20th Century Fox
www.dragonballevolutionmovie.co.uk
Having never managed to catch Dragonball Evolution at the cinema, the thought of it being released on DVD at last was exciting, however my opinion soon changed. This live-action film adaptation of the Japanese Dragon Ball franchise was and still is something of a mind-boggling mystery.
Becoming a mix of Bullet-proof Monk, Karate Kid and The Matrix, it seems to get rather confusing rather quickly, especially considering there is a futuristic element to the film. There is an introductory speech on how an evil warlord, Piccolo (James Marsters) once descended upon the Earth during a solar eclipse and attempted to destroy it with his disciple, only to fail, become imprisoned by a group of monks and his disciple vanish. Some 2000 years later, Piccolo escapes and as another solar eclipse approaches, begins searching for the Dragonballs in order to make a wish to a magical dragon for the power to rule the Earth. It is up to 18 year old Goku (Justin Chatwin) and a few others he meets along his path to stop this from happening.
There is so much to this film that is left unexplained and therefore leaves anyone watching completely baffled. The opening for example on how the first battle proceeded is a mystery, as is how Piccolo escaped in the first place. The location of the film set is also unknown; there is a mix of characters and locations that don’t really seem to fix together. There is also a large jump from one minute looking for the remaining Dragonballs a few days before the eclipse to suddenly having no time left at all. The ending itself will be unanticipated, surprising and yet still unable to satisfy.
The make up and fighting methods are very reminiscent to the sorts of things you may recall from your childhood watching programmes such as Star Trek or even Power Rangers, which is not at all what was originally expected. “The first rule is there are no rules” just seems so lame after hearing it so many times over the years and with the ending being something of a disappointment the film was very much a let down.
There is something unsettling and unsatisfying about this film that leaves the pit of the stomach empty and unfulfilled.
Michelle Moore
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