Python compiler?

[news-server.columbus.rr.com]

Has everyone contemplated upon creating a python 'compiler',  which can
produce a self-contained binary executable?  (for when speed is an absolute
neccessity)  ..or does such a thing exist already?  I'd love to give game
development in Photon a run,  and feel that it's simply not fast enough to
perform some operations.

Any thoughts/comments are appreciated.
Brian