Hey, everyone. “Moriarty” here.

One of the best moments of the press weekend for SPEED RACER was sitting down opposite Joel Silver, my first interview with this producing legend.

I’ve loved as many of his films as I’ve hated over the years, but I’ve always loved Silver himself as a sort of giant personality, a kind we don’t often see in producers. I’m fond of his cameo in ROGER RABBIT, for example, where he ribs his own press persona with his performance as the director yelling at poor Roger. I’ve had many meetings as a writer on projects at his company over the years, and they’ve even taken me into the studio a few times, but it’s never worked out for me to get hired. But in all that time, I’ve never really spent any significant time talking to Silver directly, and so it was worth the drive to Long Beach on a Friday afternoon through crazy traffic to where Warner was using the Long Beach Grand Prix as the backdrop for their junket. I had twenty minutes with Silver all to myself in one of the many rooms Warner Bros. had commandeered at the conference center.

As we walked in, we talked about the screening the night before, where my son had gone completely apeshit for it. On the way out of the theater, Toshi was telling everyone how much he liked it, including Silver, who was standing by one of the doors. “I like the movie,” he said as he walked by Silver, and the producer beamed down at him.

“Thank God,” he replied as Toshi just kept walking.

I told Silver how much his reaction had made me laugh, and he told me he really was pleased to hear such an obviously unfiltered reaction from exactly his target audience.

Moriarty: It’s crazy. This is the first time he’s been hyped for a film, where he’s nuts about the trailer and asks about it every day. This and WALL-E this summer are pretty much all he’s about right now. It was strange, though... he knows the characters now, so when he ran into [John] Goodman at the end of it, he just sort of casually said, “Hey, Pops,” and kept going. He just accepted him as real.

At what point did the Wachowskis know they were going to make this as a family film?

Joel Silver: Well, it came from them. They knew I had SPEED RACER, and we’d talked about it in the past when we’d get together and I... I hadn’t looked at it in the while, and after we finished V, they called me one day and they said, uh, “What are you doing with that SPEED RACER thing?”

I said, “I’m struggling.”

And they said, “Well, weeeeeee have an idea.”

“Go for it.” And the studio put up the dough and they went and made this five minute pre-viz of... it’s really one race, and it’s funny, because there are actually... we were discussing this a few days ago, but there are some shots that were in that pre-viz that made it through to the finished movie.

Moriarty: Really?

Joel Silver: Not exactly the way they were, but those precise ideas got through. So they sat with Dan Glass and John Gaeta, our team, and they created this pre-viz, which was, you know, kind of a composite of all the races. It was just to show me and the studio what they wanted to do.

So it took about six or eight weeks, and I remember, it was December of ’06, and we showed it to everybody in a screening room on the lot, and the lights go down and the projector goes on and they watch this... race. And the lights go up, and... you know... they were kind of... there was... they were perplexed. And they said, you know, “Is it ROGER RABBIT? I mean, what is this? Is it live-action? Is it animation?”

And the Wachowskis said, “Well, the idea is that it’s live-action anime.”

“And that’s... what, exactly?” (laughs) So they explained what their intention was, and the studio said, “Let’s go for it.”

Moriarty: Well, it is one of the most aggressively visual films I’ve seen in a long time, and about ten minutes in, my wife actually leaned over and said, “Is the whole thing going to look like this?” By the end of it, though, she found it all quite beautiful. I think it does take a few moments to sort of adjust to that world...

Joel: That’s what happened when the first trailer came out. I mean, people... I mean, I was happy that Harry really got it and loved it. I think [he] referred to the clip as “chocolate-covered pussy juice,” I think he said. Which, by the way, I was happy to see that he said he liked that... but there were a lot of people that didn’t quite get it. “What is it exactly?” You know, what do you need? A couple of journalists I showed it to, they... which, by the way, they were very... one guy said, “Well, is CGI BETTER? What is wrong with the old kind of movie making?” These are older journalists, and it is hard to shake them of the golden age of CHINA SEAS, but... CHINA SEAS, by the way, if you look at that movie, which is a Clark Gable movie, they shot all the wide shots on the back lot, but they went back into the studio to shoot the close-ups. So they took... they took still... you know, er, rear projection, and they took close-ups on the stage. They could’ve shot the wide shots and the close-ups together [on location], but they felt they had more control on the close-ups on a soundstage.

Moriarty: I don’t think it’s necessarily that... it’s not that you’ve broken a big technical barrier, that no one’s shot a movie with similar ideas. I mean, this does go back to the golden age of Hollywood where you created the whole world, and I think that is what I really respect about it. It is a world that from the beginning to the end is very persuasive, and I like that it’s sort of an alternate history, and you can see where it diverges from the real world. Um, I get the sense that they laid out a real history, like they know exactly where the steps were where they got from our reality to this one.

Joel: Sure.

Moriarty: Um, but I think its very childlike in the way it treats the racing and the physics. It’s not that it disregards this reality, it just sets its own sort of rules. Um... was it a... was it difficult imparting that to the cast? Sort of what the tone of this world is gonna be because that’s... it is sort of a leap for them.

Joel: Well, I mean, they... they... film makers like Larry and Andy, they know what they want. They go into the, the, into the day knowing what they want. I watched them in the visual effects review and they’re, they have seen in their heads what they want it to look like, and they are directing the visual effects guy to give them what they want, so they knew the tone and they were really fans of the show. They liked the show...

Moriarty: Oh, it’s obvious, too, it’s obvious that they must really love the characters and the world and...

Joel: ... and they wanted to keep the tone, and the fun, and the aesthetic of the show and... and they wanted to make, again, a family movie. It is important that you like it as your son likes it. They want families to go together and love this picture. There are things in there that maybe older kids may not LOVE, but little kids would love, and things that little kids may not get and the older people would get, so they, it’s kind of a mixture like that... but they kept the tone the way they wanted it, and that’s... and, and, and when they cast the movie they got the people they felt would give them what they wanted. I mean they, they saw every young hot actor in Hollywood and they really felt that Emile was the guy. They felt that he was Speed. He, he was honest, and forthright, and ambitious, and he was... he had the wholesome quality that Speed had to have. And they felt, they felt that Christina looked like Trixie so... and and and John Goodman, and Susan Sarandon, and Matthew... and they really wanted them all to be the characters and they wanted them all to watch the show and see what it was...

Moriarty: I think that Matthew does some of his best work ever in this. He really... he is... the way he buys the reality of it, it reminds me of the best moments in THE MATRIX, where you get the sense that those actors love that world, and they love being in it, and they love playing with the toys of it.

Joel: They commit. They commit to it.

Moriarty: Matthew gives... I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him so loose and funny... I felt...

Joel: He worked on the voice a lot. He wanted to get Racer X’s voice, ya know? He wanted that authority that Racer X has, and he did it.

Moriarty: The film makers that I always enjoy you working with are the guys who I think you... you are the only person who protects them the right way, and it seems like there are some film makers that you really click with. I think the Wachowskis, you obviously have a great rapport with them. Um, I think Shane Black, the fact that now as a director you’re really... you’ve enabled him to take that step... ummm...

Joel: He is writing another script right now for us.

Moriarty: ... his voice finally is, that’s the Shane Black that we’ve loved on the page, and I finally felt like I saw that in a film. As a producer, is that your role when you find an artist that you love, to really support their voice and their vision?

Joel: Well my job as a producer is always to support the director, y’know? I, it’s up to the director to make the movie, he has to make the movie. I mean, I like to be involved in these kind of giant movies that allow me to make a contribution, allows me to be involved in the process and, you know, do what I do, which is keep it all going. And there are problems on a movie every day, and my job is to kind of solve those problems, but I serve the director, and I have to get ‘em what he needs and get everybody what they want and support their vision and, and, you know, I work with directors I believe can benefit from that relationship. And, uh, those have been the most successful movies that I’ve done.

And Larry and Andy, we’ve been together almost... for over 10 years now and I mean, I, I am so proud every day I work with them. I mean, they, they are consummate professionals. They understand... I mean, I sit with them and watch these effects reviews, and I don’t know how they understand the systems, the process so well... they understand every aspect of color correcting, and density and focus, and focal length, and filters, and they understand everything, and they know what they want. You work with a lot of directors that DON’T understand that process at all, who look for help...

Moriarty: Right, or they will lean on a great supporting team or a tech team...

Joel: But, but these guys are as good as it gets.

Moriarty: I think what surprised me most is that they are funny...

Joel: ... very funny...

Moriarty: ... and we’ve never seen funny from them, really, in their films before. Uh, but some of the best stuff in this movie is... well, you guys found the right kid... I think Paulie Litt is the kid.

Joel: I mean, he is great, he is what Spritle was, y’know? And we’re concerned if we do make more of them, that... you know... I don’t know if you can find a kid who is the same age, and we have to move quickly if we want to see Paulie again...

Moriarty: Yeah, I know... but that was, I think, that’s the area that normally, like... I think that there are some people who are going to be too cynical for the film. I think the film is really sincere and it’s very sweet and, um... it seems like, especially right now, almost all of pop culture is kind of sarcastic and snarky, and, um, how conscious were the Wachowskis that they were making something that kind of stands apart from that?

Joel: They wanted to make a family movie. They wanted a movie that everybody would enjoy, and, look, we...

Moriarty: Even, like, Dreamworks... they make everything kind of sarcastic and one step removed, and make everything into a “hip” movie for kids...

Joel: ... but, but Pixar movies... THE INCREDIBLES and RATATOUILLE... those movies aren’t that snarky and, like, they... I mean, you know, it was no mistake that Michael Giacchino came onboard...

Moriarty: ... awwww, his work is fantastic.

Joel: I mean, it’s genius, and someone told me the whole score is online now...

Moriarty: It is. Yesterday, it premiered...

Joel: People are, like, loving it. I don’t know why they put the whole score on...

Moriarty: It’s more like a big sampling. I think it’s like about an hour of music, an hour ten of music...

Joel: But it’s so... it makes it all so... magical. The movie, I mean... he, that last reel, the end of that race when he goes into that music, it just takes... takes your breath away.

Moriarty: I really, I found it very emotional, the stuff they say about family, about watching your kids start to succeed and become what they want to be. There is real value in that, and I like how they portray it.

Joel: What I was saying before was... if I can finish what I was saying... is that some of these... yes, some of these, the more kind of, you know, teen-oriented or older movies tend to be very sarcastic, and tend to be, you know, um, you know, “wink wink nudge nudge,” y’know, where we get the jokes. But the purpose of this movie was to interest my six year old, interest your three year old, as well as interest adults. So we had to make a movie wouldn’t go over their heads, and I mean there are sometimes jokes... I remember in the first TOY STORY, where, you know, Don Rickles’s character is “Ahhh, you hockey puck,” and it really is a hockey puck...

Moriarty: Yeah.

Joel: There are things like that, that are designed for a different aesthetic, but primarily we are talking about a family movie that needs to have that warmth and that enveloping quality, and I think this movie has that.

Moriarty: Well I think there is a movie, in a lot of the, I mean, everything now seems to be a pre-existing property, seems to be a remake, or seems to be a reinvention or something. There seems to be a move with a lot of it that I feel is very calculated, that, like, they buy it because it has a lot of name recognition. This doesn’t feel like that at all. This doesn’t feel like, “Okay, SPEED RACER. This demographic likes it.” The people who are most nostalgic for it are in their 40s...

Joel: Sure...

Moriarty: ... and kids just like it because of the innate thing of fast cars...

Joel: That’s... that’s the whole thing. I mean, Favereau told me the story, he was, um, working on IRON MAN, and Hasbro called him and said, “Is there a car in the movie?”

And he says, “No, it’s IRON MAN. He’s Iron Man.”

Moriarty: He is the car. (laughing)

Joel: “But is there a car?”

And he says, “No, he’s Iron Man. He flies around. He’s Iron. Man.”

And they said, “Well, could there be a car?”

So he says, “No, there is not a car.”

So, when he told me the story, I said, “Well, I have a car.” ‘Cause kids like cars. Mattel...

Moriarty: The wall of Hot Wheels for this movie is AMAZING.

Joel: ... but, um, Mattel says their CARS... the Pixar CARS... was huge. Successful... huge... and this idea, this worked out because we were able to give the files of these cars, the computer files of these designs, to Mattel before we started the movie. I mean, they had them even before we started making the picture. So they were able to do a really aggressive, y’know, a program on this, on the Mach 5. They said “It is a white car with a red M, y’know? How do we feel about it?”

I said, “We’re going to be fine.” I walked into Toys’R’Us a few days ago, and you walk in and the entire place is just SPEED RACER. I never had... I mean, being a R-rated guy... I’d walk into Toys’R’Us and see THE LION KING or ENCHANTED or some big Disney movie. I’d never see one of our pictures, so to walk in there and see that, and they are telling me a lot of toys for movies, they come out nine weeks before and sit, and people are like “What’s happening? These cars aren’t moving.”

And they are like “Wait till the movie opens.”

This stuff is going off the shelves now, it’s moving right now. It’s already moving and they’re like, “If this movie works and people go to see it and if it has the effect it seems to have, it will be a success for everyone.”

Moriarty: When I told my friend, this guy who is actually older than me, when I told him that I’d seen the wall at the toy store, and the Mach 5 had a trunk that opens that you could put Spritle and Chim Chim in, he was like, “Okay... I’m buying one. I don’t care... I HAVE to have that.” Cause those are the logical toys they’ve never really done for SPEED RACER fans before.

Joel: As my son would say to me, because I gave my son the show to watch, “Are they gonna have Spritle and Chim Chim in the trunk?” Because he... and by the way, we put them in the trunk because there is one scene where he slams the trunk down with them still in it. You think, “OH MY GOD there is a kid in the trunk! You are leaving him in the Trunk?!” But I mean, that’s the idea. The idea is to, is to take what we love about the show, use that, but then bring it to a whole new audience.

Moriarty: Now, I know that there are a few of these other properties... by the way, Devin from CHUD... I was talking to him, and he told me you confirmed that it looks like JUSTICE LEAGUE is done now... (transcribers note…yay!)

Joel: No. I just said that it seems to be...

Moriarty: ... it’s, uhhh...

Joel: ... postponed.

Moriarty: That’s one of those that... really... I hope that they get it right, rather than get it soon. Um, because these are... how long have you been attatched to SPEED RACER? I know Patrick Reed Johnson, I talked to him about it years and years ago, and he wasn’t the only one who took a shot at it, certainly. It’s been how long?

Joel: Almost 20 years.

Moriarty: That’s amazing, and it feels like you finally found the perfect...

Joel: Look, we struggled with it a long time, and it really... until... y’know, I remember, I...

Moriarty: But you do that with properties. You stick by them, like SGT. ROCK. You have developed that for a long time now...

Joel: I’m going to make that. I’m going to make that very soon. With Guy Ritchie, I think.

Moriarty: Really?!

Joel: I hope so. Yeah, um, but, um, I remember at one point it got close. I mean, there were a lot of people attached to SPEED RACER over the years. Um, no real actors. They never got that close. I remember at one point some production designer was working on something for Julien Temple or somebody. They were designing a car that would cost a million dollars which, at that time, was a huge amount of money, and the car was all going to be chrome, and you could shoot it from any angle. You had to have special lenses. I don’t even know what they were doing, but you know... but the idea of having SPEED RACER with a real car... it could never do what we want the car to do. I mean it couldn’t do that “Car-Fu,” as we are calling it...

Moriarty: That’s so great.

Joel: ... and the reality of being able to do that, to let the car spin in the air and do all those things, and to see the tires re-inflate, and all that stuff that couldn’t exist without the computer, and it couldn’t be done until right now.

Moriarty: To wrap up because I know you’ve had a long day so far... um, I think for a while, a lot of people had an idea of what a Joel Silver film was. Especially, I think, defined by the action stuff you did in the ‘80s and the early ‘90s. Do you feel like you continue to redefine for yourself what a Joel Silver film is? ‘Cause this is a totally different audience than you’ve ever had, and I think it could work. I think they will fall in love with this...

Joel: I mean, I hope so. I hope you are right. I hope you will project that to your vast audience of, uh, of readers and writers. Um, look, I, I, there are things that inspire me. There are things that I want to do. We are starting NINJA ASSASSIN in three weeks, y’know? I always wanted to do a movie like ENTER THE DRAGON. I always wanted to do a full martial arts movie. And since THE MATRIX, I’ve been pushing the guys, the Wachowski brothers, to do something like that because THE MATRIX had a lot of martial arts in it, but it was a much bigger movie, much bigger ideas, like the visual effects... but I want to do, like, a Bruce Lee movie, a really strong martial arts film. And we’re starting that. I mean, Rain is going to be this incredible character. It’s a Ninja movie, it’s full martial arts. It’s fantastic, and I’ve always wanted to do that kind of movie, and I‘ve always talked about it. I’ve just never... I mean, I did ROMEO MUST DIE. I did some martial arts pictures, but never like what I am saying this will be like.

I have a lot of interests. I have a lot of things that excite me. So, you know, this ROCKNROLLA movie I just did with Guy Ritchie is fantastic. It is raw, it is funny, it is dark, it is great. It is great. And I liked his first movie, LOCK STOCK, and I liked SNATCH, and I think it’s the best movie he’s ever made. I’ve always wanted to do a movie with him. I mean, I still get excited about things. There are things I still want to do. I don’t know if there is an imprint that I can say, “That is a movie that I made,” but my contribution is in the movie, and I support the boys and it is their vision, you know?

Moriarty: Right.

Joel: But I think I am doing everything I can to make it as good as I can make it. So I got a lot of movies ahead of me. I’ve produced, I think, 55 movies in my life, and I want to keep going till I produce 55 more or whatever, and I wanna just have a lot of stories to tell, and I want to tell them.

Moriarty: I always tell my friends that one of the great geeks spots that you have to visit at some point when you’re in Los Angeles is the waiting room of your office on the Warner lot, with the Predator and the Matrix stuff and all those posters, because it really is crazy when you stand there and you realize everything you’ve had your hands on over the years.

Joel: Well, I am happy that we can keep going. I’ve been doing this, I’ve been there for 22 years. I’ve been there for a long time, and I don’t feel like it’s been that long but... you figure the LETHAL WEAPON movies, the DIE HARD movies. PREDATOR. THE MATRIX. There is a lot of product we’ve done. I’m proud of everything I’ve done... I’m proud of them all, even the ones that didn’t work. I’m proud of them, too, so...

Moriarty: I’m just glad to see you trying new things.

Joel: Sure.

Moriarty: ... because, uh, the nostalgia’s fine, but I love that you are taking a chance on some things like this now.

Joel: And I love that you guys are aggressive with getting people to go to the movies and see what we are doing.

And before you guys get started yelling at me about the box-office of SPEED RACER over the weekend and why am I still talking about this one and "it's a bomb so move on already"...

... I don’t care. I really don’t. I don’t get vocal about it when something I love makes money, and I don’t cry about it when it doesn’t. All I can do is tell you what I think it genuinely worth seeing and spending time and money on, and I think SPEED RACER is absolutely a bigscreen trip worth taking. And SPEED RACER would overload your eyes and ears in any format, but buying a ticket to see it in IMAX is like buying a ticket to actually step into this candy-colored car-crazy world the Wachowskis have built. SPEED RACER: THE IMAX EXPERIENCE is completely immersive and ridiculously fun. And if you’re absolutely determined to skip it in the theaters, I’m equally determined to keep reminding you just how much fun I think it is.

I’m not alone. There are people sending us e-mails like this one all weekend long:

“Harry...

I've noticed a lot of negative reactions flying around regarding the Wachowski brother's new Speed Racer film. While everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and I never expected there to be a general consensus that Speed Racer was a staggering work of cinematic genius, I feel that many of the reviewers are missing the point entirely.

I am forty-eight years old, and I literally grew up watching Speed Racer, and loving every poorly-animated minute of it. Speed was like marijuana...a "gateway" drug that led me to seek out and devour any and all Japanese anime series I could find on television, and there were plenty back in the day: Astro Boy, Marine Boy, Kimba the White Lion, The Amazing Three, The Eighth Man...I loved them all, but Speed was a particular favorite.

Why? Perhaps it was my love of race cars that got me hooked. Or perhaps it was the intensity of the action, which was far different than anything any American animation studio was producing at the time. Maybe it was because the gadgetry in the Mach 5 was just way too cool for my sensitive young brain to wrap itself around. Whatever the reason, I was definitely one of Speed's biggest fans.

That is why I feel so strongly about Speed Racer the film, and why I think my opinion has value. So without further ado, here are the 'points' I'd like to make to those who didn't like the film. I'm not necessarily trying to change anyone's mind about it, but rather to help them understand why Speed Racer is better and far more important than they are making it out to be:

1) This film is aimed at two primary targets: A) Those (like me) who grew up watching Speed Racer on television and loving it, and B) Kids. Everyone else just isn't all that important. Now I realize that the previous sentence isn't one that a studio exec would utter even under duress, but I don't think the Wachowski's would disagree with it. They are obviously fans of the show, and wanted to do exactly what they wound up doing...bringing the world of Speed Racer to life, and doing it with a love and respect for the source material. Which brings me to point #2:

2) It's a CARTOON, people! Which means that (and I know this is hard to believe) it has to LOOK and FEEL like the cartoon!

One of the things that pisses me off the most about Hollywood is that they find a popular book or TV show or whatever that is beloved by millions of people, and, instead of saying "Well, gosh darn it! All of these folks absolutely LOVED this thing because it's just perfect the way it is, so let's just film it exactly that way so we don't disappoint anyone and make a kazillion dollars!" they instead go ahead and say "Well, we could make it even better!" and it tanks at the box office and they don't know why.

This is why Speed Racer the film is so groundbreaking: they filmed it to look, sound and feel EXACTLY like the cartoon! Brilliant! Complain all you want about how strange the visuals seem, or how chaotic the race choreography is (though I found it quite easy to follow) or how over-the-top some of the acting is, but that's what made Speed Racer so much fun to watch as a kid. Kids don't care about production values or how mind-blowing the acting is, they just wanna be entertained!

3) Never underestimate the intelligence of your audience, no matter how young they are. Some people (like Capone, who I love with all my Hometown Chicago little heart) complain that the non-action scenes slow the film down too much.
What? This is one of the reasons I love this film so much! If you want to fully appreciate Speed's victories, you gotta fully appreciate what he's up against.Yes, Royalton (the villain) does go into quite a lot of detailed information about the nature of the corporation's insatiable desire for money and power and all that, but this ups the stakes for the audience. Speed isn't just racing against a few other drivers, he's racing against entire corporations...corporations who place little or no value on human life and are willing to kill to get what they want.
Given the situation in today's world where corporations seem to own and control the very heart of our democracy, this thought is frightening enough. To a kid, it's even more so, and I know because two kids in the audience I saw the movie with came out of the showing mentioning how scary Royalton was. This is another example of what the Wachowski's did right: they didn't talk down to their audience, and I think the film works better for it.

4) Finally, the sense of family that permeates every frame of the film. The Racer family places honor, honesty and fair play above all else, but it's interesting to me that the film never approaches these themes in a preachy manner. It's just there and it feels good that it's there. Once again, these are qualities that seem to be vanishing in our world today, and the fact that they play such an important part in the overall scope of Speed Racer is to me a brave and wonderful thing. Perhaps they won't notice it, but the young kids who will see this film are being given a worthwhile message that I hope will take root somewhere deep inside of themselves and someday bear good fruit.

But then again, it's just a movie. right?

Well Harry, I could go on, but you get the idea. There is more to Speed Racer than meets the eye, and I hope that eventually it will be seen for what it really is...a film as groundbreaking as The Matrix, but with a heart of gold.

Go Speed Racer Go, indeed!

If you decide to print this, call me Quasimike!”

So obviously it’s affecting some viewers.

I’m also getting plenty of e-mails that read like this, though, to be fair:

“Harry? Are you fucking insane? "...SPEED RACER represents the single greatest “TRIP” on screen since Kubrick’s stargate sequence at the end of 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY.." That's like comparing a shit sandwhich to an expertly prepared Prime Ribwhich lightly toasted on a Sourdough ("mmm Sourdough!") with just the right about of melty Provolone cheese, thinly sliced tomatoes, red onions and Chipotle Mayonnaise! Have you really, seriously, completely gone out of your fucking gourd man?!“

Any movie that inspires passions this strongly is worth discussion in my book, and I hope if I keep prodding, some of you who are resistant will decide to see if I’m right after all. I’ll have another interview tomorrow, with Speed Racer hisself, so I’m not done talking about this one yet.

Thanks to Warner Bros and Anne for putting me together with Joel for some one on one time, and to my new intern Saffy for the first of what I hope are many transcriptions. Considering how fast Joel Silver and I both talk, she deserves some sort of combat pay for wading through that recording.

Drew McWeeny, Los Angeles