Pretty colors

Last night Matt and I went to see Speed Racer in IMAX. My expectations were nil after reading so many crummy reviews, but I thought it would be a pretty way to spend two hours. We had spent all weekend house painting and doing chores, so we needed to sit on our bums and turn our brains off for two hours.

Speed Racer definitely a no-brainer. Heck, I'm not sure what it was about or if it was about anything at all. Car racing or something, I think. Who cares? It's beautiful. It's a big mash up of big bold bright shiny happy colors. No, I wasn't on drugs.

The film looks like the cinematic equivalent of a mating between the neon signs of Shinjuku and IKEA. It's a glorious feast of candy-colored sets and costumes. I was eating a Jelly Belly bubble gum flavored lollipop I felt as though I could taste the movie.

The plot is ridiculous (or, rather, non-existent). The actors are pretty and everyone looks terrific (I'm seriously considering getting a Christina Ricci Trixie 'do). It's technically quite an achievement, seamlessly integrating live action with enough CGI to melt your brain. There's car racing and the races are so confusing and cluttered that you can hardly tell what's what. There's one long race that's a bit boring and not that pretty but the one at the end is very pretty indeed.

And there's a poo-flinging chimpanzee. What more could you ask for?

Anyone who knows me is aware that I'm a huge movie buff with a wide range of tastes. Sometimes I want to delve into the dark psyche of man (There Will Be Blood) or sometimes I love the layers of meaning and subtext found in the works of Kubrick. But occasionally I want eye candy and nothing more. Speed Racer delivers two hours of exactly that, and it's a beautiful ride.