Speed Racer (Andy Wachowski & Larry Wachowski, 2008)
Monkeys are funny. Poop can be funny too. That said, Speed Racer must simply be hysterical since it has both. It also has a lot of pretty colors that dazzle the eyes and befuddle the mind.

Starring Emile Hirsch, Speed Racer is far less concerned with the titular character and more about his younger brother Spritle (Paulie Litt) and his monkey pal, Chim Chim. The main narrative of Speed battling corruption in the extreme racing world really is secondary to Spritle and Chim Chim mugging for the camera. Apart from an extended race sequence that takes up most of the second act (a cross between Death Race 2000 and the pod race scene from The Phantom Menace), only a few scenes avoid interruption by a dose of comic relief. This manages to make Speed Racer a mighty bumpy ride; one that swings wildly between family melodrama, corporate double dealing, and abject goofiness. Likewise, inter-cutting confounding candy-colored “car fu” set pieces with bathos bathed performances by Susan Sarandon and John Goodman as Speed’s folks makes for a rather schizophrenic viewing experience.

No one can accuse the Wachowski siblings of injecting Speed Racer with the same philosophical claptrap that marred the latter Matrix movies. Apart from brief appearances from Matthew Fox as “mysterious” Racer X and Christina Ricci as Trixie, there’s little compelling about this early summer confectionary. A Diet Coke movie (tastes sweet, bitter aftertaste, and not much substance), Speed Racer is sure to please the tykes and deafen the parents. — Mike White

Tags: Speed Racer, Andy Wachowski, Larry Wachowski, Emile Hirsch, Paulie Litt, Susan Sarandon, John Goodman, Matthew Fox, Christina Ricci