Alternative to What: "Speed Racer" (2008)

Welcome to Alternative to What: a weekly column that tries to find a great alternative to driving to the multiplexes. Based on releases of that week, the selections will either be thematically related or feature recurring cast and crew. The goal is to help you better understand the diversity of cinema and hopefully find you some favorites while saving a few bucks. At worse, this column will save you money. Expect each installment to come out on Fridays, unless specified. 

THIS WEEK:

Speed Racer (2008)

- Alternative To -

Jupiter Ascending (2015)

There is something odd about the legacy of co-directors Andy and Lana Wachowski. After coming to fruition with their second film The Matrix, they haven't caught a break. Many people revile that film's two sequels and subsequent films such as Cloud Atlas were met with almost no fanfare (at least in America). With their latest proving to have almost zero appeal from critics, the siblings who have made a career out of risky sci-fi have yet another potential bomb on their hands. While it is enough to defend Jupiter Ascending for being original and full of vibrant energy, it's another to ask how much longer we're willing to put up with the Wachowskis not exactly capturing the work as they did over 15 years ago.

Of course, that's what makes them the most appealing sci-fi directors currently working. They are risky and not afraid to bomb on a large budget. The first sign of this came in 2008 when their post-Matrix career turned to adapting what looked like a surefire hit with Speed Racer. It was colorful and in many ways predicted the fall of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World two years later. Both were cutting edge and worked at a manic and surreal pacing that resulted in its status as a cult classic. To say the least, the initial disfavor that the film was met with has faded into an audience finally accepting its technological advancements and brisk pacing that suggests just how behind mainstream blockbusters are.

It would be interesting to judge Jupiter Ascending in the same light. Maybe hindsight will offer a different, more complex reading of the film. Maybe the space opera elements will click and provide a deeper and more complex understanding of what a sci-fi epic should be. Maybe Christopher Nolan's Interstellar suggests a shift into more realistic outer space journeys. Of course, the immediate fanfare for Jupiter Ascending comes from those who already defend the Wachowskis, most notably with Cloud Atlas. They may provide the favorable reviews, but it doesn't seem like it's as bound to be a cult classic. Then again, this feels like Speed Racer's story all over again.

For starters, the film is nothing but a ball of energy with quick transitions and plenty of the most surreal car racing that the 00's ever saw. Yes, success from The Fast and the Furious franchise suggests that this should have been more popular, but it could just be that it was too colorful and different. The film's biggest accusations lie in that it was a colorful, candy coated mess. However, there are few films like it that embraces the vibrant nature and is willing to allow a madcap vibe to overpower any sense of realism or logic. The film is inherently fun and geared at the senses in ways that few blockbusters were willing to be.

Yes, the film definitely has plenty of detractors. For starters, the epilepsy division will hate it. It is almost too silly and is considered to be too much of a kids movie. However, it does share an awful lot of innovation in the sense of Tron or Blade Runner in that it creates a universe that is distinct and while heavily reliant on CG animation, comes across as an authentic landscape. The color pallet is explored to its full potential and by the end it has an authenticity. The one benefit that can be said about the Wachowksi siblings time in the studio system, they messed with things unlike any other. They could have simply made Matrix sequels for the rest of their lives, but decided to mix insight into other properties.
The results are an acquired taste and it is unlikely that Speed Racer would be an easy sell to audiences unfamiliar with the project. It is inherently goofy and the enthusiasm on display is worthy of blushing. Where it should be seen as a film all about racing and updating the trivial genre in ways that The Fast and the Furious doesn't quite. Even if it is considered a failure in a lot of respects, it still manages to do something different. It is what has given the film an overall reputation worthy of note. It is an acquired taste; a cult classic of sorts.

I am unsure if Jupiter Ascending will hold as much water in seven years. It definitely seems too silly to be all that great. However, it will be interesting to watch a retrospective of Lana and Andy's career when it reaches its inevitable end. Maybe it will come soon. Maybe it will last another few decades. The enthusiasm outweighs their more problematic moments in ways that are admirable. It is compelling that even their narrative as directing duo has been public with Lana formerly being Larry Wachowski until her transgender transition. Still, the trailers look silly and had it not been for the Wachowski name over the credits, I likely wouldn't care. They have that much of an endorsement. 

In the end, Speed Racer is a film that should indicate how much stock we shouldn't put in Jupiter Ascending's immediate success. That has never been the duo's style. Even if they never reach the zeitgeist levels of The Matrix ever again, they brought something worthy of note to the sci-fi genre repeatedly without too much studio compromise. So what if it is too silly? Is it a coherent narrative that works? That is what it should be more judged upon. While I have yet to see Jupiter Ascending, I do hold out hope that enjoying Speed Racer informs just how much I will end up enjoying it despite initial dismay.