IMDb > Speed Racer (2008)
Speed Racer
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Speed Racer (2008) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 67 | slideshow) Videos (see all 22 NEW)
Speed Racer (2008) -- Speed Racer - Sneak Peek
Speed Racer (2008) -- MyMovies.Net - Clip - Grand Prix (WMV)
Speed Racer (2008) -- MyMovies.Net - Exclusive interview with Emile Hirsch (WMV)
Speed Racer (2008) -- This is the third theatrical trailer for Speed Racer, directed by the Wachowski Brothers.
Speed Racer (2008) -- Speed Racer - Trailer #2

Overview

User Rating:
6.4/10   29,371 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 2% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Writers (WGA):
Andy Wachowski (written by) &
Larry Wachowski (written by) ...
more
Contact:
View company contact information for Speed Racer on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
9 May 2008 (USA) more
Genre:
Action | Family | Sport more
Tagline:
Go more
Plot:
The story begins with Speed Racer who is a young man with natural racing instincts whose goal is to win The Crucible... more | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
8 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(355 articles)
Ricci Shows Off New Boyfriend
 (From WENN. 2 November 2009, 4:06 AM, PST)

Brad Pitt and Josh Brolin May Hop in Some Race Cars and Go Like Hell
 (From Collider.com. 28 October 2009, 2:52 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
I Don't Know What Haters Were Expecting But It Did Exactly What It Set Out To Do more (365 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Emile Hirsch ... Speed Racer

Nicholas Elia ... Young Speed

Susan Sarandon ... Mom Racer
Melissa Holroyd ... Speed's Teacher

Ariel Winter ... Young Trixie

Scott Porter ... Rex
Gian Ganziano ... Everyman Announcer

Peter Fernandez ... Local Announcer

Harvey Friedman ... Harold Ledermann Announcer
Sadao Ueda ... Japanese Announcer
Valery Tscheplanowa ... Russian Announcer

Sami Loris ... Italian Announcer
Olivier Marlo ... French Announcer
Sean McDonagh ... Celtic Announcer

Kick Gurry ... Sparky
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Race Chasers (USA) (fake working title)
Speed Racer (Germany)
Speed Racer: The IMAX Experience (USA) (IMAX version)
more
MPAA:
Rated PG for sequences of action, some violence and language.
Runtime:
135 min
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Some prints were shipped to movie theaters under the name "Race Chasers". more
Goofs:
Continuity: The first time you see Speed Racer in a race (the opening 5 minutes) the visor on his helmet disappears and reappears. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Race Announcer: All drivers to your cars, please. All drivers to your cars.
more
Movie Connections:
References Little Caesar (1931) more
Soundtrack:
Free Bird more

FAQ

How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
What is the song that plays over the beginning of the credits at the end?
What are the names of the songs used in the trailers?
more
300 out of 435 people found the following comment useful.
I Don't Know What Haters Were Expecting But It Did Exactly What It Set Out To Do, 3 May 2008
10/10
Author: moinsyyed from United Kingdom

and that would be, entertain.

I can't describe how many times I thought 'whoah!' it's one of those moments that could only ever happen in cartoons or 'whoa!' that was anime level crazy! This film set out to create a literal live action adaptation of a lovable & cheesy retro cartoon anime. That's exactly what it did.

Let's start with the PG rating, this was appropriate not because this film is 'aimed' at kids (which it wasn't clearly, as box office disconnect showed) but because it's a 'family' film for all ages based on a cartoon that most of the older generation watched when they were kids, the source material barely even bordered a 12A and yet the film managed to in fact surpass it's source material in maturity.

Fans of anime will seriously lap this up despite what the recent comments have said. Not only has every care been taken to preserve elements of the source material but it also has those cool retro and also modern anime moments. Good and bad guys with crazy cartoon anime hairstyles, crazy over-the-top kung fu, elaborate motion line effects just like in mangas, crazy death defying races, cheesy as hell dialogue which fits perfectly in context! Performances were quite impressive given it's a predominantly 'kids' PG film and that they were filming against green screen.

I also commend the Wachowski's use of such a strong colour palette.They didn't tone it down or diverge from the theme and each scene had a contextual wash of colour.Serious or more intimate moments had darker shadows while remaining colourfully vibrant. They were bold and not shy about what this film was going to look like.

To the haters again i say ,'what exactly where you expecting? The Matrix with cars?, people getting there throats slit?, symbolic commentary on capitalism,corruption, religion or the new world order? Go into this movie expecting high adrenaline scenes and all campy fun that only a 60's anime adaptation can provide, but don't just to go and watch it just to 'see what the fuss is about' until you actually understand what the source material was like. That way the movie will exceed your expectations.

I don't have complete praise for this movie however, in that towards the end of the film they got a little overboard with the editing and i was really let down by the final antagonist type drivers. Speed seemed to have a harder time in the casa cristo race in the film where the other drivers were far more menacing. It seemed like 'Cannonball Taylor', 'Gray Ghost' and especially the bad ass, white haired yakuza driver (for musha motors by the way) were just a flash gone by and Speed just beat them without any problems at all. Let's hope they make more of a presence in any semblance of an extended/directors cut

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Wow, Wow, Wow DaoDongHwan
Not to promote drug use or anything... mattmad39
Haiku Review rbreedon
Michael Giacchino's music Sam-urai
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