What would you want to see in the PERFECT live-action movie?

[DBZfan29]

This came to mind as I was thinking of how greatly Chris Nolan handled Bat-man. As an aspiring filmmaker, I quickly started thinking of ideas that would make the perfect story. I'd love to see the Saiyan arc done and possibly the Super Saiyan transformation. Hair and costumes seem to be the biggest issue with me because I just can't imagine someone wearing Saiyan armor or having Vegeta's hair, but I'm sure that can be worked on. Anyway, what would be in your perfect live-action movie adaptation of Dragon Ball?

[dprez]

It is hard to imagine it looking exactly like the manga, but I think it could be done with slight and reasonable changes. Starting from the saiyan arc is a good idea, and just have all the flashbacks be 100% accurate to the manga. I know there could be a Dragon Ball live-action movie made that I could enjoy. Evolution was pure Hollywood copy and paste blandness for a quick buck. A much more faithful and enjoyable film based on Dragon Ball should be able to be made.

[DBZfan29]

I agree with the flashback idea. There's just too much to mention and they make doing that a little easier.

[dprez]

Getting straight to the sci-fi action oriented part of the story, along with Goku's heritage is a better start I think then the wacky, magical beginnings of his youth. Accurate and well executed flashback scenes would work well to explain much of the story we miss from starting half way through.

[Hellspawn28]

I think making the characters looking all 100% as they do in the manga and show is going to make them silly no matter. DBE had to changed their looks no matter what. Change is not a bad thing as long if it's done right. Star Trek (2009) is a good example how it being different is done the right way since fans and movie goers love it. DBE is a example how changed is done the wrong way.

[Makaioshin]

The use of flashbacks sounds like a terrible idea to me. Either establish the characters relationships with each other through dialogue or do what Evolution did and treat the movie as the beginning of the story. I do like the idea of starting with a story based on the Saiyan arc since introducing Vegeta is better for a possible movie series.

[Gyt Kaliba]

I dunno, I actually feel that was one of the few things Evolution did right...er, in it's conception anyway, definitely not in execution. It just makes more sense to me to start with something from Dragon Ball.

If it were me though, I'd start a little earlier than Piccolo Daimao even. I'd set up a story where Goku has grown up in the countryside with his grandfather Gohan, and in the 'outside world', the Red Ribbon Army is slowly taking over. One night, after some training, Goku is again warned not to look at the moon, but as he falls asleep, he notices it...and it fades to black. When he comes to in the morning, he finds his home destroyed and his grandfather dead. Shortly after, Bulma comes along looking for the Dragon Ball, which would still have been a prized possession of Gohan's, but before she can get it from Goku, some agents of the Red Ribbon Army also show up. Either by his own mistake, or Bulma's suggestion, Goku "finds out" that it was the Red Ribbon Army who probably killed his grandfather, and takes out the agent.

From there, the story would travel along kind of similarly to the manga, with them meeting Roshi somehow (perhaps already with Kuririn as a student), Goku would learn the Kamehameha, they'd meet Yamcha, and eventually he would end up taking on and defeating the Red Ribbon Army. That would set up this boy who somehow had the power to defeat an entire militia by himself, so in the sequel film you could bring in Daimao as a being even stronger than THAT. I'd likely save Goku's first on-screen oozaru transformation for the sequel too, with Bulma being reminded by it of how the debris of Gohan's house had looked, so that the big reveal of what actually happened to Gohan could come in a third film based on the Saiyan arc.

[DBZfan29]

I thought Kuririn already being a student would spare necessary time. I, too, believe the Red Ribbon Army should be the focus of an origin story since (1) the 10th anniversary special did it, and (2) it's more realistic than a talking fox and a green alien.

[Hellspawn28]

I thought DBE did a poor job on story telling since they never tell us on how Piccolo came back and the placing in the movie just goes nowhere. I still like the movie starting out on the Saiyan arc since it's the most popular saga and DBZ came out in 1996 when the other sagas of Dragon Ball where never released. The show did just fine and the viewers watching it on TV where able to follow it nicely.

[Chuquita]

In-character characters. The biggest thing that bothered me about DBE was how out of character their Goku was. I can accept physical characteristic alterations (because the logic of Goku's hair barely works outside of the manga; in the 2D anime and videogame cgi the sense it makes when he goes from profile to facing straight on just kinda breaks down) but I want the characters to actually act like themselves.

Also, Vegeta. Because somehow all of the live action adaptions (well, all 3 of them) adapted DB. We've never had a live action Vegeta and I am curious to see what they'd come up with.

[Insertclevername]

I would basically make Path to Ultimate Strength but with Gokuu as perhaps a 15 or 16 year old.

[Hellspawn28]

Goku's character was wrong since they written him as a Peter Parker type of character. Funny how most people view Goku as a superhero when he is not at all.

[Hitiro]

Goku's character was wrong since they written him as a Peter Parker type of character. Funny how most people view Goku as a superhero when he is not at all.

I would say as a child he wasn't but in his later years he did a lot to "save the earth", even going so far as to sacrifice his life so that the Earth may be saved. If Goku isn't considered a superhero in that respect then being a superhero must be an extremely exclusive club.

As far as a perfect live-action movie goes. If they could get the budget to CGI things like hair then I think it wouldn't be an issue. CGI has come quite a long way and there are some stunning examples in movies where CGI seems quite realistic. As far as costumes go I don't see much of a problem if they keep to the what the costumes look like in the show. If anything I would say that the live-action adaptation should start at the Saiyan saga. The reason? They can always go back, much like the Star Wars films did(Though the last three were just terrible movies, they could have been much better) and establish the Dragonball universe further down the line. Of course if they did choose this route then they will have to be careful about how they tackle the execution of the character introduction and development. Though, I have to say that if they follow the manga then they can't really go wrong. I feel Toriyama did a wonderful job of reintroducing the characters for the Saiyan saga even if it wasn't intentional.

[dbboxkaifan]

The actor I'd one day like to see as Goku would be Jon Foo (Eurasian), from the films I've seen with him he has a lot of potential and could fit to be Goku.

However, making a real life Dragon Ball film would probably fail as all up to now did.

And I have extremely low expectations for the fan live action "Saiyan Saga" the Saiyan armour is laughable plus the other stuff.

[DanTheBib]

The actor I'd one day like to see as Goku would be Jon Foo (Eurasian), from the films I've seen with him he has a lot of potential and could fit to be Goku.

However, making a real life Dragon Ball film would probably fail as all up to now did.

And I have extremely low expectations for the fan live action "Saiyan Saga" the Saiyan armour is laughable plus the other stuff.

Not necessarily. And that's only a fan-made item by someone on Deviantart. If you consider how good the armour on the cast of LotR looks, I think it obviously depends on the quality of the costume artist.

As for a film, the Saiyan Saga makes sense. I agree with the ideas of flashbacks/mentioning past events. Go through to the battle with Vegeta, finish after Vegeta gets back into his pod and flys away, giving his usual speech and flying away. I think starting with Z makes the most sense in the way that "Dragon Ball Z" is the brand the most people would recognise. But I also like Gyt Kaliba's idea of starting in the Red Ribbon army arc. My only concern would be that the further back you start, the more films you have to make (assuming you are making the entire series).

Ideally I'd like to find a way to condense Dragon Ball Z into 3 movies. Three is a nice, manageable amount of film. However, I can't see that being possible without loosing far too much to please the hardcore fans, and possibly some key facts that might throw off newcomers.

[Hellspawn28]

I would like to see a Dragon Ball movie not be a total CG fest like the Star War Prequels and the Transformers movies where. I remember being worry that a DB movie would be all flashy effects and no substance. I think a good blend of animatronics and CGI similar how movies like Jurassic Park, Prometheus and Hellboy was done would be awesome. I always think practical effects are better then CG and most people tend to agree as well.

[Gyt Kaliba]

I definitely agree, give me real effects over gratuitous CG any day. I still think the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park look way better than anything Avatar had to give.

And I can see lots of reasons for going with the Saiyan arc first, since DBZ is the most popular brand for the franchise, and it's what we haven't gotten to see in live-action yet. I'd still like a decent movie to jump right in there, going with the further back stuff is just my own personal idea on how I would do it - but I'm not a director or producer, and won't be, so that'll never happen.

But I also like Gyt Kaliba's idea of starting in the Red Ribbon army arc. My only concern would be that the further back you start, the more films you have to make (assuming you are making the entire series).

Ideally I'd like to find a way to condense Dragon Ball Z into 3 movies. Three is a nice, manageable amount of film. However, I can't see that being possible without loosing far too much to please the hardcore fans, and possibly some key facts that might throw off newcomers.

Yeah, that's my worry too, and why I wouldn't want to jump right into the Z material, if it were in my hands. I'm afraid I'd lose too much build-up in my writing if I started that far in.

Let's see...it might be cheap since the whole 'seven Dragon Balls' thing, but I think potentially I'd do seven films.

1. Red Ribbon Army arc
2. 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai/Piccolo Daimao arcs
3. Saiyan arc
4. Freeza arc
5. Androids/Cell arcs
6. Majin Buu arcs
7. Evil Dragons arc

Roughly speaking, of course. Each arc would have to give a little to fit into a film, that's something that's just a given.

[Eddie]

Verne Troyer as Pilaf would be nice. I would also like for them ("them" being Mr. Hollywood Movie Person making this make believe film) to travel back in time, kidnap Cary-Hiroyuki Togawa from the set of Mortal Kombat, and make him play Tao Pai-pai.

[gohan2k]

Done right Dragonball Z would make an amazing live action film series if they find a combination of the right story, the right director and the right casting.

One thing I disagree that some of the people here have said would be to either start at the beginning of Dragonball or to start with the Saiyan saga of DBZ. One of the few things DBE did right was to start with Piccolo Daimao as its a perfect place to begin the story.

Starting with the Saiyan saga makes sense commercially as DBZ is the most popular series but starting a film series there would mean a lot of the story would have to be changed for it to work. Just think about if you were an audience watching it for the first time - there's around twenty major characters in the arc for them to meet!
People are right when they say that starting at the Saiyan saga worked for audiences who started the show from there but there's a difference between starting to watch a TV series in the middle (for example I first watched DBZ from the training saga in the Saiyan arc) and going to see a movie that starts in the middle of a story. They'd have to drastically alter it. The later you start in the series the more story you will have to lose.

Starting at the beginning of Dragonball also probably wouldn't work. The tone of the series greatly changed from the earlier period to the action series by the time it reached DBZ. If you were to start there there would be at least two movies and at least four years before reaching the Saiyan Saga (Beginning/Red Ribbon similar to Path of Power and a Piccolo Daimao movie). The series also lacks a proper, serious villain until this point. I like Pilaf but having him as a lead in a DBZ movie would likely just end up being too camp unless they changed his character...but then he wouldn't really be Pilaf anymore!

I see this as a likely scenario:
Movie #1 - Piccolo Daimao
Movie #2 - Saiyan arc
Movie #3 - Freeza arc (ideally #3 and #4 would be filmed back-to-back)
Movie #4 - Android/Cell arc
Movie #5 - Buu arc
with further sequels or prequels to follow afterwards

A more faithful adaptation would be ideal too with characters being much the same as their manga/anime counterparts, even if their backstories are changed.

[Gotham22]

I could see 6 films total

1. Red Ribbon Army arc
2. Piccolo Daimao arc
3. Picolo Jr. arc

4. Saiyan/Freeza arcs
5. Androids/Cell arcs
6. Buu arc