I wish I got this interview on video. Emile Hirsch was acting like he just came off a late night of drinking countless Red Bulls. The actor couldn’t have been more energetic and enthusiastic about everything he was saying. It threw me at times, for sure, but it was refreshing on some level. Here is a young actor that does not take himself seriously at all and that does not come off pretentious, at least that’s the impression I got. Hirsch was at Comic-Con promoting the under-the-radar alien-invasion film, The Darkest Hour. The film had no Hall H presence, but a press event was held at the pain-in-the-ass Hard Rock Hotel. The concept art I saw presented the film as an atmospheric and small invasion film set in Mother Russia. The aliens decided not to stop by Los Angeles or New York for the thousandth time. Here’s what Emile Hirsch had to say about the scope of the film, how it doesn’t take itself too seriously, and how Speed Racer was ahead of its time:

Speed Racer is the young, hotshot kid that’s going to shake up the world of racing. With the help of his loving family and hot girlfriend (?), he’ll be able to stop the stock scheme of some villain and change the face of race car driving forever. Will Speed find the will to defeat some evil corporate schmuck? Since this is intended to be a kid’s movie, yes, you bet he will! Why We Love It: Dick Tracy + Sin City + The Matrix + The Wizard of Oz + Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory + Wall Street (yes, that Wall Street) + whatever visually eye-titillating movie you can think of = Speed Racer. This film is totally “cool beans,” and that, while featuring flavors of those movies listed, is its own colorfully bombastic beast.

It was the best of times and the drug-induced times in American modern history. Stick out your thumb and dig deep into the madness.

Kevin Carr looks ahead to this week’s movie releases, effectively shredding The Final Destination, urging you to stay clear of Halloween 2 and Taking Woodstock to task.

‘Taking Woodstock’ is an unexpected detour into sunny territory for director Ang Lee but it’s so lightweight it’s almost insubstantial.

A little birdie left a bunch of cool images from Taking Woodstock on my doorstep, and then clumsily flew off into a nearby window.

According to those that have seen the script, it seems so.

The young actor wants to tackle the most famous theater role of all time with the director of Twilight at the helm. Good idea or bad idea? Methinks they doth protest too little.

Ang Lee’s forthcoming flick has a new poster that looks like H.R. Pufnstuf threw up all over a large piece of paper. In the good way.

Last night the first trailer for Taking Woodstock, the latest film from director Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain), premiered during the Comedy Central show Important Things with Demetri Martin. And since then, it has appeared online in a low resolution format. Lo-res or not though, we feel that it’s important that you get a look this morning.

Kevin Carr looks at Australia, Four Christmases, Transporter 3 and Milk, in theaters this week with the FSR Report Card.

It’s the Big, Fat Thanksgiving Special! Kevin and Neil beam into the Magical Virtual Studio in the Sky two days early to get ready for their Thanksgiving feast which will keep them napping through the weekend.

Six months after Medellin premiered at Cannes to a disastrous reception, the quartet is divided by the repercussions.

To put it simply, Gus Van Sant’s upcoming film Milk, which stars Sean Penn as California’s first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk, looks fantastic.

You have to give Ang Lee credit for being a wily and unpredictable filmmaker. He has jumped from genre to genre throughout his careers. And his next jump will land him in a very strange place.

Upon screening Speed Racer, the latest attempt by the brothers Wachowski to push the envelope of technical effects in filmmaking, I can come away with one two clear conclusions. On one hand, I have a headache. On the other hand, I have decided that the Wachowskis are sick, in more ways than I can count.

Speed Racer is a movie to experience, not just a movie to watch. It’s a complete package with campy humor, thrilling action sequences, and emotional dramatics – all delivered through the unparalleled visual style of The Wachowski Brothers.

Besides The Incredible Hulk, I can’t think of another summer release that has me more puzzled than Speed Racer. The first trailer looked like it could be a cute, fun diversion. The international trailer upped the ante a bit by adding more plot and action. But this music video on MySpace just makes me ill.

As if you thought you could escape Speed Racer today, we have yet another extended clip. This time, Apple has posted a great new 4-minute featurette to accompany the 4-minute extended trailer that we brought you earlier today.

The verdict is still out on Speed Racer, the next film from The Wachowski Brothers. Will it be as cool as The Matrix? We can’t be sure, just yet. But as for what we can see in this brand new trailer, we are at least interested in seeing more.