Speed Racer (2008)

Not Brave Enough

Speed Racer is a film that speaks by the color codes; so much that when its name is uttered, color is the first thing that comes to mind. Much of the film's expressive power, originality and -consequently- its marketing campaign is centered on this aspect; and how successfully they used bright, cartoonish colors in this film is directly related to how successful the film is as a whole. As opposed to the rather cruel judgement by Stephanie Zacharek (i.e. "The picture is bankrupt in terms of everything but color, and even then, its palette suggests not careful selection but no selection"), my opinion is that nothing is random or arbitrary when it comes to the color composition that this film presents. Purple is greedy, sneaky and evil; it's in the decorations of Royalton Industries, ties of E. P. Arnold Royalton, the suit that is offered to Speed during the negotiations and the unnamed Metropolis itself. Almost like the artificial blue beams that leaked from the windows in Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut whenever something drastic or horrific (or both) was about to happen, the color purple in Speed Racer causes distress whenever it fills the screen. Similar to the venom in Spider Man 3, it spreads like a disease and corrupts its host. Red is passion and therefore is the color on Trixie's lips. You might not find this style sophisticated enough to carry the whole film, but you have to accept, it's not really a mess. Black is mysterious, hence Racer X's uniform. Pink is love and devotion. White is pure, unstained and uncorrupted - therefore the color of Speed's racing suit is no coincidence, nor the bright, innocent white that invades the whole screen as Speed eventually wins the Grand Prix and embraces the gigantic cup.

Ooops.

Sorry about the spoiler.


But hey, who seriously expected him to lose the eventual showdown and go back to his miserable existance, haunted by the memories of his dead brother and delusions of his father as he watches the 1943 Grand Prix, minutes before closing credits start to roll without any victorious and glorious climax? My guess is no one, not when we are watching a racing flick that is based on a "cheapo Japanese animation", nearly as sophisticated as Captain Tsubasa or Candy Candy. The question here is, what do you want to watch? If you're after seriousness and logical accuracy; a realist piece of solid action flick, Speed Racer is not your piece of cake. If you are interested in homage as a cinematical genre, if you want to watch a film that is true to the spirit and style of its original material, a film that explores all the possible interactions between cinema and that other medium, if you loved Kill Bill, American Splendor, Sin City and Grindhouse, you have to tolerate Speed listening to the car in order to find the ridiculous method that makes the engine run again, the method that Pops failed to mention his son for some inconceivable reason. You have to swallow all the extravaganza on screen, just like you swallowed the circular football fields in Captain Tsubasa, or the kicks that gave the ball an elliptical shape and made it unstoppable even if the whole team clamped behind the goalkeeper to stop it. This is a different realm with different rules.


Were the Wachowskis successful in achieving this goal? Is Speed Racer really a masterpiece like the other films I have mentioned? Hardly. Having disagreed Miss Zacharek, it is true that Speed Racer is colors and nothing but colors, which wouldn't pose any problems if the style was established enough to make me not care about anything else. The GCI is crude and childish, and while it's true that sometimes it serves to create an appropriate atmosphere for the adaptation of a "cheapo Japanese animation", downright mediocrity is not the way to go. If the physical details of the racing cars, which would make Stephen Hawking commit suicide and Isaac Newton turn in his grave, closely resemble a bunch of toy cars randomly thrown on a dinner table, there's a problem with that situation. Just like you cannot imagine Jurassic Park with sloppy dinosaur models or Star Wars with unconvincing light sabers (no matter how different the realms of both these movies are), Wachowskis' lack of attention to detail when it comes to automobiles in Speed Racer cannot be excused by the unrefined quality of the original cartoon series. Stylizing crudeness is an art that apparently not everybody is qualified enough to tackle.


It is true that the siblings were on the right track with this adaptation, but on the way they probably got too absorbed in the idea of making a 'family film' and stopped short of making a cult masterpiece. Since the film doesn't ignore the dramatical aspects of its story, it's hard for me to ignore the dramatical flaws, which could've been insignificant had the Wachowskis chosen the way of style over substance. There's no way to defend this film as long as you are forced to watch endless dramatical sequences and be expected to be impressed by them. It's cliche at its most intolerable. The emphasis slides from the visual style towards the ridiculous heroism of Speed Racer and his folks; the film wants you to take the story seriously and when you do, everything about it becomes more flawed, weary and ordinary. Speed Racer definitely requires more solid action & chase sequences, a better and more attentive CGI work and (most importantly) a major shift of focus in favor of its innovative color use and unique visual quality. The potential here is not the story but the uncharted territories between anime and cinema and Wachowskis should've been brave enough to explore those dark areas. Only then I would be able to defend it against many unfavorable reviews, asserting that one has to see the different powers of expression that this film has to offer. In this case, I am compelled to agree with the disappointed majority.


All in all, Speed Racer is the emotional-but-not-so-exciting story of a boy, who refuses to grow up and get to know the 'real' world he has been living in all his life; therefore the story is quite relatable for both children and adults. This might signify that Wachowskis were indeed able to make a family film for the masses. But it's neither a good one, nor it can deliver emotionally, which makes Speed Racer an official disappointment. My anticipation was not worth it.

May we see better works from the Wachowski siblings in the future.

5/10