Genre: action/fantasy
Year: April 2009
Running Time: 80mins
Dt's Rating: 8/10
Like any geekdoms, when a live action film is made of one of your favourite things (in this case the Dragonball anime) it' a complex relationship. Part of you gets overexcited to see all your favourite characters, part of you is interested in how they adapt it to film and a odern context, other parts are just waiting to tear any innovation on teh writer's/director's part to shreds.
So when I went to see this in the cinema today with my sister, our inner cynics were poised and ready, while I was 'squeeing' at every oppertunity like a fangirl, just hoping it would be even passably good.
And it was. More than passably, it was a genuinely fun film smile
I won't go into all the things they changed - there's plenty of people who do that. I will say that it all worked within the film. Any changes were well placed and made sense, while being very true to the spirit of the manga, and they even threw in a few subtle nuggets of fandom gold for you to spot, which showed that the filmmakers were fans of the manga/anime too.
The story's basic goods vs evil and would appeal to kids. Inoffensive, funny and often goofy, while still being a genuinely interesting and compelling film.
While giving the characters a modern twist, it surprised me how true they were to them:
Goku - while older and now in highschool- was still a goofy misfit, with an air of confidence when he got into his swing of fighting. he's not as dim as in the manga, but still retains the awkwardness that we love, and they even referenced his huge appetite (snacking on a massive leg of lamb or whatever) and even though he's had a major change fo hairdo, they added a cute little scene where he tries to gel it down, only to have it flick the gel 'twang!' back at the mirror.
Chichi is more of a love interest now, to gel the film together, and in many ways they improved on her character - showing her gutsiness as seen in the manga, before she got all housewife-y. She gives the other characters a run for their money, they referenced that her name is a bit stupid (if I'm right it essentially means 'boobs' in japanese), and she was cast as an asian, which really fitted.
Bulma was excellent - very gutsy,some what selfish as in the series, intelligent and trigger happy, and her gadgets were excellent. Plus she had blue bits in her hair, which was a great compromise from giving her all blue/green hair.
Master Roshi, played by one of my fave martial arts actors of 'bulletproof monk' fame, was awesome. He's jounger but still a hawaiian-shirt clad pervert, and the twist they added as a nod to his island house was very well done. He's shown as a geniunely good fighter, while still being bumbling enough for a lot of gags.
Piccolo didn't have many lines, but was scary enough and the makeup was updated very well. Plus it's James Marsters, so he oozes cool.
Grandpa Gohan was a great part too, and it was nice he was actually alive. the training he does iwth goku is awesome, esp the opening scene, and he's a genuinely warm and likable character.
Yamcha - surprise enetery of Yamcha here, I didn't think he'd be in it. They did him as a somewhat stoner/surferdude dumbass bandit, but he was sweet and showed his worth in the end, plus he got his girl ^_^
The whole Oozaru tie in to try and compromise for Goku being an alien was a little odd, but made sense in the film. They couldn't have adde din the whole saiyan thing relaistically. Plus a note has to be said for Gou's Yellow-updated gi. Really great design, and the occasional orange-and-blue themes in his clothes were a nice touch too.
The ki attacks were done really well, and harked back to a time which marked the origional dragonball as better than dbz in many ways - the characters have to work hard and realistically to get better, rather than just going *poof* and gaining a bazillion levels.
All in all - very funny, well done and a good watch that doesn't require much concentration. Fans should love it. smile
8/10
