http://www.pathtosuccess2008.com/Speed Racer is an upcoming 2008 American family film that is a live action film adaptation of the 1960s Japanese animated series Speed Racer. The film is written and directed by the Wachowski brothers. The film had been in development since 1992, changing writers and directors until producer Joel Silver and the Wachowski brothers collaborated to begin production on Speed Racer as a family film so the directors could reach a wider audience. Actor Emile Hirsch was cast as Speed, the hero of the animated series, and Christina Ricci portrays Speed's girlfriend, Trixie. Speed Racer was produced in Germany at Babelsberg Studios, where filming took place entirely against greenscreen. The Wachowski brothers also filmed in high-definition video for the first time, using a layering method to put both the foreground and the background of scenes in focus to have a real-life anime appearance. Marketers have prepared toys and video games to coincide with the film's release. Speed Racer is scheduled to be released on May 9, 2008.SynopsisSpeed Racer (Emile Hirsch) is a young man with natural racing instincts whose goal is to win The Crucible, a cross-country car racing rally that took the life of his older brother, Rex Racer (Scott Porter). Speed is loyal to the family business, run by his parents Pops (John Goodman) and Mom (Susan Sarandon). Pops designed Speed's car, the Mach 5. The owner of Royalton Industries (Roger Allam) makes Speed a lucrative offer, Speed rejects the offer, angering the owner. Speed also uncovers a secret that top corporate interests, including Royalton, are fixing races and cheating to gain profit. With the offer to Speed denied, Royalton wants to ensure that Speed will not win races. Speed finds support from his parents and his girlfriend Trixie (Christina Ricci) and enters The Crucible in a partnership with his one-time rival, Racer X (Matthew Fox), seeking to rescue his family's business and the racing sport itself.[1][edit] Cast * Emile Hirsch as Speed Racer. Actors Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Shia LaBeouf were previously considered for the role.[2] To prepare for the role, Hirsch watched every Speed Racer episode and visited Lowe's Motor Speedway, where he met with driver Jimmie Johnson.[3] * John Goodman as Pops Racer, Speed's father.[4] * Susan Sarandon as Mom Racer, Speed's mother.[4] * Christina Ricci as Trixie, Speed's girlfriend. Ricci was chosen over Elisha Cuthbert and Kate Mara.[2] * Scott Porter as Rex Racer, Speed's older brother.[5] * Matthew Fox as Racer X, Speed's rival [4] * Nayo Wallace as Minx, Racer X's girlfriend.[6] * Hiroyuki Sanada as Mr. Musha, a businessman.[4] * Rain as Taejo Togokhan,[4] a rookie racer. Rain is a South Korean pop singer who is making his first appearance in a Hollywood film with Speed Racer.[7] * Yu Nan as the sister of Taejo Togokhan.[8] * Richard Roundtree as Ben Burns, a commentator who was formerly a racer.[9] * Benno Fürmann as Inspector Detector.[4] * Roger Allam as Royalton, the corrupt owner of Royalton Industries.[1] * Kick Gurry as Sparky, Speed's mechanic.[4] * Paulie Litt as Spritle, Speed's younger brother.[4] * A chimpanzee as Chim Chim, Spritle's pet.[10] Two chimpanzees were used to portray Chim Chim: Kenzie and Willy.[11] In July 2007, PETA contacted Speed Racer producer Joel Silver about reports that the chimpanzee had been beaten and had also bitten one of the actors and encouraged production to switch to animatronics. A studio spokesperson confirmed that an actor had been bitten, but the actor was treated and the chimpanzee was given a rest. The studio denied to PETA that the chimpanzee had been mistreated, saying that the decision would remain to use live animals in production.[12] * Melvil Poupaud as a race commentator.[13] * Christian Oliver in an unnamed role.[14] * Milka Duno as Gearbox.[15]Speed RacerTeaser posterDirected by Andy WachowskiLarry WachowskiProduced by Andy WachowskiLarry WachowskiJoel SilverGrant HillWritten by Andy WachowskiLarry WachowskiStarring Emile HirschChristina RicciJohn GoodmanSusan SarandonMatthew FoxMusic by Michael GiacchinoCinematography David TattersallEditing by Roger BartonZach StaenbergDistributed by Warner Bros. PicturesRelease date(s) May 9, 2008Country United StatesLanguage English
