I know I was distracted this past spring with volunteer work... but nearly two years ago I had emailed Warner Brothers, imploring them to release a 4K remaster of Speed Racer. At the time, they'd replied and told me there was no plan to do so (of course not, since it had bombed at the box office).
The reason it didn't do well had as much to do with the timing of the release (competing with Iron Man and The Dark Knight) as the fact that audiences didn't understand the movie: it's a live-action anime based on the original 1960s cartoon. The Wachowskis had to create new methods just to shoot it as a part realistic, part unrealistic, and mostly 2-dimensional movie. Over time, however, it has attracted a near cult following - and has unseated The Empire Strikes Back as my all-time favorite movie.
Imagine my surprise when I read about a 4K IMAX release!
Sadly, that movie came and went in IMAX theaters (hopefully it will return)... meanwhile, I bought the Speed Racer 4K UHD Blu-ray on Amazon. A lot went into updating the 2008 movie, including better sound balance and color correction. I ripped it yesterday and have spent over 24 hours rendering it in 4K 60fps... and it's still only 80% complete! This movie should be absolutely jaw-dropping!
The reason it didn't do well had as much to do with the timing of the release (competing with Iron Man and The Dark Knight) as the fact that audiences didn't understand the movie: it's a live-action anime based on the original 1960s cartoon. The Wachowskis had to create new methods just to shoot it as a part realistic, part unrealistic, and mostly 2-dimensional movie. Over time, however, it has attracted a near cult following - and has unseated The Empire Strikes Back as my all-time favorite movie.
Imagine my surprise when I read about a 4K IMAX release!
Sadly, that movie came and went in IMAX theaters (hopefully it will return)... meanwhile, I bought the Speed Racer 4K UHD Blu-ray on Amazon. A lot went into updating the 2008 movie, including better sound balance and color correction. I ripped it yesterday and have spent over 24 hours rendering it in 4K 60fps... and it's still only 80% complete! This movie should be absolutely jaw-dropping!
