Certainly not the abject failure many critics seem to think it is, but it's certainly no success, either. I found the cartoonish world created by the Wachowskis and their three dozen special effects teams (seriously, the credits last half as long as the movie listing visual effects artists) constantly astounding and beautiful. I never got tired of looking at it (though I'd be willing to bet most would). Unfortunately, after the visual splendor, Speed Racer has little to offer. The characters are as thin, if not thinner, than they were in the original series. Susan Sarandon and John Goodman, the pros that they are, are both decent as Speed's parents, and Paulie Litt brings a lot of energy as Speed's youngest brother, Spritle. In fact, he has so much of that energy that the Wachowskis include him in every sequence. The rest of the cast is pretty lifeless, especially Emile Hirsch, who did quite well in Into the Wild last year, in the lead and Matthew Fox in the beyond thankless role of Racer X. It's almost worth it to Lost fans to see it for a scene where Fox gets in a fight with a ninja. I can't hate on Christina Ricci because she's way too hot as Trixie. The racing and fight scenes are decent action-wise, but it's occasionally difficult to tell what the heck is going on. The images move so fast that it's easy to miss who is who and what is what. The plot is like that, too. There were definitely bad guys whom I didn't really get. I just ended up assuming they all work for the big bad guy (Roger Allam) in some way. I have to admit that I was enjoying it most of the way through, but it's the kind of junk food that vanishes instantly. All in all, an empty experience.
Review of Speed Racer
