The Official Rate and Review Thread

[Lobo]

Like a Star Wars fan waiting in line for the prequels!

 

[BLACK-SPIDEY]

What's wrong with you guys? You invest so much time and energy into following every aspect of this film's development, then turn your back on it at a few ****tastic reviews?

*steps on soap box*

Were you not completely overjoyed when Goku became super saiyan for the first time in the series? Did that not make you believe that anything was possible if you just never gave up?

Did you not sit down after school every day eagerly awaiting the next thrilling adventures of Goku and gang?

I'm not going to sugar coat this anymore, yes I'm the last person to say this, but...

What a bunch of *****ES!

You're not a true fan if a few bad reviews makes you lose interest in watching Goku return after all these long years. I'll be there with my Goku action figure I got in 2000 and I'll be the happiest little fan in the world even if I'm alone and to hell with you if you don't see things my way!

QFT
i think you are right this movie should be pretty good, i mean DB fans didnt like GT then some of them screwed up with the god awful AF and the magic begins sucked oozaru balls (yes i know he doesnt have balls) and now that we got a flick comin out they just ***** about it, they made it PG so they could bring the new generation of kids to see it then see the series and fall in love with it, i mean theres far worse things than this and i think you and me now those horrible flicks.

 

[DorkyFresh]

a positive review from the dragonballmovieblog forums.

http://www.dragonballmovieblog.net/boards/showpost.php?p=43120&postcount=1

i just saw the movie and i got to say,it was better than i expected..the action was great and the comedy in it was kinda good actually..it shows a little bit of the original dragonball..although, i was kinda frustrated because its an hour and a half,so the story was kinda rush..the epic battle between goku and piccolo was incredible..the special effects was awesome..the acting is a little cheesy bt hey,it is dragonball rite?they might change a lot of things in this movie,bt they somehow manage to put in a little stuffs that many of u guys thought they pull out..here are some stuffs from the movie

-master roshi is a god damn pervert
-sifu norris talked about the 'OTHERSIDE' and master roshi saw gohan when he died(the afterlife anyone?)
-yamcha,so dead on
-yamcha getting his ass burned
-the training with the orange was hilarious(u got to see it)
-oozaru(although it was for 2 minutes i think)
-the ending of the epic battle when goku flew to piccolo while doing the kame hame ha.Similar to the battle in the original dragonball but goku didnt punch through piccolo but he just kame hame ha that green bad ass away.
-the teasing between goku and chi chi.(its funny as hell)

im giving this movie a 4/5 cause im a fan of the franchise and i got to say this is great movie.Some may not like the movie but i dont care.As long as i like it,i doesnt matter. It might be confusing with the whole piccolo and oozaru working together(wtf?) but if there is a sequel, i know that they will explain it more clearly and have the movie a little longer(2 hours perhaps?)

spoiler - cute soup girl nursing the defeated

 

[Crosswind Ghost]

Watch this if you liked: "Shaolin Girl" and other anime movies

For a comic adaptation, "Dragonball Evolution" has quite a promising future for sequels. The awesome opening scene gives you this impression, with the right effects and perfect timing.

However, "Dragonball" might not do enough justice to fans of Goku, who blasts out his super saiya power, taking the baddies down. Instead, he is portrayed as a typical teenager, having problems within the school social circle and yet in the end gets the chick without having to break a sweat. His definitive bad hair trademark is also pretty much compromised by Justin Chatwin's good looks.

Apart from Goku, there isn't much about character building in the story. Much is apparent to the "Dragonball" fan but plenty is left out for newcomers who don't know the story. Where do they come from and to whom are they related? Nothing is mentioned about that. Maybe that's director James Wong wanting us to use our imaginative mind to draw a link between these characters, no?

Here, Picollo played by James Marsters looks like his evil twin from Jim Carrey's "The Mask." Again, his background is very much generated from scripts instead of a decent flashback about himself. Hong Kong superstar Chow Yun-Fat plays Master Roshi, the funny and perverted but enlightened character. Despite his age, Chow's persona is still as flawless as his younger "Prison On Fire" days.

"Dragonball" is very much just martial arts and tonnes of effects. Do not expect much artsy-fartsy cinematography or boring two-angle scenes. In "Dragonball," James Wong's effort in experimenting with different kinds of effect can best be noted in some super cool slow motion capture.

Sometimes it is rather annoying watching a non-martial artist performing in a martial arts movie. They look like they're kicking dust. Talent casting should give some emphasis on those who can really kick butt instead of those with just good looks. In today's industry, good looks aren't enough. Besides, there are lots of talents out there waiting to be discovered!

3 1/2 out of 5.

http://www.cinema.com.my/movies/movie_contents.aspx?search=2009.4400.dragonball.8947&section=review

 

[JP]

Nice.

 

[Robdixxo]

What's wrong with you guys? You invest so much time and energy into following every aspect of this film's development, then turn your back on it at a few ****tastic reviews?

*steps on soap box*

Were you not completely overjoyed when Goku became super saiyan for the first time in the series? Did that not make you believe that anything was possible if you just never gave up?

Did you not sit down after school every day eagerly awaiting the next thrilling adventures of Goku and gang?

I'm not going to sugar coat this anymore, yes I'm the last person to say this, but...

What a bunch of *****ES!

You're not a true fan if a few bad reviews makes you lose interest in watching Goku return after all these long years. I'll be there with my Goku action figure I got in 2000 and I'll be the happiest little fan in the world even if I'm alone and to hell with you if you don't see things my way!

I follow the original Japanese version of the manga and anime, not the crap America dub or this crap movie.

Yes, Dragonball has made me feel those things and much more, but I have a feeling this movie won't.

And judging from everything we've seen so far, the real Goku isn't returning. I'm sure he's hiding because he's too embarrassed to be associated with this abomination of a movie.

 

[DorkyFresh]

I follow the original Japanese version of the manga and anime, not the crap America dub or this crap movie.

Yes, Dragonball has made me feel those things and much more, but I have a feeling this movie won't.

And judging from everything we've seen so far, the real Goku isn't returning. I'm sure he's hiding because he's too embarrassed to be associated with this abomination of a movie.

 

[JP]

There's some high hopes going around the interwebs that Rothman's promotion today will keep him from being directly involved with Fox movies.

 

[DorkyFresh]

that a-hole is getting a promotion??? that @$$wipe should be fired!

 

[JP]

Well, now he overseas television as well. So, say goodbye to good shows on Fox!

 

[SatEL]

QFT
i think you are right this movie should be pretty good, i mean DB fans didnt like GT then some of them screwed up with the god awful AF and the magic begins sucked oozaru balls (yes i know he doesnt have balls) and now that we got a flick comin out they just ***** about it, they made it PG so they could bring the new generation of kids to see it then see the series and fall in love with it, i mean theres far worse things than this and i think you and me now those horrible flicks.

Oh yes this film is rated PG so all the lovely little kids can enjoy and embrace the Dragonball world.......how caring of them.

 

[Kaizer104]

Oh yes this film is rated PG so all the lovely little kids can enjoy and embrace the Dragonball world.......how caring of them.

Nothing says "For children" like explosions, human-sized monsters and fighting. After all, that's what FOX Kids was all about back in my day..

I'm surprised something good was said about Jamie Chung, in terms of reviews.

 

[dark_b]

so is this mid-transformation?


or were the reshoots because they changed oozaru?

 

[Kaizer104]

I don't think that was even remotely used. It was just a test mask, I think.

 

[Kahran Ramsus]

Like a Star Wars fan waiting in line for the prequels!

One big difference. The Star Wars prequels looked good going in and then just majorly disappointed (although I maintain that the third one was really good). There was no reason to believe that the Star Wars prequels were going to suck.

Dragonball Evolution has looked horrible from the beginning so these reviews aren't exactly coming out of left field. They are just confirming that the things we were concerned about are true.

 

[dark_b]

I don't think that was even remotely used. It was just a test mask, I think.

and they made an action figure out of a test figure with saiyan armor?

you really think that they would build and spend money on a mask like this only for testing? testing what? lighting? how it looks on the actor? and because of that they used this mask on the set?

 

[Kaizer104]

and they made an action figure out of a test figure with saiyan armor?

you really think that they would build and spend money on a mask like this only for testing? testing what? lighting? how it looks on the actor? and because of that they used this mask on the set?

Considering what we've seen of the Oozaru looks absolutely nothing like that..
I'm not sure, maybe they super-touched it up. All I know is Oozaru doesn't look like that.

 

[DorkyFresh]

from Sean-Kun's World

http://seannosekai.blogspot.com/2009/03/dragonball-evolution-review.html

Dragonball Evolution opened here in cinemas today, 12th March 2009. I've been tracking the progress of the movie since its official announcement from 20th Century Fox back in 2007. I remember back then, most of the fans were still really doubtful of the actual realisation of the movie, since no actual ground work took place although the licence for the movie was acquired back in 2002. Everything were just smoke and mirrors, till James Wong was appointed the director and more excitingly, Stephen Chow as the producer.

Having walked out of the theater less than an hour ago, I have really strong emotions about this movie. As a kid and teenager in the late 80s and early 90s, I practically grew up with Dragonball. I owned the manga, bought all the movies, and heck I made my own Saiyanjin scouter. Spent a mini fortune on those darn Dragonball cards too. So naturally, I was more than excited when the movie adaptation was given the green light.

I'm not one of those skeptics who scowled at the fact that Goku was going to be played by a caucasian. My perspective is that this wasn't going to be the Dragonball we know, and that it is only based on the series which possibly spawned the most successful anime franchise of all time. Thus, I'm aware of all the changes and will accept them, as long as the characters stay true to the original, and that the overall experience of the movie will still retain the feel of the series, and staying to the roots which have captured so many hearts around the world.
I advise that unless you want to be spoiled for the movie, refrain from reading any further. My thoughts on the movie will inadvertably be full of spoilers for those yet to see the movie, although reading on might lower your expectations a little so the movie might turn out to be more entertaining.

Here goes the hard truth. For the loyal fans expecting the Dragonball story and the characters you've loved for years, you will be sorely disappointed. The movie is only 89 minutes long, and there is a lot to tell within such a short duration. The audience are generally split into half: those who know Dragonball, and those who don't. For those who have never heard of the series, they will be hard pressed trying to piece the pieces together to form a coherent picture and storyline. The entire plot isn't built up properly, and leaves the casual viewer with more questions than answers. It felt simpler than the manga, but somehow more disorganised and stiched up abruptly. Scenes felt forced, and made worse by the horrible writing, with dialogue so bad and cheesy my ears almost bled. Yes, the lines are that terrible.

The acting left much to be desired about as well. Main culprit, sadly is Goku. While I have no problems with Justin Chatwin, whom I think does well in appearance as a live version of the protagonist, he really does need to work on his acting skills. Dialogues seem dead, and his expressions are limited. That's not the bad part too. The sad thing is that the Goku in the manga and anime, you won't find him in the movie. Yes, he's a student in high school as opposed to a wild child living in the woods, but I can accept that. All I needed was for him to be in character, sharing the same traits and having the same values and charisma as the original Goku. Well, that seemed to be too difficult to adopt, according to James Wong.
Of course, there are instances where Justin seemed totally Goku. The way he asked Bulma when they met for the first time "Are you Piccolo?", was awesome. That's one of my favourite scenes in the entire movie. The way he interacted with Bulma and how he ate and offered the huge drumstick, that was Goku. Though, the similarities end there. The original Goku was confident, yet naive. He was serious, hardworking, and never gave up. There wasn't really any romance with Chi Chi, since he couldn't understand the concept of love and couldn't even tell the difference between girls and monsters. The movie version? Serious, but always at the wrong time. Cheats in training, gets his ass kicked by a girl, and getting close to Chi Chi as a motivation for training? Right.

The plot lends itself to too many changes as well, many unnecessary and this is another aspect which most fans will get pissed off upon. The movie stated that 2000 years ago, Piccolo and his servant Oozaru dominated the Earth and cause chaos and disorder upon mankind. So..... the Saiyanjin colony sent someone to Earth that long ago, and this particular Saiyanjin became the slave of a Namek seijin? The movie never really answered this, and only left the viewers with the best answer they could come up with: The Prophecy. It doesn't work this way, and both types of audiences, fan or not, can't possibly accept this as an explaination.

Yes, several elements were retained, such as the Mafuuba and the Kamehameha. But I didn't buy Roshi's explainations, nor how he executed his version of the Kamehameha, which was for some reason not blue in colour. Goku's version was better, but the classic poses were replaced by fancy tai-chi stances. Not good, since little things like these ought to please the long term fans better.

Piccolo and Mai had virtually no backstory, nor did the existance of the Dragonballs. Chi Chi, was another character which was almost totally out of character. Not as feisty as the original, and too direct. The original was shy, but would almost kick Goku's ass unless he married her (long story). Dragonball Evolution tries to hard to make the romance a key aspect of the show, but really, Goku didn't need love. Not at this stage.
I would say that Roshi and Yamcha, are the ones which were more or less similar to their original counterparts. Roshi still remains a pervert, but wouldn't let Bulma's verbal threats stop him from grabbing her ass. Yamcha, still a thief, had some of the worsts lines of the movie, including this awkward romantic scene with Bulma. Maybe they wanted to retain the love-hate relationship between Bulma and Yamcha in the manga, but Yamcha was never this direct and good with girls. And did Roshi just resurrected Goku with a Kamehameha? That doesn't make sense at all, and Goku shouldn't even have been knocked out by a gun, much less on the verge of death.

Flashy and awesome CGI was promised, yet somehow I must have missed all that. The slow motion sequences had no meaning, and were used purely to try and impress the viewers. The wire-fu was much too obvious, and no one would have thought that this was a Dragonball movie. I was hoping that the fights would stay true to Dragonball, with staring contests, strength demonstrations, the usual evil grin and thrashing of the hero, flashing speed attacks, and over the top ki blasts. And none of this happened. Give me the fight between Goku and Vegeta, or Freeza anyday over this. In short, no aspect of the classic Dragonball bouts are found in the movie.

It could have been so much more with the fiights. At least let Goku and Piccolo go head to head with clashing fists before Piccolo showing a grin and sending Goku into the boulders and appearing behind him using super speed. None, and Goku's final Kamehameha looked nothing like the original. The final fight is one of the most anti-climax fights I've ever seen in any movie, and Piccolo should just hide in a cave in shame if there ever is a sequel (trilogy plans yes, but if this movie fails too hard......).

I've written pretty much now, and to conclude I would say that while you may or may not be a Dragonball fan, it's going to be hard to accept this movie. I'm not as pissed off with it as with Spider-man 3, but that's probably because I didn't expect much from this anyway. It failed harder than I could have expected, and I leave the theatre shaking my head in disbelief, with my wife nagging about wasting both time and money. And guess what, I actually agree with her. See this movie if you love to hate, and to see for youself how not to do a live action Dragonball film.

 

[TLH]

New review, semi-positive.

Dragonball Evolution opens in Japan this Friday, about a month before it does in the states.

There is a lot of bad talk about this so I didn't go into this with high expectation.

When I first heard back in 2002 that they were making a live Action Dragon Ball (Z at the time) Movie I was very excited. Thinking of the possibilities. Dragonball shares many elements with Superman, Into the west and the fighting in the animation looks like the Matrix on steroids. I have been a big fan of the animation and Manga for a long time now and thought that this could be a epic movie done on a large scale. Who was producing it? 20th Century Fox. Well then I thought they were part of those great X-Men films (1 and 2 at the time) so I had hoped we might get something close to that. This was supposed to be on the fast track for a 2004 release. When news of the live action surfaced the official Funimation site did a poll asking who they wanted Jet Li and Jackie Chan to play. I shuddered.

For a long time nothing happened until I read that James Wong was directing this. My expectations did fall.

How was the movie? In a word, Kawaii. Cute. There's lots of little bits here and there that fans of the series will enjoy such as a pervy Master Roshi played by Chow Yun Fat, even the animated series they showed in the states and UK cut out those bits. Yamcha is kinda funny in that he sounds a lot like the Yamcha from the American dubbed DB, Emmy Rossim as Bulma was unimpressive. At times I felt I was watching Charactures on screen, they all have their trademarks personalities but not much else behind that.

I can understand why a lot of characters aren't in it such krillin, Tien and Chiaotzu. It's hard to fit so many characters and story into a film such as this. Especially one with a running time of 88 minutes. The story is very condensed but it mostly hits all the marks to be near enough to the basic story of Piccolo in the DB Manga.

James Marster is coolness as Piccolo however he is on screen for too short time. If there is a sequel I hope we get to see more of his character. Justin Chatwin seems to be channeling Goku a bit. At times he shines as the character. Other times it's a little wooden but I blame that more on the script as he doesn't have much to work with.

As for the story it starts with the introduction of the Dragonballs, Piccolo and Oozaru who tried to take over the world 2000 years ago. Piccolo was stopped and put in a prison and Oozaru disappeared. For fans of the show this won't be a big spoiler but for anyone who hasn't seen the animation or read the Manga the spoiler is that Goku is Oozaru. But he doesn't find that out till later.

Piccolo somehow escapes but it's not shown how.

Goku after his training with his Grandfather Gohan heads off to School. His School scenes are basically a rip off of the first Spiderman film and all those typical films where the guy defeats the bully and takes the girl, Chichi. Anyway, Goku can't kick these guys asses because if he did (and he could) they'd end up in a hospital or worse. So he has to control himself and not fight them. Later he decides to confront them at a party but doesn't fight them and instead lets them hit each other as he dodges their blows in super slow mo, how original....

Fortunately the story moves past Goku in high School pretty quickly and moves onto the real story. Piccolo offs Gohan while Goku is away. Goku Teams up with a girl he meets called Bulma who thinks the dragonballs can be used as an unlimited power source. They find Master Roshi and set out to search for the Dragonballs with the help of a bandit named Yamcha they meet along the way. But Roshi knowing they don't have enough time before a solar eclipse decides he has to learn a special technique to trap Piccolo once again but this will cost him his own life. The film speeds along to the end with Roshi Teaching Goku the Kamehameha, Goku does some training. Chichi has a fight with herself and they all head off after Piccolo.

The final action scenes are a bit disappointing. Goku as Oozaru looks a bit silly. I don't think Goku even throws one punch at Piccolo. Instead he uses the Kamhameha against him. By the end after using the Dragonballs to summon Shenron and save guess who they all set off again to find the dragonballs once more.

The film isn't bad. Just not great.

Suited for kids and curious fans.

I guess a lot of stuff was cut from this film. There are scenes in earlier Trailers that aren't in this and gone is the grey looking Piccolo, now he is only green.

If they make a sequel and I hope they do. I hope that they find someone else other than Wong to direct this. Make it bigger, more epic, add some more mythology and bring on Vegeta!

Source: http://www.aintitcool.com/node/40422

 

[GS455]

sorry already posted

 

[dark_b]

how did the Fulums looked?

 

[dark_b]

edit

 

[Crosswind Ghost]

Another review from a DBMF member


This review comes with a disclaimer that this is purely my point of view of the DBE. People’s taste and opinion varies. Some people like cheesy stuff, some people don’t.
.
I shall start with my one major complaint about the movie: Suspected Missing Scenes

I have to admit that I spoiled myself too much with spoilers, clips and most important of all, the Junior Novel. With that knowledge, I do feel that the movie is being cut out in a senseless way. Notice the word cut, not edited. For instance, the search for the dragonballs. If I counted it right, there were only 6 dragonballs found. Goku’s, Roshi’s, lava mountain, Bulma’s, on the sea bottom’s and the woman in the village. Where or who found the seventh db? It would be more sensible to have it in there.

The same thing also happened to the Fu Lum Assassin scene. There's a continuation problem there. Right from the time Piccolo gave birth to it through the machines. It feels like as if someone had a big scissors and cut out some scenes. One more thing, they could have put more lighting in those Fu Lum assassin scenes.

Some stuff that I don't fancy about the movie;

1) Piccolo’s limited amount of appearance. Marsters is an actor who can slice and dice any villain character the way he wants, but in this one, it’s just not enough of him/Piccolo in there.

2) Goku and Chi Chi’s kiss. I'm not a fan of these mushy scenes. Every time they kissed I had to close my eyes or cringe. Nothing to do with the acting though. It's just not my type of cheese.

3) Bulma and Yamcha getting hooked up pretty fast. Love at first sight perhaps?


What I love about this movie.

1) The humour in this movie worked. There are a lot of LOL scenes and they are crowd-pleasing too from my observation in the theatre.

2) I love the part where Goku daydreams about Chi Chi in the classroom and the hallway scenes. This is my slice of pizza with yummy cheese on top.

3) I love the fights. IMO they are good. The final fight is good too. The SFX is being used sufficiently and there’s no over-the-top SFX. (But they could do better with Oozaru though.) I see that they are utilising the high speed cam. They got some nice shots with the cam.

Acting wise, I’ll give Chatwin some love for the Goku that he tried to be and for the Goku that he almost is. The only perfect Goku is in the manga or in the anime. Chatwin’s Goku is almost there. I do have one thing that bothered me about Chatwin though. At some point I feel like he’s channelling Tom Cruise. I don’t fancy Tom Cruise.

Chow Yun Fat is great as Master Roshi. It looked like he had fun doing the movie. Emmy is okay I guess. Nothing is wrong with Jamie Chung’s performance. Yamcha/Joon Park is good for comic relief, but for the serious part, there’s something lacking there. Marsters is totally underutilised.

Overall, the movie is entertaining. Stop trying to compare it to the manga or anime. If you keep doing that, you might not enjoy the movie at all. Keep an open mind.

I’m going to watch it again this weekend with my nephews, niece and cousin. Hopefully they will enjoy it too.

 

[JP]

Well, I'm glad they didn't Venom Piccolo and he will be back if there is a sequel.

These positive reviews are getting me excited as they are just about what I expected. Though I still think it is safe to keep my expectations low.

 

[Majin...]

it is a family movie after all......