Iron Man and Speed Racer

[Bob Sullivan]

This is room to spout off about both--the sort of unofficial launch of the summer movie season. (No, that was not intended as an Iron Man pun)

Not having seen Iron Man yet, I'm pretty anxious about this one. The chemistry seems spot-on, and being a comic book fan in general and passingly familiar with the character, it looks like they took the right risks to please the fans while creating a fun popcorn flick for the uninitiated. I hope to come back soon and say I'm right.

Speed Racer, I must admit, makes me scratch my head. I can't tell a lie--I remember the anime show when it aired on Channel 40 in the early 80s (Which must be seen with bad overdubbing runningallthelinestogetherasfastastheycouldtalk dialog to fully appreciate). And yeah, I liked it a lot at the time. And catching re-showings on the Speed Channel much, much, later, I got a big kick out of the cheesy big dumb action of it.

But how does a tiny cult following make as fodder for movie blockbuster season? (Is there an UltraMan movie being planned somewhere as well, for cryin' out loud?) Because when I rewatched the show as an adult, at no time did my inner child say "wow, this would be so much better if it were live action." My gut feeling says "Dick Tracy 2008," and that's not a good thing. Plus, "from the people who brought you V for Vendetta" is not a cause for celebration either, I'm afraid.

And yet--to see the eye-popping car racing silliness on the Imax screen--I don't know. It could be a lot of fun after all.

Feel free to post your "before" thoughts and then your "after" thoughts if you'd like.

Bob