Saturday, April 12, 2008

by Ari

Check out the official site and watch the new international trailer.

Now tell me you're not excited to see this movie.

The more footage I see from Speed Racer, the more I believe the Wachowski brothers have re-defined fx-driven escapist entertainment yet again. The Matrix presented a visual aesthetic that mixed Eastern and Western influences into a style audiences weren't really prepared for. That style, mixed with the thrilling, mind-bending philosophical storyline, made the film an instant success and a sci-fi classic. Now, with Speed Racer, the Wachowski's are bringing an entirely new imagination to the screen, and the vibrant colors, retro-futuristic atmosphere and exaggerated set-pieces promise something we've never seen before. The closest thing I can think of to something this stylized is the under-appreciated Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, a film that used the serial imagery of the '30s and '40s so perfectly for its story. The visual palette is obviously much different than Speed's, but the ambition behind the two films seems to be the same. Hopefully Speed Racer finds a larger audience, though.