Speed Racer

Speed Racer is a 2008 sports action comedy film written and directed by the Wachowskis, based on the manga series of the same name created by Tatsuo Yoshida. The film stars Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, John Goodman, Susan Sarandon, Matthew Fox, Roger Allam, Benno Fürmann, Hiroyuki Sanada, Rain and Richard Roundtree. The plot revolves around Speed Racer, an 18-year-old automobile racer who follows his apparently deceased brother's career, choosing to remain loyal to his family and their company Racer Motors, which causes difficulties after he refuses a contract that E.P. Arnold Royalton, owner of Royalton Industries, offers him. A live-action Speed Racer film had been in development hell since 1992, having changed actors and filmmakers until in 2006 when producer Joel Silver and the Wachowskis collaborated to begin production on the film. Speed Racer was shot in and around Potsdam and Berlin from June to August 2007. Speed Racer premiered on April 26, 2008 at the Nokia Theater in New York City, and was released in the United States on May 9, by Warner Bros. Pictures. Upon initial release, the film received mixed-to-negative reviews from critics, who praised the action sequences, musical score, cinematography, and performances, but were divided on its overuse of CGI, and criticized its screenplay and runtime. The film grossed $93.9 million worldwide against a $120 million budget, making it a box-office bomb. It was subsequently nominated in multiple categories at the Teen Choice Awards as well as the Golden Raspberry Awards. Plot