The Trifecta

Despite the pretty serious haterade that our fine nation’s critics have been drinking, I saddled up and caught Speed Racer on Saturday. Maybe it’s my partialness to trippy visuals, but I thought it was pretty damn sweet. Much in the way that In Bruges and Death at a Funeral revealed to me that I have a soft spot for midget humor; Speed Racer reminded me just how funny monkey shenanigans can be. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, it’s been a long time since Dustin checked in.

The monkey business wasn’t even the funniest part. At one point a ninja pops in and fights everyone for about 10 minutes and then Christina Ricci, who’s been standing there the whole time steps up and says “Was there just a Ninja in here?” May not sound hilarious on paper, but trust me, it was. As for the plot, I was certainly involved enough to always want to see the next race and would have been pleasantly surprised if there had been some absurd tie leading to a heads up death match at the end, which there’s not. The Wachowskis have proven yet again that despite being freaky S & M possibly sex changed dudes, that they are some of the most innovative artists out there in the film business, pushing the boundaries of the medium to new heights. The cast is awesome. We got my boy Emile Hirsch, who’s gone from Girl Next Door to leading the pack of young actors toward a bright tomorrow, John Goodman, Christina Ricci, a hilarious monkey and rounding out the cast of seasoned actors is Rain, the best the Koreans have to offer. Apparently Speed only made 18.6 million opening weekend and cost about 300 mil, so Fox is in the hole in a big way on this one. Unlike Uwe Boll, who should be stopped forever from making films, the Wachowskis deserve our support.  If Time.com’s Most Influential People of The Year vote is any measure the Koreans might be hitting up Speed Racer like theres no tomorrow, but just in case they don’t, go hit up Speed Racer if you’re looking for some fun escapism this weekend. Go Speed Go.

- Rich