He’s gaining on you, so you’d better look alive

6 comments May 8th, 2008

Want to see the first seven minutes of SPEED RACER? Click here.

 Two observations:

1. It looks amazing. Like no other movie I’ve ever seen. Candy-colored, crystal-clear and the closest a live-action movie has ever come to capturing the visual craziness of a cartoon.

2. I’m not sure I could withstand 2 hours and 9 minutes of this — especially considering this is the (comparatively) quiet part.

Here he comes, here comes Speed Racer…

14 comments April 14th, 2008

In the comments section of last week’s post about THE INCREDIBLE HULK, reader Brian put the upcoming SPEED RACER movie way at the bottom of the summer movie list, saying it would only appeal to “young kids and masochistic viewers.” You might be right, Brian — some of that dialogue is beyond lame, and I question the use of Matthew “I’m acting as woodenly as I can” Fox in the pivotal role of the ultra-cool Racer X.

But as a boy who spent his formative years watching the high speed thrills and crashing carnage of the original SPEED RACER cartoon, I have to admit I’m looking forward to this one, and not just out of some warped sense of nostalgia (though that’s part of it). Looking at the trailers, I see a very real possibility that — at least on a purely visual level –this could be a groundbreaking movie. I can’t think of a time that the bright, pop-off-the-screen, candy-colored punch of cartoons has been brought to live-action with such zip and zing. Just check out this trailer…

I think we’re looking at something new here, something that takes the comic book physics of THE MATRIX movies (the Wachowski brothers’ last cinematic effort) and throws it right out the window, replacing it with something even wilder (and a heck of a lot more colorful). The way those cars bounce around mirrors the original cartoon perfectly, and even the quiet scenes pop right off the screen. Personally, I can’t wait to see this one, and on the biggest screen possible.

It is interesting to see Emile Hirsch, who starred in the ultra-serious INTO THE WILD, take on the role of Speed, but he seems to have the right wide-eyed wonder to carry it off. (Something he had, in fact, during INTO THE WILD, too.) And speaking of wide-eyed, if there’s a better casting choice for Trixie (Speed’s girlfriend) than Christina Ricci, I can’t think of it. She’s practically an anime character come to life. Not since her early work as Wednesday Addams has a role fit her this well. Even Matthew Fox seems well-used, with a digital boost making his voice even more robotic — and more fitting for the mysterious Racer X.

And if you need one more reason to be hopeful, there’s this: With all the computer-generated imagery packed into every frame of this film, they used a real chimp to play Chim Chim.  Now that’s entertainment.

Hulk smash box office? Probably not.

8 comments April 10th, 2008

There’s trouble in Hulk-land, according to this article from the New York Times.

For one thing, the recently unveiled trailer got a decidedly mixed reaction from fans and critics. As the article says, “The look of the new Hulk — meaner and greener — won praise from some fans online, but several influential tastemakers held their noses. Entertainment Weekly pronounced the computer-generated effects ‘totally fake-looking,’ while obsessedwithfilm.com deemed the project ‘just hideous.’ “

To add to the troubles, the movie stars Edward Norton — a very talented actor, but apparently not the easiest guy to work with when the movie isn’t what he wants it to be. (See also AMERICAN HISTORY X and THE ITALIAN JOB). Asked to respond to reports of friction between the studio and Norton (who is also working on the script), the Times article quotes Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel, then offers a helpful explanantion of Hollywood-ese:

“When you get to this point in the process, there are always lots of passionate discussions,” he said. “Edward is very passionate. He is as passionate about the Hulk as we are.” (For those unaccustomed to Hollywood speak, “very passionate” roughly translates to a seven on the “he’s a difficult person” scale.)

THE INCREDIBLE HULK is set to open on June 13, and it’s far from the only game in town. THE DARK KNIGHT (the new Batman movie), IRON MAN (also based on a Marvel Comics character), SPEED RACER (from the Matrix boys, the Wachowski brothers), HANCOCK (Will Smith’s movie about a down-and-out superhero) and, of course, INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL will all be competing for the same audience, and bad word of mouth combined with the lackluster reception to Ang Lee’s 2003 HULK movie could spell Doom for this Marvel movie, and I’m not talking about Dr. Doom.

Here’s the trailer. What do you think?

Want to see the trailer for the next Indiana Jones film?

24 comments February 14th, 2008

Of course you do! So just click here, then come back and tell me what you think.

Here are a few observations after an initial viewing:

1. At first, I was worried they were focusing too much on Indy as an icon, getting overly serious in recapping the previous three films. Then the footage from the new one started and the fun kicked in almost immediately. Nice to see Indy’s seat-of-the-pants style and deadpan sense of humor remains intact.

2. I don’t know if the stuntwork got a CGI boost, but it looks real, and that’s what counts. And that looks like Harrison Ford swinging from the whip, which counts even more.

3. I like how Shia LaBeouf is amazed Indy is, in fact, a teacher. Those scenes of him actually in front of a classroom at the beginning of RAIDERS are a great counterpoint to the craziness that follows.

4. No signs of Karen Allen (playing Marion) that I could see, but plenty of Cate Blanchett as the villain.

5. Did I see the words “Roswell, New Mexico”? – guess we know what that means.

6. I can’t imagine any film fan watching this trailer and not having a smile on his face when it’s over. This sort of thing is the reason I love movies.

PREVIEWS OF COMING ATTRACTIONS

7 comments January 18th, 2008

If you’re reading this post, congratulations! The Movie Man blog doesn’t officially launch until Tuesday, Jan. 22, but I’m posting this entry early to give the software a test drive — and you discovered it. Nicely done!

 If you ask me, this is a heck of a time to start a film-related blog. The Sundance Film Festival is just getting underway, “Cloverfield” is finally in theaters after months of savvy Internet hype (click here for an example — and yes, it really is a related to the movie and not hyping Japanese soft drinks) and, of course, the Oscar nominations arrive on Tuesday. Plenty to write about, and that goes for you, too. So sign up and get ready to comment. I’ll see you here on Tuesday.

And shut off that cell phone — I hate a lot of noise in the theater!