Speed Racer - Preview & 4-minute clip
Preview by Jack Foley
WITH most of the summer blockbuster contenders taking their positions on the starting grid ahead of the season opener Iron Man, we thought it only appropriate to take an early glimpse at another of the season’s early box office contenders.
Speed Racer marks the return of the Wachowski brothers, the famed filmmakers behind The Matrix, and it promises plenty of style, spectacle and race action. But whether there’s any substance remains to be seen.
Certainly, it’s geared towards younger audiences and Warner Bros clearly seem to be pitching it as a contemporary Tron, or something of the sort. Could cult appeal be beckoning?
Speed Racer is described as a live-action, high-octane family adventure starring Christina Ricci, Matthew Fox, Emile Hirsch and Susan Sarandon.
Hirsch plays the Speed Racer in question, a natural behind the wheel, who was born to race cars.
Aggressive, instinctive and, most of all, fearless, Speed’s only real competition is the memory of the brother he idolized – the legendary Rex Racer – whose death in a race has left behind a legacy that Speed is driven to fulfill.
And that’s about it for plot details. Fox plays Racer X, Ricci plays Trixie and Sarandon and John Goodman play Mom and Pops Racer, respectively.
Based on a Japanese TV series, Speed Racer has had something of a lively history, with several big name stars and directors attached to the project before the Wachowskis made it their own.
Among those who considered it, but passed, were former Harry Potter director Alfonso Cuarón, who was once attached with Johnny Depp starring. While Keanu Reeves was offered but turned down the role of Racer X.
In fact, the film has been in development since 1992, so we’re not sure whether that bodes well or not.
But if nothing else, the film promises to look stylish and unlike anything else we’ve seen before.
The film was produced in Germany, at Babelsberg Studios, where filming took place entirely against greenscreen and – true to innovative form – the Wachowskis also filmed in high-definition video for the first time, using a layering method to put both the foreground and the background of scenes in focus to have a real-life anime appearance.
The filming technique clearly left a strong impression on Lost star Matthew Fox who gushed, while promoting his last thriller Vantage Point: “It was absolutely fantastic. I can’t say enough about them as creative minds and as people. The movie is going to be so different from anything we’ve seen. Traditional editing is out of the window, the way the movie was shot. I’m really excited about that.”
Still, if all else fails, the film promises to offer a veritable windfall in merchandise, with the toy market set to be flooded with tie-ins that all kids can enjoy.
Mattel, for instance, are producing several toys based on the film, while Hot Wheels have die-cast vehicles, race sets and track sets available. Warner Bros. will also self-publish a video game to be released on the Nintendo DS, Wii and PlayStation 2. And Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci and Matthew Fox have all reprised their roles for the game.
So, with so much being ploughed into the promotion and marketing of the film, we’re confidently predicting a strong box office performance for this one, even though it probably won’t be a critical favourite.
In anticipation of the May 9 UK release date, though, we have the trailer as well as an all-new 4-minute clip to whet your appetites. So, check out the footage from the links below…
Watch the 4-min clip
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