The Silk Road Rally

I hadn't heard about this 2023 animated movie titled "Rally Road Racers" prior to stumbling upon it by random chance. And thus, I opted to sit down and watch it with my son, whom happen to like most things with fast cars.

The storyline in "Rally Road Racers", as written by Ross Venokur, was pretty straight forward. It was an okay enjoyable enough storyline, given its simplicity. But of course, with it being an animated movie for children, then the storyline didn't really need to be multi-layered or overly elaborate.

The character gallery in "Rally Road Racers" was a fun and colorful one. However, there didn't really strike me to be any particular character that stood out, and I doubt that I will even remember them come next week. But at least they entertained my son well enough.

With "Rally Road Racers" being an animated movie, then having a talented voice acting ensemble is fairly important. And they did have that for this 2023 animated movie, with the likes of J. K. Simmons, Jimmy O. Yang, John Cleese, Lisa Lu and others. SO you were in fairly capable hands here.

Something that really worked in favor of "Rally Road Racers" was the art style and animation. I liked the way they presented the characters and the world around them, lots of nice details and unique things to take in. And the animation was good, smooth and rather dynamic.

Easily watchable for a single viewing, for me as an adult, but "Rally Road Racers" definitely should have some repeated viewing value to it for the younger audience.

My rating of director Ross Venour's 2023 animated movie "Rally Road Racers" lands on a six out of ten stars.

This remind anyone of the "Tortoise and the Hare"? The rather aptly named "Vainglorious" is about to bulldoze the family home where the young "Zhi" lives with his grandmother. Now he's not a bad rally driver, but he tends to bottle it when he spies the winning post, so when he challenges his new nemesis to victory in the upcoming, and perilous, "Silk Road Rally" - his opponent thinks it's a bit of a no-brainer. "Zhi" doesn't even have a car! Well, luckily for the young man he alights on grizzly veteran "Gnash" who not only finds him a car, but soups it up for him and agrees to be his (grumpy) co-driver as they embark on a race that would test the mettle of anyone. Needless to say, "Vainglorious" has every gadget and gizmo available, and has no scruples about cheating - so the task is very much an uphill one for our dynamic duo. Can he save his home and make sure that it's his foe with egg on his face? It's actually quite a fun little animation, this. It uses the racing as a conduit to introduce us to lots of different characters, to make friends, evaluate priorities and, of course, to ensure the philosophical toast doesn't end up butter side down! It did look quite good on a big screen, the action scenes are fun and the characterisations engaging enough to keep it interesting, if entirely predictable, for ninety minutes. You'll never remember it, but you might enjoy it as brain-freeze fodder. I did.

Zhi dreams all about racing. It is his only life goal. He misses his beloved late mother. He lives with his grandmother who sees him without harmony. Out of the blue, the evil toad racing champ Archie Vainglorious orders the gentle eviction of their home and demolition. He is leveling the last "slow loris" village and creating a swamp resort for toads. In desperation, Zhi challenges him to the upcoming Silk Road Rally which Archie fully expects to win. Zhi is able to recruit goat mechanic Gnash to help.

The general story is relatively simple. It is almost derivative, but I don't want to be mean. It does have some great songs starting with Cake and they even do a big A-Ha sequence. Obviously, this Chinese animated movie has one eye on western culture. Despite that, there are some problems translating the story between the two cultures. Little things do go wrong and stick out like little speed bumps. This is better than most Chinese efforts. It just needs a few more passes.

ADD: A little more reading yields the fact that this is not Chinese animation. Fair enough. It seems to be a hodgepodge of international animators that I've never heard of. Here's the thing. This mixing and mashing of cultures leaves everything a little muddled. It's great to read that somebody spent a couple of days in Shanghai. That should solve everything.

Road Race Rally delivers on the adrenaline-pumping action you'd expect from a movie about high-speed racing. The car sequences are thrilling, with impressive stunts and a sense of speed that keeps you engaged. The film captures the excitement of the race, and if you're in it for the fast cars and close calls, you won't be disappointed. However, the story that ties it all together feels a bit undercooked. The characters are fairly standard, and the plot doesn't offer much beyond the basics-a few predictable twists and a rivalry that never quite sizzles. The pacing also suffers from a few slow patches where the energy dips. "Road Race Rally" is a fun ride for the action, but it's not the most memorable journey. It's worth a watch if you're a fan of the genre, but don't expect much more than some solid automotive thrills.

IN A NUTSHELL: Thank you to Viva Kids for sending me a press screener so I could watch this before it was released in theaters!

The action-packed animation was written and directed by Ross Venokur. Its message is that it's not the size of the competitor that matters, but the size of the dream. It's about Zhi, a rookie race car driver, who gets the opportunity to compete against the reigning champion of the rally car circuit. With help from a former driver-turned-mechanic, Zhi must overcome treacherous terrain, rival racers, and unexpected obstacles to prove he has what it takes to be the next great racer.

THINGS I LIKED: The family-friendly flick features the popular voices of Jimmy O. Yang, J. K. Simmons, Chloe Bennet, Lisa Lu, Catherine Tate, Sharon Horgan, and John Cleese.

I've been a fan of J. K. Simmons for years and have never heard him use the entertaining accent he does in this movie before! Nice job! I wonder how he came up with it. He kind of sounded like an old Jewish New York man.

This extremely colorful (so much purple!) action animation definitely has a Chinese culture vibe. Typical street scenes show people doing Tai Chi, playing Mahjong, and buying street food: all things I love about China. I've been there many times and love so much about the culture. My daughter-in-law is Chinese, as well as my new, little grandson!

I actually knew a French man who could catch a fly like the grandma does in the movie. Ha ha Your kids will learn a little bit about Tai Chi and Daoism.

There is a lot of cute visual and spoken humor.

The pregnant, male seahorse is cute and will introduce kids to that unique paternal creature. Back when I lived in San Diego, I took my kids to the fantastic Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography where we walked into the seahorse area when a father seahorse had just given birth! Amazing!

The peppy soundtrack gives the film a lot of energy. The high-energy movie has a lot of 80s throwback songs for parents to enjoy.

There is something for everyone: action, romance, drama, and suspense.

THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE: At the 13-minute mark, a character suddenly breaks out in a rap, which was both odd and unexpected. I thought, maybe, the movie was going to be an animated musical, but it's not.

Super predictable and cliched plot.

Dead father. Super cliched, right?

The movie is mostly going to feel like loud, colorful same-ole to parents. There's not enough to keep parents glued to their seats with their children.

At 44 minutes, the animation goes black and white and takes on a style of pencil drawings, another moment that felt odd and unexpected.

The toad's minions are inspired by yet not nearly as cute as Despicable Me's minions.

It would have been cute to have an after-credits scene. I always love those.

TIPS FOR PARENTS: Lots of car crashes and destruction Some fighting Some of the vocabulary will be too advanced for kids. Some Yiddish words are also used.

Some Mandarin is spoken with and without subtitles.

Kissing Dishonest behavior Reference to a character flipping the bird with his fingers.

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