Speed Racer

Despite my aversion to Japanese animated series, despite the silly humor that abounds, despite the heaps of clichés and despite the silly characters of the little brother and his tame chimpanzee... I actually had fun with this. Not groundbreaking or memorable, but thanks to the stunning visuals, imaginative racing scenes and Giacchino's music, it's pretty much sound from start to finish. Three and a bit. (31/12/2012)

Brilliant! It’s a pity that the visionary visuals and direction of the Wachowskis is ruined by excessive childishness. I would throw the characters of the little brother and the chimp out of a skyscraper window, then I would scrape them from the street, bring them back up and throw them out again. But whatever, Speed Racer is an extraordinary and unique film and I can accept a couple of defects for all that beauty. (01/07/2011)

The Wachowskis show once again their technical skills and impress with an incredible range of perfectly tuned colors, visuals, a captivating concept of car races, and typical camera positions and shooting systems of some scenes. On the other hand, they have quite traditionally forgotten about the script, which oscillates between a “sketch” from a silly sitcom and entertainment for the whole family, especially for the younger ones. The plot is very dysfunctional, but technically breathtaking. The classic that we are used to, but this time we won't forgive it. (03/01/2009)

Races: Perfect spectacle, eyes are amazed, adrenaline rises and I grip the steering wheel subconsciously and step on the pedal. Dialogues, funny scenes, and the rest: Disappointment and often unexpected suffering. Parents try, my brother rolls his eyes, and Trixie, as a lovely sexy figure, winks her eyes and helps the main hero. And meanwhile, I pray for someone to step on that pedal again. It is truly a very uneven mixture, you climb into Speed's cockpit and you still don't get under his skin even for a bit throughout the two hours. And at that moment, any possible enthusiasm for the film as a whole ends for me. Visual orgy on a zero background. This is supposedly how films should look in the future. I think (and I strongly hope) not. P.S.: Big plus for the mysterious Matthew Fox, who can create a deep character out of anything. (31/05/2008)

The audiovisual side of the movie is simply unbelievable. Painstaking racing scenes interspersed with a conflict between a family firm and a megalomaniac corporation represented by the slippery Roger Allam. Emile Hirsch gave a great performance in the role of Speed and I was equally surprised by Matthew Fox as the mysterious Racer X. Playful, sweet and funny (unfortunately sometimes too much so). Great for kids, remarkably digestible for adults. (23/05/2008)