5. Speed Racer (2008)

Speed Racer was probably my first favourite thing, predating even my love affair with The Thunderbirds, Batman and The Super Friends, so when I heard that there was going to be a big-screen adaption, I was less than thrilled. I was certain they'd screw it up, and the weird, candy-coloured trailer didn't serve to disabuse me of that impression. "No," I thought, "It should be like those old 60's racing movies! They're screwing this up!" So I didn't see it at the movies.
Later, I had a copy, and thought, "Ah well, I should give it a go... if it's awful, I can just turn it off..."

How wrong I had been...



This film is an absolute gem. In an age where most film-makers are too concerned with nailing the visuals or getting that 'perfect emotionally cathartic moment' to bother with stuff like establishing characters and motivations, constructing a narrative that progresses and builds naturally from scene to scene to a climax, setting up later plot points early on, world-building... all that stuff that isn't as sexy as that one great shot, but last the solid foundation for everything that comes after so that your grand 'moment' doesn't end up being flat, pointless and hollow, 'Speed Racer' gets everything right.
First of all, the film is smart. It had a lot of information to dump on the viewer and it does so deftly without stalling.
Secondly, it's ABOUT something. This isn't just about a hero who's good at driving. It's about family and what that means, about the value of intangibles like loyalty, honesty and principle as weighed against power, money and material worth.
And thirdly, it delivers all of this with genuineness. So many films these days present fantasy either as a deconstruction or as mocking irony, but 'Speed Racer' (like pretty much all my favourite filmic adaptions) goes for that third, dangerous path - absolute heartfelt sincerity.

There are so many perfect moments in this film. The relationships between Pops and his two sons. Speed and Racer X trading quips during the desert race. The gloriously arch interrogation sequence. But if I had to pick one, it would be Roger Allam's amazing speech where he reveals the truth about racing to Speed.
In any other hands, this would run the risk of being either dry as dust (it's essentially a discussion of stock price manipulation) or ludicrously over-the-top (Royalton is, in this scene, at his most Mephistophelean), but because of the amazing performances, inspired editing and emotional sincerity, it ends up being a masterpiece.
And that's pretty much how I feel about the whole film.

# 5. Iron Man ( 2008)





I can't believe I left this off my list, This is the most Important movie of the entire Marvel Universe. Without the success of this film, there is no Thor. There is no Captain America. No Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy and so on. Robert Downey Jr. makes himself a superstar and the lynchpin of the Marvel Superhero Franchise with his likeable and charismatic portrayal Of Tony Stark/ Iron Man. The Film itself is Shellheads origin tale updated to todays era and it made a second tier Marvel hero into one of the most recognizable characters in the world. Yes , it is very important that this film didn't tank like Green Lantern or else we wouldn't be enjoying the golden age of comic book movies that we are right now.

By that logic, most of the entries aren't adaptations. Iron Man does its own thing as well. The point is the characters or comics originated in comics.

I wasn't aware that Speed Racer was a comic first.

Today's selection is about a character from Over There named Judge Dredd.

No, not Sylvester Stallone.  The real thang, from Karl Urban, "Scottie" "Dr. McCoy" on the J.J. Abrams' excellent Star Trek reboot franchise.

You probably saw the 90's Judge Dredd.  Version 2.0 is much better, but still didn't do that well.

Or did it ?




This Dredd is the real deal.  The whole movie felt right.  Urban will be the first to tell you that what killed this movie was lack of marketing, and he's right.

So sad for such an excellent character.

If America's # 1 character is Batman, which may be debateable, there's no doubt in my mind, at least from my view on this side of the pond, the most popular would be Dredd.

Great concept of the Mega-Cities and the Cursed Earth and the Judges basically as super cops.

Dredd and rookie Judge Anderson, born with psionic powers, go to the 200 story Peachtree Towers slum, run by prostitute-turned-gang boss Ma-Ma.  They investigate a report of 3 drug dealers turned rogue caught, skinned alive by Ma-Ma and thrown from the top floor.


The Judges break into Ma-Ma's penthouse stronghold and Ma-Ma "tests" the security system by locking down the entire tower, and all the tenants turn on the two.

Remember me saying this flopped at the box office ?

It did, but when people later heard about it after the fact, it launched at # 1 in DVD sales at release selling 75,000 copies in its first week.

As a fan who started reading, and loving, Dredd in 1980 (thanks Bud Plant) just 3 years after it started, I think this is an excellent film and hope against all odds somehow someway someone wises up and gives Dredd his own cable series.

Of course he is !

What was I thinking......

Corrected and a big Thank You to Raider.

I'm sure I'd be in the stockade in Mega-City One