Opening this Friday is the new Wachowski Brothers movie âSpeed Racer.â As most of you know, itâs based on the animated show from the 60âs, but itâs been updated with a modern twist.
Since Warner Bros. has been loading the TV with commercials and most of you have seen the trailer, I donât think I need to give too much more background on the film. The only thing I really want to say is how much I loved the movie. Yes, I loved the movie.
While I think itâs safe to assume some critics will dismiss the movie as nothing more than cotton candy for the brain, I ate up every bite and have actually gone back for seconds. Seriously, itâs like nothing youâve ever seen and itâs completely safe for every age group as the Wachowski Brothers have made a family film. I can't believe it either.
Anyway, to help promote the movie I recently participated in roundtable interviews with most of the cast and producer Joel Silver. Iâve already posted the interview with Matthew Fox and up now is Christina Ricci who plays Trixie - the love interest of Speed.
During our time talking Christina talked about how she got the part, working in
As always, you can either read the transcript below or download the audio as an MP3 by clicking here. And if you want to watch some movie clips from âSpeed Racer,â click here.
Again, âSpeed Racerâ opens this Friday and I really suggest checking it out.
Question: Is the lighter hair for a role or just for you?
Christina Ricci: No, itâs for me.
Q: Itâs cute.
Christina: Thank you.
Q: What attracted you to this?
Christina: I loved the idea of working with the Wachowskis. Iâve wanted to work with them for a while and then Speed Racer was actually always something that people had mentioned to me like âoh, you know theyâre gonna make Speed Racer. Youâd be a good Trixieâ, blah, blah, blah.
Q: Were you familiar with her?
Christina: I was familiar with her from all the hipster paraphernalia and the Geico commercial but Iâd never seen the cartoons. So then, they sent me the script and I had to go in and audition very quickly afterwards.
Q: What was the biggest challenge about playing her?
Christina: There really werenât any challenges. I didnât enjoy my haircut but thatâs really the only challenge.
Q: But it looked good on you.
Christina: I know, but when you have long hair and then, all of a sudden, you get a really drastic haircut, you know, us ladies, we cry. But, other than that, she was a great character to play. She was amazing and fun and they dressed me up like a doll every day but then I got to do all this actiony stuff and had a really good time.
Q: When she got to race, I was a little disappointed that she didnât get to finish the race and was replaced by the Rain character.
Christina: Well, he recovered from his poison and I couldnât show up at the end and cut out because then Iâd be cheating. We were cheating a little bit by having me in there.
Q: You have said you pick characters who are afraid and a little ashamed of who they are and disgusted and they go to extremes because of it and this character seems completely oppositeâ¦
Christina: I donât think I like characters who are afraid and ashamed of who they are. I think I like complex characters and, for drama, the people who do the most dramatic things are the people who have personal problems. Recently I have grown up and become a little less afraid of sincerity and I have a real vested interest in womenâs issues and the next generation of girls and also, just looking around a little bit more and seeing all of the negative images that are out there for young girls. Itâs like what are they supposed to grow up into if the only images they have out there are like the brats? Itâs crazy. So, I really like the fact that she, to me, is the ultimate feminist character. Sheâs as girlie as she wants to be but then she does everything the boys do and thereâs no commentary on âooo, itâs a girl doing that. Oooo, itâs a girl flying a helicopterâ. And the brothers are very much responsible for that kind of thing because they have a very strong sense of equality and an interest in leaving the world a better place than they found it. So, I was really excited about that.
Q: How was it working with them?
Christina: Theyâre great. Theyâre so much fun and theyâre just wonderful people and theyâre so smart and just like, at a party, theyâre the most interesting people to talk to. But, working with them was great because they want to have a good time and they want everyone to be happy so, on a set, itâs just everyone hanging out, having fun, laughing at whatâs happening, just having a good time.
Q: Whatâs it like working with green screen. John Goodman compared it to working in really, really low budget theater where thereâs no props, no sets.
Christina: I liked it because it immediately created a bond amongst all the actors and a lot of our stuff, especially at the beginning of shooting was all family stuff so it was all ensemble, all of us together. Immediately, you walk into this big green room and you look at everyone else dressed in various hilarious costumes and you just say, âYeah, okay. What are we doing today?â Then, they like, âitâs snowingâ, âoh, Susan, did you know itâs snowing right nowâ? Weâre laughing and kind of like itâs ridiculous but weâre committing to it. We donât know whatâs around us but weâre gonna do what they tell us to. It creates a bond that is really wonderful.
Q: Did you watch the cartoons for research before filming?
Christina: No. I saw it but it didnât tell me much.
Q: I heard the script was quite long. Were there any scenes of yours that didnât make the final cut?
Christina: No. The script was quite long but only because all of the action in the races was described. You know what I mean? Like âhe turns left and jumps over and double, triple jumps.. nah, na, na, na naâ. Half of that stuff I didnât read [laughter]. Iâm like [running her finger across imaginary script pages] ârace, race, race, race, he winsâ. Okay, ârace, race, race, race, something evil happens. Oh, a little sabotage, okay, goodâ. But, other than that, I read all the stuff that wasnât descriptive racing stuff.
Q: Was there any time to have fun off set in
Christina: Yeah. We had a great time. The brothers threw a lot of parties and people on the crew threw parties, a lot of the actors went out and socialized among themselves and we were all staying at the same hotel so we spent evening together. It was just really fun. It was summer in
Q: Everything was inside on the sound stages?
Christina: Everything, yeah.
Q: No location work?
Christina: No.
Q: Did you get to do some of the more physical stuff like ride the gimbal for the race scenes? How was that?
Christina: It was fun. So much fun. I love doing that stuff and I love getting little battle injuries and stuff like that, battle scars.
Q: Did you get hurt?
Christina: I did get a little hurt. You get banged around in the gimbal thing so much and you end up with bruises. At one point, I had to get out and throw up and then get back in because itâs a lot of shaking and craziness but it was just really fun. I had a good time.
Q: Was there anything the cars did that you thought âI wish my car could do that?â
Christina: Iâd like to be able to jump over people; jump over other cars. That would be pretty good. Also, that whole changing the tire thing by leaping up in the air, that would be great. I just learned how to change a tire myself but it would be so much easier if I could just leap up and press âD.â
Q: Weâre here at the Long Beach Grand Prix I was wondering if you have any interest in watching some of the races?
Christina: Iâm definitely curious, yeah. Iâve never been to a racecar race before. Is this Nascar?
Q: No, itâs Formula 1.
Christina: Oh, okay, Iâm curious.
Q: I read that you were nervous at your interview for this. You had on black Converse sneakers and so did the brothers. Tell that story.
Christina: Oh, I thought I gave a horrible audition but, at one point, I caught Andyâs eye and Andy looked at my sneakers and I looked at his and looked back up at him and sort of smiled. I was like âmaybe the Chuck Taylors will workâ. [laughter] But, I thought I gave a horrible audition.
Q: Are you a good driver?
Christina: I like to believe I am.
Q: What do you drive?
Christina: I donât want to talk about that. Iâm stuck in a lease. Now, I saw the Al Gore movie after I signed my lease.
Q: What would you have if you could?
Christina: I want a Mini-Cooper because itâs fuel efficient, emissions efficient and all that stuff. Itâs small and better for the environment. I think that will be my next car.
Q: Right now you have a Navigator?
Christina: No. Itâs not that bad.
Q: What did you think of the visual style of the movie. Did it look like you imagined it as you went along?
Christina: I donât think any of us could have known what was in their heads completely. What they have managed to create is so much bigger, much more beautiful and engaging than anything I thought was going to be up there. Itâs really incredible. Itâs like nothing Iâve ever seen before so itâs kind of hard for me to explain it. I canât wait to see a lot of other peopleâs reactions to it.
Q: Doesnât it take a lot of trust to say âokay, Iâll stand here in front of this green screen?â
Christina: Oh yeah. Thatâs the thing about these two directors is that they inspire such confidence and such trust because you can tell they have this complete vision in their heads and you would be doing yourself a huge disservice to not trust them and just do what they tell you to because how are you possibly going to know if what you do matches whatâs in their heads unless they tell you?
Q: Do they contextualize it for you or say âthis is whatâs happening?â
Christina: Oh completely and you can know as much about the production design and the effects as you want to. The art department was always open for us to go in and they gave us storyboards and images. You could know as much as you wanted to or as little as you wanted to. Still though, itâs their vision and their touch and who they are that makes the movie ultimately look the way it does.
Q: Did you get to keep any of the costumes?
Christina: No. I didnât.
Q: Did you have input going in?
Christina: Yeah you can always go in and youâre like âI donât like the way it looks on meâ blah, blah, but I was really into all of the designs and very excited about it and I loved it. Kym Barrettâs our Wardrobe Designer and I loved all her stuff so much that it became really fun.
Q: Can you talk about working with Emile? You seemed to have good chemistry.
Christina: Yeah, heâs really a sweet, sweet kid. We had such a good time together from the very first. When I read, he already had the part and he was reading with me and he was just so helpful and really nice. Iâve read with a lot of people who are not necessarily so giving. Like theyâve already got the part so what do they care? And those people are not nice. Emile was just really helpful and really wonderful. Then, working on the set with him was really fun. The whole cast had such a good time. Everyone was laughing and making fun of each other. It was fun.
Q: If there is a sequel, any idea what you would like to see your character do?
Christina: I would like her to do more actiony things because I had fun being out there. That was fun stuff.
Q: How many sequels are you signed up for?
Christina: I donât know. You donât have to sign up for them. Itâs more like if this movie does well, theyâll make another one. But, Iâm not really sure. I donât pay attention to that stuff.
Q: Whatâs next for you?
Christina: Iâm doing a smaller drama at the end of May. I canât actually talk about it yet because the dealâs not closed.
Q: Do you like doing a big movie then a smaller one; mixing it up?
Christina: Itâs not intentional at all. Itâs just what happened.
Q: Are you a fan of Anime or Manga comics?
Christina: I think theyâre pretty.
Q: Since you are interested in promoting girl power and feminist issues, is there a particular character from history that you would like to one day portray?
Christina: Thatâs an interesting question. I donât know. Iâve always been obsessed with Eleanor of
Q: Did you get the sense that the brothers were still passionate at the end, that they had more stories to tell in this universe?
Christina: Oh yeah. Larry and Andy created a world that they love and created characters that they loved and are attached to. When we were all leaving, we were like âwrite the sequel!â âWe want to come backâ. And they were like âI know. I know. Weâre going to. Donât worryâ. They were as sad for it to be over as we were.
Q: Do you think theyâd be willing to hop right back in?
Christina: Yeah, definitely.
Q: Do you enjoy the audition process or is it just for bigger movies like this that you would still have to audition?
Christina: I actually donât mind auditioning but you do have to audition for movies like this. Thereâs a lot of money at stake and a lot of people have input.
Q: Young Trixie punches out a girl for dissing her man. Would you do that if somebody dissed your man?
Christina: It depends on what they said. Iâd probably strike back verbally. Something snide and quiet.