doesn’t even resemble the Speed Racer I remember from my youth. The Speed Racer I remember (and loved) was simple and innocent. Not bloated and confusing. In fact, weirdly, it looks a lot like a TV commercial for another car racing product icon from that same era –
HOT WHEELS
Did these guys get confused? Were they so preoccupied with “ground making visuals” that they forgot what they were making? It’s a cartoon for god’s sake. Not some heady, out of body, mumbo jumbo take on humanity. Ironically, if they actually HAD made a cartoon, I bet it would have made more money and cost far less.
They completely missed the whole spirit of Speed Racer. Instead, they tried to create some new visual style, using Speed Racer simply as a platform.
Again, just my opinion...
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Seems like since everything about Speed Racer was cgi (even the cars) it makes me wonder how much directing actually went into it. It seems to me that Watchowski's (sp?) probably just sat back and approved what the effects guys had to offer them and maybe made a suggestion or tweak or two here and there. I wonder the same thing about Lucas and his last three star wars movies. When its all really green screen and the actors pretend they're driving a car when really they're sitting on a green apple box, how can the acting not be "stiff". This looks like it might as well have been an all cgi movie.
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Could've done without the 'Freebird' sequence but apart from that I thought this film was incredible. And I also think that people making movies twenty years from now will cite this film as a major influence.
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A Matrix Prequel? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
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How and why the Matrix sequels get so much hate is completely beyond me. The best action sequence by far of all three movies was the freeway sequence, which was in the second movie. It would have been the Zion Dock Attack sequence in REVOLUTIONS, but that scene needed some serious editing. Had it been edited like RETURN OF JEDI, editing between three simultaneous stories - Endor, Death Star Luke vs Emperor and Vader, and Death Star space battle, and in REVOLUTIONS, between Trinity and Neo, the Dock Attack Battle and Niobe bringing her ship back to Zion - it would have been a spectacular denouement. But being edited the way it was - three dull slabs of story, only livened up with amazing SFX - it didn't pop the way it should have, This is the only time I will EVER say someone should have done something the way George Lucas did it.
The Matrix sequels were great, they fleshed out and expanded the mythology and backstory of the Matrix in an innovative and enjoyable way, and made people think. I think the real problme was that the moviegoers wanted more pretty spectacle with very little story to have to deal with, and the Wachowskis gave them Eastern mysticism, Zen Buddhism, reflections on the meanings of self-awareness, consciousness and the sanctity of life, and a stunning speech by the Architect at the end of act 2 in RELOADED. I'm amazed at how many people DON'T get what's going on here, and how it relates to REVOLUTIONS.
Go back and watch the three movies - and the ANIMATRIX, if you really want to know how the Matrix came about - and tell me they don't work as a trilogy. Then tell me, coherently, why. Only people who want empty spectacle and don't want to think hate the sequels - and the Matrix is all about thinking for yourself. Its refusal to talk down to its audience is the strength of that trilogy, and it constantly gets derided for it.
You want to watch a dumbed down trilogy? Ladies and gents: I give you the STAR WARS Prequels. Knock yourselves out. -
No, I didn't know he was Speed's bro either. Don't much care; I only want to watch it for the pretty FX. It sounds like the shitty story was ripped straight off of HERBIE: FULLY LOADED, starring that pervert LiLo. Mmmmmmmm.
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I got your back about BATMAN BEGINS (THEN FALLS APART UNDER THE WEIGHT OF ITS OWN PRETENSIONS). Too over-serious, too in love with its own "realism" (when the concept of Batman as a 'real' person in a 'real' world is too fucking silly for words) and way too overcomplicated, not to mention featuring a phoned-in Qui-Gon copy performance by Neeson, an unmenacing Scarecrow and the worst Alfred you could possibly imagine. What Morgan Freeman is doing in it I have no idea, and they took the collest Batmobile ever and shot the most boring car chase ever. Add a stupidly dumb evil plan (microwave ALL the water in the city? Vapourise it to carry fear gas? What the fuck?!?!?) and a limp ending (fist fight in a train? Wow. Gripping stuff. ZZzzzzz...) and a shit ending, garnish with criminal underuse of Gary Oldman, and you have a confusing mish-mash with a few golden moments in there (Bruce Wayne standing in the cave, surrounded by bats, controlling his fear, BECOMING Batman). It's far too over-rated, and I think you're right: the success of TDK depends on 2 things as far as WB is concerned:
(1) Heath Ledger's oerformance, Which arguably looks like the strongest thing in the movie.
(2) Us not realising that Two-Face is the other villain, which is one of the worst kept secrets of the 2008 summer season.
TDK will be mediocre at best, downright shit at worst. Classic? Never.
And I am also a Keaton as Batman kind of a guy. So sue me... -
Gotta agree on the anime - too much emphasis on "look how cool this is" animation - but the stories suckered me in. Loved the stories, not so much the animation.
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what you were trying to say then. I mistook your post as a passive aggressive fuck you. My apologies.
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I went in expecting it to be weird, and boy did it deliver. You will never find as many insider drug references in a family film ever again. I think the Bros. were respectful of the source material while they were able to expand on it. Not many people in the theater, so I suggest anyone remotely interested go check it out on the big screen asap. This movie is probably a little too far out to garner enough positive word of mouth, but I think the French will go nuts for it. In fifteen years this will will be regarded as a classic, right about the time all the five years old of today begin experimenting with hallucinagens.
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But I have no interest in seeing it.
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But even the kiddies aren't going to watch it...it's dumb. Kids don't know what it is anyway...but they'll watch it on DVD...and WB will get their $160 mill back in Blue Ray sales...it's a movie made for Blue Ray!
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because it just looks to vivid to pass up. It looks like a movie you would show with the volume off while playing loud music at a party or rave. I am literally going to but a PS3 JUST to own Speed Racer on Blu Ray (and I haven't even seen the film yet).
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Prequels. Sequels. who cares? I don't want to see either. I was making the point that after making 2 sequels, good biz sense says to make 3 pequels, not 3 more sequels. Jeezes. I didn't write the rules, but they are there. However u feel about Star Wars, box office numbers don't lie. You can't hav old geezers playing younger and younger characters. So what do u do? U take the brand name, grab young up-and-cummers and stick em in a "leading up to" crap story that no one in their right mind had in mind during the making of the original. Period. And my guess is that that what the Brothers W. will now consider. It worked for Luca$. And it will work again. They make money. A lot of money.
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If you don't get it you are retarded. And no, I don't have to justify that statement to a bunch of retards.
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out here regarding Racer X hilarious. Anyone looking for a “plot” twist in Speed Racer (a fact that has been known for at least 4 decades) will be sorely disappointed. You need to have a plot before you can have a twist. Now if I told you what happens in “The Happening”, then you might have a legitimate gripe. But I’ll keep that to myself…
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It was fun, although I think about a half-hour of bad dialogue could have been cut.
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Blue Ray? Sounds like you want to head to your nearest IMAX.
Gozu: That half hour was necessary for me to gather up my eyeballs -
came in a distant second to Iron Man for the weekend...
...I know that receipts aren't everything; but it made 30 million less than a film that opened last week.
It's the film-going public's revenge for Reloaded and Revolutions. -
May 11, 2008 11:30:08 PM CDT
Ummm.. there WAs no "spoiler" warning - just a "poile" warning
by acappellaman
I'm pissed, Capone. Probably the ONLY surprise for those of us only vaguely aware of Speed Racer is who Racer X was. Now we know. Thanks a lot. Yeah, there may have been a "poile" warning on the home page, but it would be nice to put it in your review too. Thanks a lot.
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May 12, 2008 12:17:27 AM CDT
Big Box Office Earnings = Many Asses in Seats = More Work...
by jimmy rabbitte
...for everybody involved.
Speed Racer shat the box office bed; Transformers didn't, and now there will be a Transformers 2. A film which is sure to contain a record number of dick and fart jokes; all while Bumblebee starts "pissing" on the neutered bad guys...
Speed Racer, on the other hand, should end up being a one and done film franchise. -
I'm scratching my head trying to figure out where Capone and the other critics are coming from. Have their hearts turned to stone? This movie is pure joy.
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to type in
Bold. -
As Opus said, the movie was fucking sick.
And wow Palpatine, 2 star stickers for you.
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i remember watching tintin as a kid i believe nick or some channel used to show it and when i heard the movie i went to check wikipedia to see if ti was the same thing, is this movie being made for only the foreign audience? i dont see it doing big at the theatres
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I have never seen so many "I hardly ever write into Ain't It Cool which is why you never heard of me before and if you google my screen name you will find nothing, but me and everyone I know all went together and every one of us enjoyed it more than any other experience we have ever had or ever will!" posts in my life. This talkback alone has more suspicious posts in it than I have seen TOTAL in all my years in talkbacks. I mean, hasn't it already been proven that any post using the phrase "Cool beans!" was not written by a real person?
I'm not saying that nobody could like this movie though, because to be honest I kind of liked it myself. Not like Harry did but I did appreciate its goofiness and sincerity and lack of ironic bullshit. Only the Wachowskis would make a SPEED RACER movie and base it around a completely heartfelt message about family businesses vs. corporations. And not have a bunch of winking and nudging at the audience. They are dedicated to the concept of a dude in a goofy helmet flipping around in a car and trying to improve the world by winning the race.
Basically, if you can get into the ridiculous style and tone of it then you will enjoy it, if not you will hate it and come up with weird images like "hatching a turd" as Capone did. So I would really not recommend it to most people. The Wachowski boys are testing out all kinds of crazy shit and alot of it doesn't work but if you can somehow tune into their crazy wavelength it is a fun and unique experience.
Also a ninja gets his pants pulled down in one part. That is the type of movie we are dealing with here. -
you mentioned this WAY up on the talkback but bud, you gotta look into those plagiarism claims. Do five minutes of research on that and you will feel like an ass for tossing that one around. You know what, forget it, I will give you your five minutes of research. The woman claims that she wrote an outline and sent it in response to a magazine ad from the Wachowski brothers - an ad she cannot find but that allegedly was run in 1981 when they were teenagers. Her manuscript apparently has a chosen one saving a postapocalyptic world, but it doesn't have the matrix in it. When she had the FBI investigate they said it sounded more like THE TERMINATOR, so then she sued THE TERMINATOR!
There's a radio interview with her available online where she claims that THE MATRIX, THE TERMINATOR, TERMINATOR 2 and TERMINATOR 3 are all based on her one manuscript from 1981. But not the MATRIX sequels, which she thinks suck. She also implies that DARK CITY and GHOST IN THE SHELL were "ripped off" from her.
In the interview she also claims that Harry Potter movies use "4,000 year old real magic" in them and that it's dangerous because "so many people got killed" when they used real magic to make THE EXORCIST and POLTERGEIST. When she tries to describe what her story is about she first talks about STAR WARS, then goes on a tangent about numerology and how there could not possibly be ten commandments because there's no such thing as the number ten.
On her websight she has an article which claims that the "original" release of THE MATRIX included a STAR WARS type scroll that "speaks of a nuclear war that happened in the year 2110AD, where humans were now used as fuel for the machines, like batteries." Of course we all saw the movie and know she imagined that shit, which is why no one has received the one million dollar reward she offered for finding that version of the movie. Also on her websight she has old pictures of herself with Janet Jackson and Lionel Richie.
What I'm saying is, fine, you hate the Wachowskis or whatever, but you might want to drop the plagiarism argument to be more credible.
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I see where you are coming form Spud, but compared to the first movie , which had the 'mindless action' and intelligence in equal amounts, the sequels really disappeared up their own arse mate, and I really think you should acknowledge that.
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Speed Racer is awesome. And anyone that doesn't like it, just hates cinema, tbh.
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And I think the movie I saw saturday afternoon barely qualifies. Not to harp AGAIN, but the Art Department's work is a piece of the movie, and should work in concert with actors, directors, writers, cinematographers, and even the best boy . . . it should never ever, ever, ever be the whole pie. Here's some equations: Awsome movie with vibrant color that added to the story = Pleasantville. Terrible movie with vibrant color that IS the story = Speed Racer. Awesome movie with kinetic camera work that added to the story = Fight Club. Terrible movie with kinetic camera work that IS the story = Speed Racer. Awesome movie that used inventive cartoon and live action elements to add to the story = Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Terrible movie that used inventive cartoon and live action elements AS the story = Speed Racer. . . And please, don't give me that "family love letter" or "coporate greed vs. family business" crap. That can be a great story, but Speec Racer used it as McGuffins to get Ninjas into the picture. Final equation. . . Speed Racer = lame.
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Does he save Zion or not?
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The box office returns prove it. Don't waste your time on this turd. After the Matrix sequels and this cinematic abortion the brothers no longer automatically get my money when they release a movie. They've turned into M. Night Shamalamadingdong, although, now that I think about it Shamalamadinging has three really good to great movies (The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable and Signs) and the brothers only have one great movie (the Matrix), one good movie (Bound). I loved V for Vendetta, but they were only producers so I can't really saw it was their film. Any, the brothes, much like Shamalamadingdong, no longer get the benefit of the doubt after their last couple of turdfests. I won't be watching anything either directs unless it gets solid reviews and does relatively well at the box office for the kind of film they are aiming for.
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I have zero interest in this as I never watched the cartoon growing up. And I just love blanket statements like "Speed Racer is awesome. And anyone that doesn't like it, just hates cinema." cool beans.
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Its an insane, hilarious, action-packed psychedlic pop-art explosion of awesomeness. Some of the exposition is clunky, but the cumulative effect really doesn't matter. SPEED RACER is a cinematic acid trip; a cult movie on a blockbuster budget; my fave movie of the year thus far; and a truly daring experiment. I can't wait for the dvd and/or bluray. Haters gotta hate, but I think they're missing out. They'll regret it later when they see it at home, go bonkers at the sheer insane beauty of it, and wish they had seen it IMAX when they had the chance.
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May 12, 2008 8:35:11 AM CDT
If Speed Racer is American Cinema's Anime test subject...
by ray garraty #47
...as USA Today claims, then it looks like we won't be seeing that many anime adaptations. As Captboulder said, the studios are going to shy away from expensive anime adaptations in the future if they feel an anime project can't justify its existence. Who would believe that the failure of Speed Racer would kill the anime film movement? I hope Ghost in the Shell will even get made, at this point.
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It would be adult, and it would be Matrix-y, and it would have a hot chick cyborg who kicks the crap out of people. The whole anime aesthetic has already entered the pop-conciousness, just not on the level that SPEED RACER pushed it. Its not just influenced by anime, it IS an anime. I don't know if they'll through the whole anime thing out just yet based on SPEED RACER's disappointing returns. But yeah, I agree studios and the holders-of-the-purse strings will definitely be more wary, less likely to shell out the $100mil+.
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Good point. The other thing, though, is that you have to consider that you and I are the type of moviegoers who would be interested in "a hot chick cyborg who kicks the crap out of people." I mean, we're posting on an AICN message board. But would GITC make enough money to be considered a "success?" It sort of gibes with the same feeling I have about "Watchmen." It is a superpopular work among people who share my interests, but I wonder if I am overestmating "Joe Moviegoer's" interest in the project...especially after a glut of "superhuman" movies that are coming out now (Iron Man, Hancock, Hulk).
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You know Ray, I think that might tank out too. For people like us it could be really great, maybe a cult hit, but mass audiences? Especially after the glut of superhero movies? Maybe not so much. Although, IRON MAN wasn't exactly a popular character outside of the geekosphere, and now he's like the most popular cape, er armor, in town. I guess time will tell. I think the next big disappointment is going to be THE SPIRIT. NOBODY knows what thats all about. Shoulda just done SIN CITY 2.
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besides me of course. I read an editorial in the local entertainment rag about how they demanded that all nightclub "ironic dancing" stop. So only people who really are feeling it should step up to that floor. This editorial made me happy just as your rant above did. people, go if it looks good, cause if you like monkeys antics and colors, it's a no brainer.
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I tryed yer gamewith the traler and I'mmm toeltallyyyy wqasted nnnnnnow. dudee io gioota go find some wyomennnnnnnnnn.
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The film now belongs to the fans instead of the mainstream morons. You can have your Iron Man with his boring Iron Monger. Speed Racer now belongs to cinephiles who will carry this film for many years to come.
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May 12, 2008 9:38:06 AM CDT
IRON MAN was a good movie. I spent the week telling friends
by mace tofu
it was good (I didn't bring up Speed Racer because I hadn't seen it yet) I'm sure that was the same all over as IM was # 1 again by a wide margin. So when people went out to the movies it was a easy choice, Go see a movie everyone says is good or go see a movie 75% of critics say is just awful. Guys taking a date out do you go see the comedy about vegas and sex or the "cartoon movie" with the monkey? I'm a sucker for monkeys but I think most people may be embarrassed to go. Vern may be right about the plants here.
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Just smoked a big joint in my car before the show, went in, and had my mind blown by the insane pop-art explosion of awesome. I even got a tear in my eye a couple of times. Thats right, I'm that corny.
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to see Iron Man!
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Tony Stark has a life changing experience what does he do? Comes back and starts making jokes about hamburgers. Oh yeal. Real moving. I totally believe THAT transformation.
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May 12, 2008 9:52:23 AM CDT
Vern Re: Also a ninja gets his pants pulled down in one part.
by mace tofu
The original had silly things happen to some of the villains so getting panted is within the Speed Racer canon... really anything goes in SR. When I was a kid the one thing we loved in SR was the CANDY payoffs. I'd kill for some candy back then. I better bring a bag of skittles just in case (is candy a running joke in the movie?)...
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I'm gonna smoke two joints when i go back.
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We saw it yesterday as a matinee. There were 3 of us and the reviews ranged from "it could have been worse" to "I liked it". None of us loved it or can really recommend it. I thought it was sweet, which is probably not what they're were going for. We joked about needing Ritalin or a Valium because of the visual overload some people described. None of us had any issues with that. I didn't think it was "overhwelming" in any sense of the word. Busy and colorful, but no more so than some video games. I'd give it a 6 out of 10.
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Spritle and Chim Chim go on a mini-mission to raid the candy vault and shortly thereafter appear to have some kind of candy overdose freakout, steal a vehicle, and start running people down in this weird segway speedway. Seriously!
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I took my 4 year old nephew to see this over the weekend because he too saw the commercials and has been dying to se eit. He's at an age where he's really into cars, as well as fire engines and trains, and I thought this was right up his alley. I was right. He loved it. It was fast, it was exciting and it was fun for kids. Speed's little brother Sprital and his pet chimp Chim-Chim cracked up every kid in the theater and I have to admit they were pretty funny. The scene where Sprital is offered all the candy he wants made every kid laugh hard. It was creative in ways I would never think of and interesting for both kids and adults. There was a nice little message about family and integrity too. The portrayal of young Speed and his love of racing and his older brother was excellent. One of the besr quiet little parts was when lil' Speed gets picked up from school by his big brother, in the Mach 5! What kid wouldn't love that? I don't get why people are saying there is no heart in this movie. It has plenty.I ended up liking the Racer family more in this movie than I ever did in the cartoon. While there are a couple of fight scenes they are more actiony than violent or vicious. Again, Sprital and Chim-Chim leaven the fights with humor.I don't know why the critics have their undies in a bunch over this one. It's plenty entertaining. Maybe someone should post a review from a 5 year old.
If you're interested in this one at all you really have to see it in the biggest loudest theater possible. Any less and you're doing yourself a disservice. It was definitely made to be seen on a big screen.
One more thing, this was my nephew's first experience seeing a movie in a theater. He was excited all week about seeing it and loved it all. He loved buying the popcorn, he loved handing the ticket to the usher(like a big kid), he picked up on the excitement of sitting in a huge auditorium with a big murmuring crowd. He loved the movie and he liked talking about it afterwards. And he was a well behaved little guy,especially after I explained to him that we can't talk during the movie because other people might not be able to hear the movie. He'd never seen previews before. There is no way I can remember what that was like. When I explained what they were he got excited about seeing The Hulk.I think he just might be a movie lover, or maybe I'm just a doddering old uncle.
Anyhow, check out this movie for no other reason than you get to see a chimp de-pants a ninja. -
"...who will carry this film for many years to come."Kinda like an STD?
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...'nuf said. Wachowski's swung and missed.
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As someone that plays video games (incl. racing games,) watches anime, had many hot wheels as a kid, but had never seen a Speed Racer episode before this, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Sure it wasn't perfect due to a bit too much editing at points and the Spritle/Chim-Chim spazz out scene, but it told a good (and fitting) story with great acting. The emotional scenes were really great, I especially liked the scene at the beginning where Rex takes little Speed to the track. The sunset lighting made this actually look very believable and there was no crazy editing to cut into the connection being made between Speed and his brother. Why is it so hard to believe that people find the negative reviews to be unfair and want to defend a movie they enjoyed.
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I just loved the literal interpretation of this idea. Hes literally ghosting his brother while racing on the track. That was the second I was on board with this flick. Just wonderful. Sometimes subtlety is not the way to go. And if haters wanna use the box office receipts as some sort of way to justify their hatred lets not start listing all the great movies that didn't make shit at the box office.
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How do you think movies like Blade Runner got the recognition they deserved? Cause movie geeks kept talking about it long after the critics stopped hating on it.
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Got two words for your Ghost in the Shell movie being a hit idea...Æon Flux.
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Hating Speed Racer, is going to wish that it had been a success once Dragonball Z comes out. Also anyone saying that the Brothers W are going to get screwed after doing this are wrong. These guys made a shit ton of money for the WB with the Matrices and still probably are. So they will probably be allowed to do whatever they want for awhile. Which is good because I'd much rather see the W's interpretation of something or new movie then say, Underdog/Alvin and the Chipmunks/Garfield/Bayformers/Fantastic 4. These guys are not the next Russell Mulcahy (who made huge flop after huge flop, with no huge hit to back him up), they've got 3 huge hits and produced one decent sized hit with a pretty big cult following. I don't think they'll be subjected to direct TV shows for a while, they may start producing them though?
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wtf man? who killed the child in you, sir?
you are taking this movie waaaaaaaaayyy too seriously! review it for what it is: a fucking kids movie!
i write a weekly film review column for local publications where i live so even though i absolutely dreaded going to see this flick, i HAD to. i was very pleasantly surprised. i went in with the worst expectations possible and came out smiling.
i mean, would you not have gone absolutely apeshit if you saw this movie at eleven years old? it was funny and even more so imaginitive.
i wasn't familiar with the cartoon going in other than it was about a kid named speed racer who drove a car called the mach 5. but by all accounts, it was one of the most wiley and fucked up cartoons ever produced. was it merrick that said it "barely survived the translation process?" anyway, somebody on AICN said that. the point is, i know i have no grounds to say this (having not been into the show growing up), but it seems to me that the wachowskis embraced the fucked up nature of the cartoon and applied it to their interpretation.
i also felt the design of the film was an incredibly direct and accurate transitioning of anime to live-action. rather than doing the expected and try to realize the show into tangible form, the wachowskis produced a highly fantisized mesh of real life and animation, which works! well, for me at least.
and the racing sequences were great! i mean, say what you will about how they looked in terms of the cartoonish style. i'm saying the way the sequences were written was fantastic. they were well-tailored and completely eye-popping.
i say give the kids more of this stuff. anything to get them away from bullshit nickelodeon pre-teen romance sitcoms.
i'm surprised at you capone. if only because i like your reviews and rarely disagree. -
please dont tell me you didn't like roger allam in this flick! he was fucking awesome. and it's a kids' film: there are good guys and bad guys and rarely do you not know who is who. that was a lame criticism about them revealing allam as the villain too early...
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Thanks, I didn't know about that one. I don't get it though, at least from that plot summary it doesn't sound like they have very much in common. Do you think there's any truth to it?
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I just saw this movie. I loved it. I went in expecting nothing but to have a good time. I did. Now it's my expectation that the majority of you were probably were born in the post Star Wars era the way you prattle on about things. Thats your first problem. Speed Racer aka: Mach Go Go Go is a pure product of the 1960's. Its creator Tatsuo Yoshida was inspired by the films Viva Las Vegas and Goldfinger. It shows. I don't expect some of you to be able to appreciate those movies as well, cuz day be noz Digital FX or rap music in them. In the mid to late 1960's, Hot Wheels and SSTs hit the market. The Ford Mustang was the king of the road. Cars were big with kids. This show hit in the late 60's, every kid ate it up at 4pm after school. Thats back when there were only 3 major networks on TV, no HD TV, no DVDs, No vidtape recorders, no CDs, NO INTERNET. You got your ass outside and played and used something called an imagination. Now back to the film. It's slick, colorful, the characters and the actors who played them work. It's a adaptation of a 1966 CARTOON SHOW from Japan. What the fuck do you want? Fucking William Shakespeare? All you snots need to get a grip. Movies are all about ESCAPING the problems of the outside world for a few hours. This movies does that. Quit trying to interject all of reality into stuff like this. If anything all it does is ruin your ability to get away from it all for a few hrs.
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the editing was fucking AMAZING...okay, that is all.
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amen, sir. wtf is with these negative nancies?
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The original Speed Racer does not hold up well after all these years.. Much like the original Battlestar Galactica, it's hokey, badly written and the animation/FX are horrendous... But something about those old "classic" shows draws out of us, a fond, nostalgic response...
The new Speed Racer did the same for me...
Visually stimulating and exciting, the movie drew upon what was good from the original and improved it. The characters are true to counterparts from the original.. The show wasn't about Speed, it revolved around him through his family and of course, the racing.
The genre of this type of movie is nothing new.. Protege racer (football player, golfer, soccer stud, etc) gets his first real taste of victory and then gets wooed by the big time baddy conglomerate.. Sure.. Nothing new.. But this time, the protege makes the right choice right off the bat and suffers the consequences..
The characters are played as perfect matches to their cartoon counterparts.. Spritle and Chim Chim, just like the cartoon, are given the lion's share of the comedy relief.. Sparky, I thought, was underutilized, but not the point where it was disappointing..
The races also echoed the cartoon, and the suspension of disbelief level is necessarily high.. But that's ok.. This isn't supposed to be a believeable movie.. It's supposed to be a fun return to a childhood favorite..
My 7 year old son loved the movie, stock market subplots and all.. Of course, he knew who the bad guy was off the bat.. Anyone who didn't get that right away needs to have their head examined..
My only complaint (and maybe this shouldn't be a complaint) is that we didn't get enough Trixie eye candy.. If you're going to sex Christina Ricci up, don't tease us with leg and bust shots that are too quick.. Give the fan boys a bit more to deal with.. Then again, as a kid's movie (which is really what this is), perhaps the teases were enough...
All in all, this movie achieved what it set out to do.. I was very satisfied with my money spent and will enjoy seeing it again, either in the theater or on DVD.. The Blu-Ray of this will look AMAZING... -
They get a C for the overall product. The look of the film eventually grew on me and there were point in the film where it all became very compelling. However the story was dull and borderline incomprehensible, I had a hard time making heads or tails of this one so I can't comment as to how the intended will understand it, and the races were poorly set up. Don't get me wrong, they looked amazing and I got a kick out of the little gadgets but they did nothing to set up the tracks. There was no tension in these things. All I saw was a videogame I wouldn't mind playing. The Wachowski's did put a little more heart in this one though, I'm not used to their work being that emotional so at least there was some growth this time. At the very least this is an interesting failure.
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I put paragraphs in my review.. Honest I did...
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type p inside of brackets at the end of a sentence where you want a break then double space to the next paragraph and start using that code at the end of the line will give you the breaks you seek...
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the less than and greater that signs
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the less than and greater than signs is what i meant. p in between a less than and greater than sign at the end of a paragraph will give you breaks. test it out.
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Theres nothing wrong with the original Battlestar Galatica either. 1978 TV...get it? 30 years ago. Don't knock it.
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Do any of you haters even remember when you used to go to the movies to kick back and be entertained?
How can you go to a movie with ninjas and monkeys...where the lead character is named "Speed Racer" and blast it for not being a masterpiece?
I saw this with my wife and 3 other friends on IMAX and we all agreed that it was completely entertaining and quite fun to watch. In the end this is a family movie with plenty of eye candy/humor for any age. Will I watch it for years to come? Prob not...but is that really the point?
In my opinion...a lot of you guys have forgotten why you fell in love with movies to begin with.
Anyone who uses box office numbers to back their argument on whether a movie is good or bad is not a true fan of the art... -
very true. but i think you do need to keep in mind the target audience and what aspects of the film are important to THEM...
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I liked BSG back in the day, but I find it dated now (campy).. That's all.. It wasn't a hate thing...
Thekylegassproject - Thanks for the tip. I'm mostly a lurker rather than a poster (as is now obvious)... -
May 12, 2008 2:20:57 PM CDT
there is only one studio that understands how to make kids films
by bacci40
and that is pixar...used to be disney, but pixar usurped the crown...a good kids film works on many levels, and people of all ages are able to get something different from the movie...it doesn talk down to the kids, and it doesnt make the adults who watch it feel like morons...speed racer may have kids as the target audience, but reading reviews left by parents, it seems most kids walked out of the movie, scratching their heads...pixar rules...wachowkis and silver blow...and that is that
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I think the Target audience was whole families. Trying to introduce a hyper kinetic film to adults to show them that not all kids fare is crap like Pokemon and Yughio. Though its like trying to tell old person what a DVD is, people are just stuck in their ways. And parents will buy their kids the toys and probably the DVD, but they won't sit in the theater for this because it looks too much/kiddie for them, they'll wait for Narnia next week because that looks more mature.
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no..the child inside him is not dead...but the moron in all of you is alive and well
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I stated when the first Speed pictures came out this was going to be a FLOPPER. Can Hollywood put anything out that isn't a remake, or based on prior writing? Thank goodness we there is George Lucas :)
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As someone who grew up watching Speed Racer, I liked it. Was it great? No. Was it crap. Nope.
That being said, here are things I did not like.
The Mach 6. The Mach 5 was part of the major appeal of the series. The Mach 6 just seems like an attempt to start a toy line.
And while we are on this point, why did the Mach 5 Cross Country Rally get the B team of animators. The quality is nothing like the mach 6 segments?
A lesson in economic theory and market fluxuations by Royalton. The kids in the audience just go glassy-eyed for 10 minutes during this part.
Too Damm long. Family movies should run no longer than about 105 minutes. Edit your work, people. I don't care if you made The Matrix. Edit your work.
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I'm stealing that last post for use later. It made my day. Thanks
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Most of whom didn't even see the movie. I mean, okay, if you did, and you didn't like it, or even hated it, fine. Good for you. But is there some weird, sad, joy you get from the fact that it wasn't a hit? I couldn't possibly care less if it made a mint or not, I totally loved it, am gonna see it at IMAX again, and can't wait for the dvd. Seems like there are alot of people like me who feel the same way -- not enough to make it a hit like IRON MAN (which I also loved), but enough to ensure its cult status. So like somebody said above, we, the people who loved it, still win, because we loved the movie and enjoyed ourselves. When is the last time you felt that kind of blissful nostalgic joy? When is the last time you even cracked a smile?
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I had a smile walking out of this picture. And what I like best about this picture above everything else. It showed the strength of family. And thats a good thing.
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It really boils down to these 2 critical moments in each film: Chim-Chim flings poo at Roger Allam, while Bumblebee urinates on a pantsless John Turturro. Sophisticated genius. Truly.
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Wow. If this movie was the fun romp that some are saying it is, then fire the marketing department right now, cause they did not generate any buzz at all for the film. If it was overlong and super kinetic, then fire the editors cause this shoulda been 100 minutes max. Ah, heck, fire them both.
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This could be a career-ender for him. Reported on deadline hollywood daily...
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I'm picky about movies, but I thought Speed Racer was just great. It was the most fun I've had at the movies in a long time. (IMAX front row FTW baby!!!) The movie never took a mocking or winking tone. There was some serious affection in the filmmaking. The source material is utter shit, but I thought the film rocked magnificently. It even brought a tear to my eye a couple of times. I thought it had tons of heart right from the beginning. Young Speed sitting in class, doodling instead of working, lost in his daydreams, making the sound of a cheering crowd, just brilliant. Creativity and imagination were bursting out of †he seams. I thought it was very confidently edited, and the casting director deserves some sort of award. Everyone from the leads down to the craggy faced henchmen were perfect for their roles. I thought it was a brilliant, beautiful, and affecting misunderstood psychedelic pop art masterpiece. I'm glad I'm among the select few who were able to enjoy the ride, and I truly feel sorry for those who didn't/couldn't. The haters can go back to their Merchant/Ivory films!
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Too much pointless story. Just follow your own rules 1. Get in your car 2. Drive!
I think this is probably better as a video game than a movie. The racing should have been longer and focus on other drivers also. -
Now the Box Office states it made pnly 18.6 MIL. And it is number 3, not 2. Quite a difference.
Man this really is a DUD. -
Now the Box Office states it made only 18.6 MIL. And it is number 3, not 2. Quite a difference.
Man this really is a DUD. -
Thought the movie was awesome, liked it better than Iron Man. It seemed as much like a live action anime as you can get. Totally made me want to seek out the source material. and Christina Ricci is the perfect woman in this movie
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in seeing this not do well is simple: It uses up too many resources. How many good children's movies could have been made with that money? Instead, a big budget flop with all the associated marketing baggage. All STYLE, no SUBSTANCE. . . it never works as cinema, it never works as art, an it certainly never works as a kids movie.
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get excited by Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Turbo and Air Bud: Golden Receiver. Not a great endorsement . . . considering that those movies are made for peanuts, and frankly have a better story.
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May 12, 2008 11:11:51 PM CDT
I don't get why there's so much negativity about this flick...
by theraven13
This was great. It was cheesy at times, but who couldn't benefit from a small dose of cheese once in a while? I saw this movie twice this weekend- it was great? It had all the crashes ( don't know why some say it didn't) without the blood and gore.
Whether a movie makes money or not doesn't determine that it's a good movie. Do we remember Spiderman 3? That movie brought in boatloads of cash, but it sucks monkey balls. This movie is a sleeper hit. It will make money over time. -
I didn't watch much of it, but who can/wants to see a "kids" movie that is two and a half hours long (including trailers)?Woulda had a bigger take if it was a 90 minute movie.
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**spoilers**
1. Speed Racer may not be a critical or financial success right now, but aesthetically, it succeeds with flying colors. Literally.
2. The Wachowski Nutjobs took the Speed Racer concept and mixed it with Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life","TRON", Brian DePalma/Martin Scorsese film trickery, Little Orphan Annie, Japanime, Bruce Lee movies, Tex Avery cartoons, state of the art CGI, and special sauce to create the ultra-kinetic wacky insane heartfelt goodness currently playing at a theater near you.
2. It experiments cinematically. It takes risks. It dares to boldly go where no movie has gone before. "Child-drawn" animation and b&w newsreel footage in the same movie? Crazy! And the scene transitions make the ones in Ang Lee's Hulk look like baby food. Does the experimentation work? For me, it does. I like how the film didn't let me settle into a particular gear, but kept shifting on me, keeping me off balance. I wasn't sure if I was going to get Speed Racer seriousness or Spritle/ChimChim goofiness from one moment to the next! Way to take the viewer out of his/her comfort zone and keep them on the edge whether they like it or not!
3. Beneath the digital slickness, the flash, the dazzle, the virtual hyperreality, Speed Racer does indeed have heart, that is, emotional depth. You do feel the love the Racer family members have for each other, the regret of Racer X. Admittedly, I did lose a little emotional connection during the longer expositories at the film's beginning, but the ending made up for that in spades.
4. The ending. I have probably just seen the nearest cinematic equivalent to one's first orgasm ever put to screen. In fact, I wouldn't be suprised if that's how the Wachowski Nutjobs directed the digital animators and the editors to create this amazing sequence. Orgasm. Not just any orgasm, but the first one. Like a virgin. At the end of it, I was nearly as breathless as Speed.
5. Speed Racer is a trilogy rolled into one film. Actually, the film is two films. Like back to back episodes of the old cartoon comprising a larger story arc. The first one ends with the Casa Cristo race. The second one begins with the Grand Prix. I think the Wachowskis might have helped their cause if they even literally divided the film into these two episodes, just like the old cartoon.
6. "Get that weak shit off my track!" What a great line. Much better than "I drink your milkshake."
7. A great cast. The kid playing Spritle even looks like John Goodman. Emile brings the intensity. Matt Fox brings the coolness. Susan Sarandon brings the MILFness. Ms. Ricci brings the same weird hotness she's brought to everything I've seen her in since Buffalo 66. Oh, and ChimChim was great, too. Can't go wrong cinematically with monkeys.
8. Nice fitting musical score that incorporates the original theme song brilliantly.
9. The ending credit sequence is maybe the best ending credit sequence ever.
I'm not going to call "Speed Racer" cinematic genius. How about cinematic brilliance? And how brilliant it is...and colorful... -
**no spoilers** 1. The acting. Except for Matthew Fox (who gives a good performance) the acting is horrible especially Emile's "performance".2. The race sequences. I understand that this movie is based on a cartoon. But when you shoot (or better: digitally create) race sequences as overblown like these then all you achieve is total boredom. Seriously, the race sequences suck ass.3. The camera. Despite the unique, colourful look of the whole flick, the camera work is heavily flawed. At times the weird angles and pans - especially during the races - destroy all the pace and speed they try to built. And no, those scene transitions are not imaginative. Just copied.4. Fat kid & chimp. Come on, guys! This isn't the 80s anymore when lame jokes with monkey/chimp/orangutan actors where already getting stale! And now we get a friggin chimp combined with a hilariously unfunny little fat kid? This aint funny. This is just fucking pathetic.5. The overall flick is so completely boring and annoyingly infantile that you just don't care what's going on.
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May 13, 2008 9:36:21 AM CDT
I must of missed that in the PG "family friendly" film, but...
by mr incredible
when did Speed Racer say in the film "Get that weak shit off my track!"?
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Shows Iron Man coming in at another solid 1st, but I was surprised that Speed Racer came in **3rd** behind "Stays in Vegas". Holy Hell.
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...to anything longer than 90 minutes is the most idiotic shit I've ever heard - right up there with "kids won't read subtitles". It's not true and it has little-to-no basis in reality, but with the right conditioning we can definitely make it into a self-fulfilling prophecy. That's just what we need: let's ACCELERATE the dumbing-down of American children. Let's be so insistent that they can't park their asses in one place for 2.5 hours that we make them unable to do so by removing any expectation that it is normal and acceptable to do so. The devaluing and underestimation of the intellectual capacity of our children is an incredibly depressing and self-destructive thing. They might not have the book learnin', but for the most part their intellectual curiosity blows most of you so-called adults completely out of the water. I weep for this country that I love, and used to think I knew.
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their own desires as consumers and avoid a slickly marketed sack of crap, with the assocaited toys, lunchboxes, DVDs, and Happy Meals that go with it, designed specifically to psychologically alter them from creative indivudual minds into a cold, predictable "group-think" demographic. Let's be so insistent that they can't avoid their own avarice, and we make them unable to do so by removing any expecation that it is normal and acceptable to do so. The devaluing and underestimation of the intellectual capacity of our children is an incredibly depressing and self-destructive thing. They might not have the book learnin', but for the most part their intellectual curiosity blows most of you so-called adults completely out of the water. I weep for this SHALLOW country that I love, and use to think I knew.
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Not having seen it, this film may indeed be overlong. Knowing the Wachowskis (however you spell it) I rather suspect that it is. None of this has anything to do with grossly underestimating our children's mental capacity and patience. If you're a parent and you really believe children can't pay attention to something longer than 90 minutes or so - perhaps it's a question of the quality of the parenting, rather than the inherent nature of the child. But sadly, most parents these days would refuse to even consider such things. THE RIGHT STUFF held the attention of myself and every other kid I knew who saw it on HBO back in the day, even accounting for scenes where we were too young to understand what was going on (whistles theme from BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI). It didn't seem unusual to any of us, or any of our parents either. What my generation has done to our kids is a goddamn shame.
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THE RIGHT STUFF = longer than fuck.
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It might actually have been The Battle Hymn Of The Republic. Why don't I OWN that movie, anyway? Anyone know for sure what's being whistled when everyone's in the bathroom in that scene?
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Speed says it under his breath directed at rival driver Cannonball Taylor during the Grand Prix finale race.
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Okay, it's not to say that if Speed Racer didn't thrill you or speak to you on any level that you're a douche.
SR worked on so many more levels than, say, Iron Man, but even thats unfair, because they really are two different kinds of movies. That is to say, IM is a reg'lar movie, while SR really does push the boundaries of what a visual narrative can do.
And it does it so well. In the intro alone, we have almost 20 minutes to CRAM in tons of narrative, do it in a visually complex way and yet it completely works.
Why it didn't work for some, I don;t know.
It had a solid, if kiddy, story. Great fx, and it took you to a genuinely new and unique place. What the fuck else do you want from a movie.
How ironic that a movie about artistry versus corporate interest lost out to a movie that is clearly pushed more as a corporate icon. -
I know it, youre caught, fess up.
Emil Hirsch and the entire family did a great jopb, bringing genuine grounded emotion to cartoon characters. And fuck you, that kid that played Spridle was a fucking lil' genius.
That just shows you didnt see it, youre talking out of your ass. Fuck yer mom. -
Man, I must have been caught up in the car-fu and missed it. If they were going for a PG-13 feel, here's a line they should have used:
SPEED rejecting Royalton's offer and walking out the door saying: " You don't know shit about racing...or pancakes, either!"
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