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The Wachowski Brothers picked a dangerous time to unleash their latest movie onto the world. With Iron Man making just over $349 Trillion at the box office this weekend, it’s set to take the top spot again. So despite the praise I (and other critics) heaped on Speed Racer earlier in the week, it looks like it’s giving Iron Man a healthy head start before even coming out of the gate.

The Hollywood Reporter is Hollywood reporting that Racer‘s tracking numbers are settling in the $25 to $35 million dollar range, nothing spectacular for the Summer Blockbuster Season. Since I’m a simple, caveman critic, and I don’t trust numbers since people called Florida for Al Gore, I’m content to wait to see whether the family-action flick can hold its own this weekend.

THR also points out that family movie-goers are difficult to predict, but even with those factors, it’s highly likely that old Shell Head will be back on top for a second week in a row, stealing the checkered flag away from Speed.

Plus, critics have had a hand in hurting numbers for Speed Racer, panning it as the possible let down of the Summer before the first teaser trailer had been released. Even worse, its producers have failed to generate any level of buzz for it, clouded behind the geekgasms that Dark Knight and Iron Man have produced.

There’s a definite delineation point between critics, though: age. A quick look at Rotten Tomatoes shows Speed Racer polling at 38% (out of only 8 reviews), and the major difference is that older reviewers see the film as hollow fun for children while the younger critics are amazed by the visuals and the nostalgia of it.

So it’s not looking good right now for anyone behind the wheel of the Mach 5, but the bright side is that while it’s failing to see massive numbers, it’s still set to recoup it’s entire $100 million budget and see a strong showing internationally. Still, there’s little reason to believe that it will be strong enough to knock Iron Man from its place at the top.