Last night as I was skimming through the channels I came upon what is perhaps the most badass movie car ever to grace the big screen. It was made in 1973, had zoomies for exhaust pipes and a big honkin’ Weiand blower that helped this beast pump out 600 horsepower. You see Mad Max was on, not the Road Warrior mind you, but the original movie that started it all. I first saw this post-apocalyptic import when I was about 8 years old and I’ll never forget it. The phrase: “Last of the V8 Interceptors”, is a line that refers to one car only, this being the 1973 Ford Falcon XB GT of one Max Rockatansky. This was the car that Max used to get his revenge on the psychotic biker gang that mowed down his family and the one that he later used to scour the Australian wasteland in search of fuel.

Continue reading after the jump!

I then began to think of my all time favorite movie cars and believe it or not, I’ve actually put a lot of thought into labeling the Interceptor as the #1 most badass movie car ever. I figured that if I’m actually going to throw this out there that I’d better have some sort of reasons as to why it hit the el numero uno spot. Now, it’s obvious that some people out there are going to disagree with me, and even though you’d all be wrong, everyone’s entitled to their opinions. So without further adieu here are my rules for naming the most BADASS movie car to ever hit the silver screen.

RULES:
1. It has to look the business. Meaning, if you saw it coming towards you the vehicle in question would make you stop and say, “Damn, that thing is BADASS.”

2. Sound. If it doesn’t rattle the tiles off the wall or make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up then it has no grounds being considered. This thing should sound like WAR at start-up.

3. Presence. This is a big one. The vehicle in question has to have a presence that makes it immediately trounce all others in a parking lot situation. Simply stated, this would be the car you would walk over to first, to check out.

4. Power. If we pop the hood and spy a slant-6 with a one barrel you’re out. A V8 (or maybe a V12) is the only thing that will qualify.

5. It CANNOT be possessed in any way, shape or form. So for those of you that wanted to put up Christine or that weird Lincoln type thing from “The Car”… well, you’re S.O.L.

6. It has to be real. Example: the Tumbler from Batman, this is a real working and driving vehicle, so it definitely qualifies. The Mach 5 from Speed Racer or Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, however… Well, if you choose these as badass vehicles you should be locked in their trunks without an air hose…

7. It’s has to have had a major role in the movie, which means it either had to be the hero car or best supporting actor. Small cameos will not do.

8. Hmm… well… there is no 8. So just hit the above 7 and let me know your picks…

Also, check out: http://www.imcdb.org/ – it’s the internet movie cars database… you may actually be amazed at what you find here.

The Homies A.Ware and Corey in the A have a new project out….

Mach Five – Sex on a Sunday

The car is called E Wolf. Remember Racer X and Speed’s pet monkey Chim Chim…good times

Two new ATCs are up!

Cousin Msio from Katamari Damacy and the Mack 5 from Speed Racer (this is actually based on the new movie and not the classic. Very subtle differences)

I also have a few larger pieces in the works. I expect them at least by the end of the summer season but… who knows what will happen! Aside from those, I’m also still working on a graphic novel project and an experimental novella. Hah, what a geek I’m am! This is what I do with my time off!

Bah! Quando eu falei que ainda iria descer a lomba do Holtz com meu Mach 5, a gurizada riu.
Mas depois de ver o que esse pessoal aqui fez, me criou esperança no meu futuro carrinho…
Fãs de Corrida Maluca se encontram todos os anos no Goodwood Festival of Speed na Inglaterra para disputar uma corrida de verdade, com os carros estilizados do desenho animado!

The cool kids are letting the rest of us on the playground for one day only. From the keepers of Greedmont Park, an Atlanta social and business collective is a June 21st  music and arts festival at the Atlanta Bench on Marietta Street. Featuring the creative cultivations of Miya Bailey, Never, Mr. Lean. Performances by Amanda Diva, Hollyweerd, The 54, Mach 5 and if you can believe it Soul for Real.

Hosted by Kesh, Brian Patrick, Ian Ford, Ree Dela Vega, Nick Kage and 080, leave your swag at home, put on your fresh and get hip to the  less commercial side of cool.

Na iminência da estréia do filme Speed Racer e um jogo, nada como lembrar dos outros que saíram em outras épocas, curiosamente bem poucos. O primeiro deles possivelmente foi Speed Racer: The Challenge of Racer X pro DOS produzido pela Accolade, que na época já tinha feito uns bons trocados com a série Test Drive.

Atualização – Versões Gameboy, arcade, DS, PS2, Wii e online, vídeos e imagens novas.

Um tempo depois veio Speed Racer pro Super Nintendo, metade jogo de corrida e metade ação-plataforma. A velocidade parece ser um problema, o que é uma pena porque os efeitos 3d da pista ficaram bem legais.

Depois Veio o do Playstation 1, muito bem feito diga-se de passagem:

Um que provavelmente ninguém viu por aí foi a versão arcade que a Namco fez, provavelmente foram procurados pra fazer pelo sucesso que Ridge Racer conseguiu ali por aquela época.

E também um para o Gameboy em 1997 já com os traços da série nova que lançaram naquele ano. Como saiu só no Japão, procure pelo nome Mach Go Go Go.

Depois desse, oficialmente só mesmo o Mach 5 apareceu novamente, uma vez foi numa rápida aparição no começo da fase do Japão de Sonic Wings/Aerofighters 2 e nesse trecho do que, se não me engano, é a primeira ou a segunda fase do mais que antigo Shadow Warrior pra pc.

E como não poderia faltar, patches pro GTA:

E como bônus, ao procurar as imagens do jogo do Super Nintendo achei essas duas aí embaixo de um jogo do Steven Seagal que não chegou a ser lançado O_O

A fonte é a do Robocop, o movimento e o cenário parecem Moonwalker, mas enfim, parece bem interessante, não percam o filme. Tô falando do Speed Racer!

E finalmente, junto com o filme veio um jogo com sua adaptação e não fizeram feio. Lançado para Nintendo Ds, Playstation 2 e Wii, fizeram um belo serviço ao levar para o jogo o mesmo que tem no filme. De certa forma esse jogo grita F-Zero com toda a força mas pelo outro lado não é de todo mal, já que ainda parece que vai levar um tempo pra que ele saia pro Wii e o PS2 nunca vai ter um destes, então fica de bom tamanho. O controle dos carros é ótimo, tem todo aquele esquema de correr de lado e de costas num drift constante e a coisa não para nunca. Tem também botões pra dar trancos nos oponentes e controle dos saltos, podendo ser o normal, barrel roll para os lados e flip e backflip. A melhor parte é que ao ficar colado na traseira de um oponente, o comando do backflip só dá uma ligeira levantada no bico que joga o outro carro bem alto. Todos esses comandos servem para o sistema Car-Fu, onde dar porrada nos inimigos rende pontos e a cada 1000 se leva um ponto extra para o campeonato. Mas é necessário cuidado: antes das corridas os outros pilotos o convidam para fazer alianças que garante que eles não vão jogar sujo contra o jogador, mas caso o jogador os acerte se perde pontos e a aliança é quebrada. Também tem um turbo que pode ser acumulado e usado em até 4 ao mesmo tempo, que ativa o modo zona, isso aparece no final do vídeo da versão Wii. Tudo isso num pacote com opção de idioma em português do Brasil.

Nintendo DS

Playstation 2

Wii

Também tem o desse site logo abaixo pra ser jogado online. Ele pede um cadastro pra registrar pontuação porque na época valia alguns prêmios, mas hoje já era mas o jogo ficou:

http://www.worldingame.com/game.php?id=231

Quem comprou a versão Blu-Ray do filme ganhou um disco extra com o jogo Speed Racer Crucible Challenge, onde se escolhe entre Speed, Corredor X ou Taejo Togokahm pra bater a corrida de Casa Cristo do filme.

Esse carro é um dos competidores de verdade, o patrocínio da Petrobrás é pra ajudar na divulgação do biocombustível como fonte de energia. O nome do carro é Green Energy e é pilotado por Mariana Zanja, pode ser visto nos pôsters aqui do Brasil, numa cartela de adesivos que vem com o dvd, no terceiro trailer rapidamente lá pelo meio, em alguns postos de gasolina e shoppings numa turnê nacional e no jogo, claro. O Brasil, com toda sua tradição de grandes pilotos, não poderia ficar de fora logo desta corrida, não mesmo.

Imagens copiadas: (O)melete, VGMuseum, Warner e Wachowski Bros., Google Imagens e mais alguns sites por aí.

Vamos tomarle prestada la idea Cinemanía y varias muchas revistas de cine, que ocupan su tiempo libre en hacer rankings o los mejores “lo que sea”, en fin.
AUTOS
Son muchas las películas donde un auto (o varios) son protagonistas. No digo que haya autos lindos, los hay en la mayoría, hablo donde el auto es un actor más. AH, y hablamos de películas, no de series en TV.

El Aston Martin plateado que manejaba 007 DB5 en Goldfinger (1964)

De Lorean DMC-12 en Volver al futuro (1985). Es un auto que la compañía fabricó entre 1981 y 1983 y que tenía las puertas ala de gaviota y la carrocería metálica

Ford Torino 1974 en Starky y Hutch, la película (2004). No soy fierrero, pero siempre me gusto este auto con esa raya blanca.

1973 Ford Falcon Coupé XB GT. El intercerceptor de Mad Max existe. Jim Martino, el Freak dueño del auto, cuenta que tuvo que exportar el vehículo desde Australia (donde se filmó Mad Max) a Estados Unidos. En Nueva York lo sacó del contenedor, se lo llevó a casa y se puso a trabajar en el. Se dedicó a modificarlo hasta que quede idéntico al auto policía de Mad Max, tanto externamente como internamente. Incluso el auto tiene los spoilers originales de la película, ya que se encontró con el dueño de los moldes usados para Mad Max.

Chevrolet Silverado en Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004). Aunque en este caso jamas opacaria a Uma Thurman. Me quedo con ella y el auto. ... jajaja

Chevy Nova en Death Proof (2007), de Tarantino. Kurt Russel es un asesino cuya arma mortal es su auto. ¿No la viste?, te la perdés.

Mach 5 en Meteoro (2008). ¿Quién no se enamoró de el, cuando lo veíamos en blanco y negro, en las tardes de merienda y tele? Ahora, gracias a los Wachowsky, lo tenemos con mas brillo.

La iba a continuar con mujeres, con algo más hot, pero queda para otra (no se pongan nerviosos). Ya que estamos con máquinas (si si, las otras tambien son flor de máquinas, ya vendrán), vamos con los …
ROBOTS
Desde que el cine es cine, siempre han habido robots, o intentos de máquinas que hagan de todo, o simples muñecos de hojalata. Desde simpáticos hasta asesinos, de todo. Veremos algunos.

Maria (Metrópolis). Esta película de Fritz Lang, de 1927, me ha entusiasmado desde siempre. Pocas películas tan añejas tienen la virtud de no gastarse con el tiempo, de no perder vigencia. LA podés ver hoy (si no la viste, corre a verla) y sentir que es tan actual como cualquier otra ... adecuando tu cabez, of course, a que no tenían los efectos de hoy, lo que hace mejor aún.

HAL9000. La computadora que maneja la nave Discovery en 2001, Odisea del espacio y que termina rebelándose contra la tripulación. Genial pelicula de Stanley Kubrick. Para vos Ferchu.

C3-PO y R2D2 (o Arturito, como le decimos aqui; como lo utilizo Diablos Verdes alla, por el 80 y no se que y lo disfrutamos en el teatro de verano de Malvin Alto, que han abandonado).

Número 5 (Cortocircuito) Dotado de la tecnología más avanzada, este robot tenía que ser un soldado perfecto, el arma decisiva en caso de guerra. Pero fue alcanzado por un rayo y todo cambió. Johnny 5 cobró vida y no tardó en sentir una necesidad imperiosa de descubrir el mundo con sus propios ojos... Uno de los más entrañables que recuerdo

T-800 modelo 101. La máquina asesina enviada por Skynet para eliminar a la madre del futuro líder de la rebelión en la primera Terminator. Dedicado a SAMY.

RoboCop (RoboCop). Un agente de policía acribillado a balazos y reconstruido a base de un sofisticado sistema de recursos tecnológicos y armas de última generación. El resultado es una máquina invencible destinada al servicio de la ley y el orden.

Rodney. Es el simpático y heroico protagonista de Robots.

Optimus Prime. El líder de los Autobots, los robots buenos de Transformers. Cualquier fan lo quisiera tener ... y que caros que son la puta madre.

Wall-E y Eve. Las nuevas criaturas de los estudios Pixar para Wall-E. El, muy parecido a Nº5, ella muy moderna. Ambos muy queribles. De lo mejor que he visto.

Y hay más, sin dudas. Queda para Uds revivan, recuerden otros autos o robots que han quedado en el tintero.

Racer X (Image from Wikipedia)

This is another poem for Writer’s Island – I decided to take their other two prompts of transformation and alter ego and write one poem for both of them. Enjoy.

-Nicole
————————————————
He can never know. He can never know
the face behind this mask I wear; I’ve made
my choice and with it I must now live. I
can never give away that I was once
his idol, his Superman, the same who
walked out of our house in shame as Pops yelled
after me, telling me never to dare
darken home’s door again. I can only
hover as a distant friend to save him
from impetuous peril – his temper
is not unlike mine. I find that this mask,
this suit, and this car all give me behind
mystery a license to still be his
older brother, for he can never know.
So let them all see this other self, this
“Racer X” as they call me, into which
I transform before every race – for
as far as it concerns them, Rex Racer
is forever dead. Speed must never know;
I trust that you will keep my secret.

Written 6/16/08
© 2008 Nicole Nicholson. All Rights Reserved.


Stumble It!

Finally. So:

Some new Chaz and Jack. Short #4 is missing for a very good reason: Because I’m an idiot. I’ll rescan it some time and put it up as well. There are 5 shorts so far and a Christmas in near July bonus. It’s quite sad. Get out the tissues.

I paper craft through the summer (when I’m not sleeping through work). It’s fun. My most recent creation is the Mach 5 from Speed Racer (started it before I knew there was a movie coming. I’m just a Racer fan). I kind of messed up a bit due to unclear directions, but it was a fairly good model otherwise. Not professional, but free. And free is good. This is probably one of the best free Mach 5 paper crafts there is on the web.

Have a look see:

Snagged from PaperInside.com. You even get a few shots of my lovely desk. Marvelous. As far as Works and Days goes, it may have to wait until after finals sometime. Maybe not. We’ll see.

So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, adieu. Adieu, Adieu: To yu and yu and yu.

Digital Domain was the lead visual effects house on Speed Racer. In the following interview with Kim Libreri, DG’s master of technology you will discover more about his long term collaboration with John Gaeta, the conception and development of the techniques and tools required to create Speed Racer as well as the history of pan and tile panorama techniques since Mission Impossible.

This article is part of VRMag’s Speed Racer coverage.

Here he comes
Here comes Speed Racer
He’s a demon on wheels
He’s a demon and he’s gonna be chasin’ after someone.

He’s gainin’ on you so you better look alive.
He’s busy revvin’ up a powerful Mach 5.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go and email these pictures to myself in 1986. They are totally going to blow my / his mind.

After all the hype, we were very excited to see the Wachowski brothers’ supposedly cutting-edge adaptation of what was probably anime’s first big successful franchise here in the U.S. back in the 1960’s.

While the plot line of the film was barely groundbreaking, I thought the visual style and CGI effects were quite impressive. Colorfully fast paced. It might be too much to handle for some people (epileptics, for instance)…

The races were a lot of fun to watch; zig-zagging turns, the crescendo of roaring engines, somersaulting vehicles, loopy tracks, exotic scenery, the raging saboteurs, the flashing lights… vaguely reminiscent of the pod races in The Phantom Menace, but with more sugary goodness. It’s definitely like a “live cartoon,” and it’s a great family film in all its cheesy retro glory. We left the theater feeling dandy!

And yes, while I thought that the film had outstanding visual kinetics, I felt that somewhere in the pool of special effects, the characters themselves seemed to fade into all the lights and noise. The movie certainly appeals to a younger audience, as it seems that most of the scenes struggled to jump-start your attention and just couldn’t “sit still.” But then again, it is a kids’ movie. The story was “cute.”

Oh, and does anyone else think it’s weird to hear Speed say “shit???”

All in all, it was fun, exciting, and entertaining!

- Joyceline

La lista de Forbes de los autos de ficcion mas rapidos

Blurr – Autobots

800 Mph

Mach 5 – Meteoro

258 Mph

Batimovil- Batman

220 Mph

Dom’s Charger – Rapido y furioso

220 Mph (usando Nitro)

Kitt- El auto increible

203 Mph

Rayo Mcqueen

200 Mph

El general Lee – Duques de Hazzard

200 Mph

Aston Martin – James Bond

191 Mph

Herbie

190 Mph

Drag-u-la – Familia Monster

160 Mph

via Forbes

Does the picture below bring back old memories of the early 90’s? Does the picture below ring any bells of your early childhood? Does the familiar theme song of “Here he comes, here comes Speed Racer” circle around your mind like the Mach 5 so fast that you cannot stop singing it out loud?

Well, if all the answers to the aforementioned questions are a resounding yes, then you should definitely go to a cinema near you to catch the remake of the popular anime series Speed Racer!

Outlandish? Outrageous? Extravagant? Breathtaking? Out of this world? Over the top? You cannot deny the fact that the whole setting of the movie takes place in a colourful and vibrant metropolis of dazzling lights with no resemblance whatsoever to the world we live in, but you would not expect less than the people who brought you Matrix.

Emile Hirsch of Into the Wild fame, plays the title character, the determined and brave Speed Racer. It is never easy to play an icon, especially an iconic race car driver with a huge international cult following, but by the end of the movie, I sure as hell believe that Emile Hirsch, with all his vigour and enthusiasm, is Speed.

Overall, I have to say, the cast is reminiscent of their original cartoon counterparts which is testament to the directors’ and screen writers’ decision to stay true to the origins of the popular 52-episode series. Funnily enough, I actually watched Casper a few nights back, another remake of one of my favourite cartoons, and it starred Christina Ricci, who landed the role of Speed’s loyal girlfriend Trixie. She does a fantastic job playing Trixie despite an ill-advised hair cut, and her chemistry with Hirsch is one to savour.

Little Paulie Litt, more commonly on the set of comedic sitcom Hope and Faith is Sprittle, Speed’s younger brother; Susan Sarandon, last seen as the wicked witch in Enchanted plays Speed’s mum; the ever-funny John Goodman is Pops Racer, Speed’s dad, and Lost star Matthew Fox as the mysterious Racer X round up a stellar line-up. Korean pop star Rain also makes a cameo appearance in this flick as Taejo, another racer, and he can actually speak quite commendable English, so good for him!

Mach 5, Speed’s ultra-chic ride, is very much every fanboy’s dream, and after watching it on the big screen, it still exudes the cool factor with its phenomenal gadget wheel and flashy white exterior.

As I mentioned earlier, the whole cast is instrumental in making this movie, for me anyway, the second best movie this year behind Iron Man. Maybe it is my inner 5 year-old kid talking, but the sentimental value of this movie cannot be denied, and I really have to give props to the Wachowski Brothers, themselves being fans of the original, for making Speed Racer 21st century material with their outstanding and larger-than-life special effects.

Forgive me for the pun, but the 2 hour-flick just sped by, and Zhen Long, Melissa, and I left the cinema to a chorus of “Here he comes, here comes Speed Racer, he’s a demon on wheels…Go Speed Racer, go Speed Racer, GO SPEED RACER GO!”

Esta é a semana de estréia da superprodução dirigida pelos irmãos Matrix – Andy e Larry Wachowski –, o esperado Speed Racer, cujo site oficial está com novidades, incluindo o quarto trailer e ótimos wallpapers oficiais e icones. Além disso, você poderá ver todos os trailers, spots da TV e curtir uma galeria de fotos. Aproveite também para baixar em alta resolução as cenas do filme que ilustram este texto: basta clicar em cada uma das fotos para ampliar as imagens.

Você também pode fazer download de papéis de parede que criei a partir de imagens de divulgação do filme, clicando aqui.
Leia mais sobre Speed Racer, veja outros trailers mais fotos, clicando aqui.