Gotta love the Hollywood casting process. Last week we were all here talking about the possibility of Chris Pine and secretly hoping for Jensen Ackles. Now, it looks like neither of them is really in the running if the report from Deadline Hollywood can be believed.

Marvel Studios and Joe Johnston have released their target list for the role of Captain America, and we are talking an almost entirely new set of names from the ones we saw before. Here’s the revamped collection of contenders:

Chace Crawford (GOSSIP GIRL)
John Krasinski (THE OFFICE)
Scott Porter (FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS)
Mike Vogel (CLOVERFIELD)
Michael Cassidy (PRIVELDGED)
Patrick Flueger (BROTHERS)
Garrett Hedlund (TRON LEGACY)

For the most part this is in keeping withJohnston’s desire not to have a big star name in the lead. Krasinski is the one exception here, but of course, he’s also the one name thats there to give this list some credibility. Otherwise, you’d just have a bunch of confused faces scratching their heads and trying to recall the guys from Cloverfield and Friday Night Lights. Chace Crawford may be the other exception, but I’ve not seen Gossip Girl so I can’t comment.

Actually, Krasinski could be a good choice. He’s got some height, some charisma and it would be interesting to seem him pushed in a direction that wasn’t Jim from the Office or the background wallpaper in romantic comedies. He may also be the least likely candidate because of his schedule and potential asking price. I wish I could comment on the rest of these guys, but the only one I’ve seen more than once in something is Scott Porter. Garrett Hedlund is an unknown, but that may change by the time Tron Legacy rolls out. Who knows?

I’d like to put more stock in the list, and I’m pulling for Krasinski, but it seems entirely possible next week that we might learn they just said screw it and have decided that Ryan Reynolds can play every character in the movie.

Here he comes…here comes Speed Racer. He’s a demon on wheels.

I am a big Speed Racer fan. I used to rush home after school to catch Speed Racer before doing my homework. I even wanted to paint my bike white and put a red 5 on the side to make it my Mach 5. So I was stoked when I started seeing advertisements for this movie months ago. I couldn’t wait to see how one of my boyhood shows would be turned into a motion picture.

This movie is a cornucopia of colors, sights, and sounds. For everything that was wrong with the last two Matrix movies, the Wachowski brothers managed to do everything right with this one. They not only captured the essence of the American “Speed Racer” but they also were able to tap into the Japanese original “Mach Go Go Go” for further inspiration.

The movie starts with Speed Racer (Emile Hirsch) driving like a demon on wheels at Thunderhead race track. He’s not only trying to win the race but he’s also trying to chase after his dream of being like his older brother, Rex Racer (Scott Porter).

Pops (John Goodman) is the matriarch of the family and the designer of the famous Mach 5. He is supported by his loving wife Mom Racer (Susan Sarandon). Also with the family is younger son Spritle (Paulie Litt) and his pet Chim-Chim the monkey. Pops can’t do everything alone so he has long time family friend Sparky (Kick Gurry) as the mechanic of the group but also Speed’s race day spotter. Rounding out the family is Speed’s girlfriend Trixie (Christina Ricci) who has been there for speed since grade school.

There is more to this movie then the racing. There is a story of big business corruption and how it is taking over the World Racing League by fixing races. One such business is Royalton Industries headed by A.Royalton (Roger Allam). He’ll stop at nothing to get what he wants and if that means paying off drivers to stop Speed from winning then that’s what he’ll do.

Trying to stop him is the CIB, an international law organization that has a few tricks of their own. The lead investigator, Inspector Detector (Benno Fürmann), has a driver that will stop the corruption of the WRL by brining justices back…Racer X (Matthew Fox) is that driver. But he can’t do it alone so he enlists the aid of Speed Racer to help crack the case and bring Royalton’s company down.

The Wachowskis were able to do something new and fresh with the races and make the cars seem alive. Each race left you breathless and waiting for more as you watched the stunning driving of Speed Racer and the other drivers. From the beginning race at Thunderhead to the final Grand Prix you will be amazed at the acrobatic movements of the automobiles.

The casting was perfect. Each actor selected was able to channel their animated counterpart. This movie has plenty of action, adventure, and humor for all to enjoy.

Speed Racer is distributed by Warner Brothers, written and directed by the Wachowski brothers. It is rated PG for sequences of action, some violence and language.

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆