Directed By Ross Venokur

Starring – Chloe Bennet, J.K Simmons, Jimmy O. Yang

The Plot – Tells the inspiring story of a slow-moving mammal with a need for speed. To save his grandmother’s home from demolition, young Zhi (Yang) wages a bet with Vainglorious (John Cleese), the reigning champion of the rally car circuit. With help from a former racing champion, Zhi enters the four-day Silk Road Rally in hopes of winning the cup and living out his racing dreams.

Rated PG for some mild violence and rude humor

RALLY ROAD RACERS – Official Trailer (2023) – YouTube

POSITIVES

It may have taken us nearly thirty-seven years to get a credible Super Mario Bros. film, but in the same year it appears we have an equally credible Mario Kart film in the form of “Rally Road Racers”, the biggest step forward for ReDefine Animation, whose projects to this point have relied solely on the “Rock Dog” sequels. What works in the form of their third feature length film is the complete lack of limitations within its designs and corresponding execution that not only conjures expressively bold features to the many character designs, but also imbeds speed, heft and especially exhillaration to the direction of these intense race sequences, with even a few weapons of adversity dispersed from the various road foes along the way. It’s so expressive and conceptually creative that we’re even treated to a few artistically unconventional sequences with music that only further prove the production’s commitment to visual spectacle all the more, with an iconic 80’s music video recreation being among my favorite of the film’s unique touches. This relaxed attitude in execution leaves it feeling very much like the appropriate world where all of the chaos and craziness of the “Fast and Furious” franchise could faithfully exist, without its audience batting an eye at the hilarity that seems to double when the stakes are at their highest for the characters involved, when the material is given free reign to appeal to its audience. On that aspect, the humor here is mostly effective in garnering more than a few laughs for the kiddies, but also the chaperoning parental units in tow, with a clever consistency for set-ups and punchlines that never require toilet humor or recycled constructs to tap into what’s indulging. Aside from this, the script shows its respect for the best of racing movies past, with homages and faithful callbacks to some of the best films of the genre, which further tap into the adult side of the audience, while educating the next generation on the predecessors that obviously influenced this animated contemporary. As for spirited turns, everyone here commits to the cause, but it’s especially J.K Simmons and John Cleese who are most integral to the benefit of the movie’s prominence, with Simmons sporting an obscuring Russian accent in the warming wisdom of heartfelt diameter, and Cleese commanding attention with a scenery-chewing antagonist turn that is far too charming and intense to root against. While it’s a shame that these two rarely ever share a scene together, their distance affords each of them ample time to showcase their impeccable range into the animation of their respective characters, marrying an organic dynamic of sight and sound that feels irreplacable without one or the other’s imposing statures imbedding consciousness to their candor.

NEGATIVES

Though the film frequently goes out of its way to conjure a visual prowess in artistic direction that feels so fresly innovative and original from any other studio persisting currently, the script is muddled by familiarity in story direction that plagues the experience with inescapable predictability behind its telegraphed story beats and movements, leaving little in the way of surprises or even momentary uncertainty for the characters and their conflicts. I can understand that kids movies don’t exactly have the avenue of exploration to test the audience in ways that adult movies with an R-rating capably can, but the lesson of the story, as well as the resolution feels every bit as interchangeable with any kids movie that has dropped over the last five years, without an instance of overwhelming vulnerability that deviated from that aforementioned familiar path. There’s even supporting antagonist frogs that seem outlined in the same fashion as every henchmen since the Minions took annoyance to a completely new level, with the ones here only meant to echo (Because they’re called echoes, get it?) the demands of their megalomaniacal boss, refusing to sacrifice cute and cuddly for dark and intimidating, like the iconic henchmen of some of the all-time animated classics. Aside from this, the film is slightly too brief at 88 minutes, with pacing to its storytelling that occasionally rushes through some of the more meaningful character development to the story’s benefit. I point emphatically towards the lack of growing pains with racing, which initially is given a surprising amount of responsibility in highlighting the dangers of racing, but then never exploited further to make the point seem necessarily relevant to the expanding narrative. His romantic dynamic with Shelby is also underutilized with a lack of alone time between them, which could’ve helped craft some more tension to the underlining secret she’s kept from him, but instead underwhelms the pay-off when the reveal is delivered with nothing that justifies the extent of his tortured reaction.

OVERALL
“Rally Road Racers” is a rip-roaring joy ride of a good time that is serviced accordingly with colorfully expressive animation and expansive humor that offers something beneficial for every member of the family. While the narrative is a bit rushed in places, and the track steers as conventionally as you might expect, Venokur’s limitless personality is all of the gas needed for the story to reach the finish line, leaving most of the animated offerings of this year eating the dust from the tires that never grow bald with such endearingly eccentric characters behind the wheel.

My Grade: 7/10 or B-