From looking at some of the reviews on here, I will keep mine simple as people seem obsessed one way or another. I am reviewing this film on the credits.
1. Relation to the original series. 2. Quality of script 3. quality of actors/actresses/acting 4. quality of effects 5. Final product.
This film bears two relations to the original. The characters and the Dragonballs. There is nothing else to link the two. This is so sad when you consider how much they had to work with and all they could produce was this. The characters also bear little resemblance to their anime predecessors. None of them do what they are supposed to do, except Chi Chi, who didn't do much anyway. Where's Roshi's turtle shell. Why does Bulma carry several fully automatic weapons? And why is Yamcha now a ladies man? To their credit though, Roshi's behaviour soon after he appears is very accurate even if it is short lived.
The script for this film is its downfall. It's just awful. The writers have tried to fit too much into a short period of time. This film needed to be 2.5 to 3 hours long to even come close to allowing all the characters to be fleshed out. Attention should have been paid to Transformers when they were making this film. If you want to make a film based on a TV series, as those who watched it, not a bunch of suits that are paid to watch it and come up with a story. Many people who enjoyed the show could have given suggestions throughout the whole movie making experience.
AS bad as the film was, it doesn't take anything away from the actors themselves. They did the best they could with the tools they had. If you ask a builder to build you a house out of sticks, don't complain when it falls over.
This film had all the effects of an 80's movie. Think of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and the scene where the Freddie battles the kid in the wheelchair. That's the level of effects in this film. And I will leave the dragon, Shenron, so you come to your own conclusions. I don't want to seem prejudiced.
This film lands not just way off the mark for a spin off movie, it's in another continent. They should never have made it if it was going to be so lack lustred. It could have been done with a comedy element, which would have saved it, but no. They even try to throw in romance, but you have only seen the characters for an hour so who cares. Why so many inconsistencies from the original anime series? For example, Roshi does not live on an island. All these little details could have been included with another hour of film time. No one wants to watch an 88 minute film nowadays. Its just not value for money. Some may think that 1 out of 10 is harsh, but when they made such a hash of what could have been another Transformers, its all it deserves.
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