'Speed Racer' Sep. 16

[Arkadin]

isn't it beyond obvious that Warner will double dip this down the road?
I agree that it is a total sham in a lot of ways.
Warner remains my favorite studio, but they fucked this release up plain and simple.
not having lossless on a NEW movie is ridiculous and pathetic.
I refuse to buy this, but will rent instead.
I'll buy the "real" version next year maybe.

[dannyschmanny]

I think being old enough to have grown up during a time when the show was originally on or in heavy syndication, or being young enough for the idea to be completely alien to you, helps. There's an age group in there that didn't really grow up with Speed Racer, but is old enough to have ideas about what movies should be, that won't get it.

I'm 29, and have watched a good bit of Speed Racer in syndication during different parts of my life. I always thought the stories were pretty decent, but the animation and dubbing added a comedy factor to it. While they didn't go over the top imitating the vocals of the cartoon, there are some facial expressions, especially by Pops, Speed, and Spritle, along with expressions like "oh!" or grunts from Pops that remind you they are keeping that side of it in mind. I liked it a lot as fan service, though I'm glad there won't be sequel, this movie kinda wraps up the whole story as far as the cartoon took it. To do a sequel would mean making up things that the cartoon never covered (which the movie does a tad but on an acceptable level).

I also liked it for the visuals a lot. I hate Transformers, mainly because it has no love for its source, and I just hate Michael Bay to begin with, but the special effects work was good on it, I just feel like great talent was wasted on a crappy movie. With Speed Racer, I feel like the special effects artists are actually helping bring something someone had passion for to the screen. I'm honestly surprised at how many people don't like this movie, I think it is the best live action version of a cartoon ever pulled off. Compare this to Underdog (which changed him from being a dog in a world of dogs with a job etc into being a real dog that is a kid's pet) or Alvin and the Chipmunks, well no don't compare it to them because that would be saying that they are comparable. This is a must for people that know the cartoon or for kids below a certain age that will enjoy its eye candy and plot that most kids could follow. They might not understand all the business talk, but that is minimal and they'll grasp who the bad guys are and that Speed winning is good, and that will be enough to pull them in. Great all-ages movie in my opinion, best looking Blu-Ray disc I've seen as well, speaking strictly on the video side. And at least the DD track is nearly twice the bitrate of the Speed Racer DVD, so at least you're still coming out better on the audio side with a 640kbps DD track than people with the DVD.

This received an applause at the midnight show I went to, and immediately went down as one of my all-time favorites. I know a lot of people feel the opposite, and I'm not going to change their minds, but if you think you'll both get it AND enjoy getting it, which you likely will if you know the cartoon well and enjoy it, at least give it a chance. I just wish more cartoon movies were this dead on, and the poor box office for this will show them that going in a direction more like Underdog and forgetting the original altogether is the better way to make a movie that will do well.

i agree. the main knocks i hear from people and from what critics would say it really made me wonder "have you ever even SEEN the cartoon of Speed Racer? i mean...if you have...what did you expect? it's speed racer. its suppose to be a bit campy, fun...with a decent moral story. but being that it's the dub bros., you were gonna get some added eye candy." i knew exactly what i was going to get going into this movie having watched the show when i was a kid...and i really enjoyed it. the blu ray looks better than i thought it would for the 25g. although i forgot how saturated and over the top the colors were and going in unprepared i got a headache...now i know and get mentally ready..haha.

[Philnerd]

Well I must admit that I'm more interested in this film after reading the input of members here. I really enjoyed Speed Racer when I was growing up and if the movie is actually pretty faithful to the original cartoons then I might actually enjoy this. I'm not going to throw $25 on it, but when its part of an inevitable holiday sales rush (BOGO I hope) I'll pick this up.

Of course the inevitable BD50/lossless double dip uber edition disinclines me to pay full price as well.

[Godstar]

I really feel the color oversaturation was to make the film feel cartoony to the audience. I really can't verify it, but it's been done in other films like Dick Tracey, Cat in the Hat, Willie Wonka, and The Grinch. Making the film look unrealistic was probably part of the intention, as it was an anime, thus you wouldn't want muted/realistic color schemes.

I think there are other ways the film could have been done that might have been better, such as using a reworking of the instrumental music from the 60's, but that's pretty minor. They also could have set it back in the 60's given the main character was fashioned after Elvis's character from Viva Las Vegas, and made it a little more of a period racing piece, but that might have not worked any better than a future setting would have.

I think in the end, that if you don't like the plot of the movie, you have to bear in mind that much of the movie is based on episodes of Speed Racer, the most notable of which is 'The No Limit World Race', which I believe is what the Casa Nostra was fashioned after. From the Mammoth car down to Ms. Race Car doing the flag waving, to the CAT's Snake Oiler, much of the content from the anime show was there. Speed Racer was about racing, excitement, adrenaline, and fighting evil; whether they were race fixers, criminal gangs, bad drivers. The movie shouldn't have been any more than a movie about a popular Japaneese anime in America, and I don't think it was.

[Hoosier205]

Speed Racer...the reason barf bags have made a comeback.

[SilentNight]

why is there no review of this on the main page? You would think that a bigger release like this would get a fairly quick review.

[ATLFalconsFAN]

My wife and I watched this last night with low expectations. We were both pleasantly surprised as this was a great flick and a feast for the eyes. I highly recommend this film.

[Godstar]

why is there no review of this on the main page? You would think that a bigger release like this would get a fairly quick review.

Warner was apparently very slow in sending out movies to reviewers to watch.

[ErikBRak1m]

"Let’s look at how Warner handled Speed Racer’s Blu-ray release. This could’ve been The Awesomest Demo Disc of 2008. However, Warner downgraded the tech specs all around, using a single-layer 25-gig disc for heavily compressed video and audio. Given the space limitations, Warner should’ve opted for one lossless track in the movie’s original primary language (English). Instead, the disc is crammed with four Dolby Digital tracks.

Perhaps dual-layer 50-gig discs are expensive right now. I would’ve bought that argument except Warner included two additional discs in the Blu-ray case--a DVD game meant to be played on a Blu-ray or DVD player (the game is way too simplistic to appeal to anyone more than eight-years-old) and a Digital Copy disc that is entirely unnecessary since Warner has set up a download site for people who buy the SD DVD! Warner even went through the trouble of printing an eight-page instruction booklet about how to play the DVD game and a cardboard slipcover.

This is a physically heavy package for a lot of stuff that will be used once or twice (especially the Digital Copy disc, which will be worthless to most people after a single transfer). Warner could spare money on stuff that will be set aside but not on BD-50s?"

http://hddvdreviews.blogspot.com/200...wachowski.html

My guess is that they opted for a 25-gig disc due to cost, and therefore they had to downgrade the audio to get it to fit. Apparently this thing cost $200-million to make, and yet it only grossed $85-million worldwide, so since they probably don't expect much to come from the DVD/Blu-ray of it, they decided to save costs where they could. Although I have to admit I too am puzzled as to why they went with providing a digital copy DVD, a videogame, and the aforementioned cardboard slip cover. I could have done without the all three of those things, at which point I would have liked one 50-gig disc with Dolby True HD and at least all the supplements from the DVD release. Perhaps if Speed Racer does really well on DVD then we might see a future deluxe version down the road, but the whole "double-dipping" thing is starting to annoy me as much as the oil companies and their shenanigans.

[posters5]

warner is just choding it up all over the place. "journey to the center of the earth" will also have only lossy audio (dd 5.1 english) when it hits blu-ray in october. you would think that recent movies such as "fool's gold", "speed racer", and "journey to the center of the earth"--which have actions sequences--should have lossless audio while quieter, olders movies like "l.a. confidential" don't need lossless audio as much.

[Josh Z]

you would think that recent movies such as "fool's gold", "speed racer", and "journey to the center of the earth"--which have actions sequences--should have lossless audio while quieter, olders movies like "l.a. confidential" don't need lossless audio as much.

L.A. Confidential is a 1997 movie. I would hardly call that "older". Nor is it at all a quiet movie. The huge gun battle at the end is a demo-worthy piece on DVD.

[HectorB]

wow. Warner is messing up big time. I saw Journey to the Center of the Earth at the theater and it has an incredible soundtrack. Another miss by Warner!

[Deathpoop]

L.A. Confidential is a 1997 movie. I would hardly call that "older". Nor is it at all a quiet movie. The huge gun battle at the end is a demo-worthy piece on DVD.

Only explosions sound good in HD audio.

[ben1080p]

HighDefDiscNews Review

[Mean Gene]

Like others, I was ready for it to suck due to the negative reviews. I was like WTF? when i popped my netflix rental in and there were no lossless audio options. Dolby Digital??? I really enjoyed the movie, but the whole time I was thinking, "I wonder what this would sound like in TrueHD. Just re-release it with lossless audio and I will buy it. Are you reading this warner??