Live Action Movie Discussion Thread

NeptuneKai · Post by **NeptuneKai** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 3:24 pm

I'm actually kind of confused about why people hate this movie so much. In my personal opinion it doesn’t look great but it's going to be made and then....that's it. The anime and manga will still be around, how is the movie affecting the anime in any way whether it’s good or bad? Look at the old Chinese live action movie, that royally sucked and yet Dragonball as a franchise wasn’t affected in any way. I doubt the new live action movie can be any worse then the Chinese one.

BlueSky · Post by **Kaboom** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 3:36 pm

Magic Begins was a ridiculous, low-budget little crapfest made in China in 1989, that ended up being no good for anything but a few lulz. This movie is a modern, high-budget, Hollywood-made production with good actors, a good crew, good effects and stunt groups, and a director and producer who specialize in Kung-Fu action films. Quite a difference.

From what we know so far, it's going to be a good or at least decent movie in and of itself, even if just for a summer popcorn flick. Whether or not one likes it for how close or not it is to the DragonBall manga is a matter of opinion, and a whole other story.

Post by **desirecampbell** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 4:10 pm

NeptuneKai wrote:I'm actually kind of confused about why people hate this movie so much. In my personal opinion it doesn’t look great but it's going to be made and then....that's it. The anime and manga will still be around, how is the movie affecting the anime in anyway whether it’s good or bad? Look at the old Chinese live action movie, that royally sucked and yet Dragonball as a franchise wasn’t affected in any way. I doubt the new live action movie can be any worse then the Chinese one.

It can be just as terrible a movie as the Chinese film, but the difference here is it will be millions of people's only experience with Dragon Ball.

I just don't want to have to deal with everyone talking about how terrible Dragon Ball is, because the movie sucks.

SSj Kaboom wrote:From what we know so far, it's going to be a good or at least decent movie in and of itself, even if just for a summer popcorn flick.

Am I the only one who has the same standards for films whether they come out in the summer or the winter? This movie has a good stunt team, two decent actors, and a director that's good at creating a suspenseful, creepy atmosphere. That's it. The rest of the cast and crew are nobodies (so there's no reason to expect much). They could do a great job, but from what we've seen it's safest to expect that the movie will be on par with 'Transformers'. If you liked that, then you'll probably like this - if you like good movies, you won't.

Chuquita · Post by **Chuquita** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 4:39 pm

I just wish they'd release some more news on the film so we'd have a better idea of what's going on. @_@

I seriously don't wanna see Goku's character chewed up and spit out by this movie. I'd feel slightly better if I had confirmation on that not happening.

VEGETA_DTX · Post by **VEGETA_DTX** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 4:46 pm

@desirecampbell

Sigh, DTX has his heart in the right place, but again he comes off as a jabbering idiot.

Should I take this as a complement or...? you knwo sometimes I have hard ime understanding the grammar... lol

@SSj Kaboom, yes I agree Magic begins sucked incredibly, but I really really don't see WHY is this any better? Is it just because it's High budghet?!
does just one word "high budged" tells all? What about the actual look of the movie and it's story???
If you just want a movie cuz of special effects, than I can make you one

and then you can join our "against" side, c'mooon we have cookieeeees

BlueSky · Post by **Kaboom** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 4:48 pm

VEGETA_DTX wrote:If you just want a movie cuz of special effects, than I can make you one and then you can join our "against" side, c'mooon we have cookieeeees

Not a snowball's chance in Hell, buddy. I think this movie will be just fine, and I'm not gonna let any of the rest of you grumpbags change that.

JulieYBM · Post by **JulieYBM** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 4:50 pm

desirecampbell wrote:
NeptuneKai wrote:I'm actually kind of confused about why people hate this movie so much. In my personal opinion it doesn’t look great but it's going to be made and then....that's it. The anime and manga will still be around, how is the movie affecting the anime in anyway whether it’s good or bad? Look at the old Chinese live action movie, that royally sucked and yet Dragonball as a franchise wasn’t affected in any way. I doubt the new live action movie can be any worse then the Chinese one.
It can be just as terrible a movie as the Chinese film, but the difference here is it will be millions of people's only experience with Dragon Ball.

I just don't want to have to deal with everyone talking about how terrible Dragon Ball is, because the movie sucks.

SSj Kaboom wrote:From what we know so far, it's going to be a good or at least decent movie in and of itself, even if just for a summer popcorn flick.
Am I the only one who has the same standards for films whether they come out in the summer or the winter? This movie has a good stunt team, two decent actors, and a director that's good at creating a suspenseful, creepy atmosphere. That's it. The rest of the cast and crew are nobodies (so there's no reason to expect much). They could do a great job, but from what we've seen it's safest to expect that the movie will be on par with 'Transformers'. If you liked that, then you'll probably like this - if you like good movies, you won't.

Transformers was far from bad. If anything it was a good film, not great or excellant.[/code]

NeptuneKai · Post by **NeptuneKai** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 4:59 pm

JulieYBM wrote:
desirecampbell wrote:
NeptuneKai wrote:I'm actually kind of confused about why people hate this movie so much. In my personal opinion it doesn’t look great but it's going to be made and then....that's it. The anime and manga will still be around, how is the movie affecting the anime in anyway whether it’s good or bad? Look at the old Chinese live action movie, that royally sucked and yet Dragonball as a franchise wasn’t affected in any way. I doubt the new live action movie can be any worse then the Chinese one.
It can be just as terrible a movie as the Chinese film, but the difference here is it will be millions of people's only experience with Dragon Ball.

I just don't want to have to deal with everyone talking about how terrible Dragon Ball is, because the movie sucks.

SSj Kaboom wrote:From what we know so far, it's going to be a good or at least decent movie in and of itself, even if just for a summer popcorn flick.
Am I the only one who has the same standards for films whether they come out in the summer or the winter? This movie has a good stunt team, two decent actors, and a director that's good at creating a suspenseful, creepy atmosphere. That's it. The rest of the cast and crew are nobodies (so there's no reason to expect much). They could do a great job, but from what we've seen it's safest to expect that the movie will be on par with 'Transformers'. If you liked that, then you'll probably like this - if you like good movies, you won't.
Transformers was far from bad. If anything it was a good film, not great or excellant.[/code]

People seriously liked this movie?

BlueSky · Post by **Kaboom** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 5:01 pm

Oh here we go again...

EDIT: And if DragonBall is of *anywhere* near the excellent quality of Transformers, I will be quite the happy camper

VEGETA_DTX · Post by **VEGETA_DTX** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 5:21 pm

SSj Kaboom wrote:
VEGETA_DTX wrote:If you just want a movie cuz of special effects, than I can make you one and then you can join our "against" side, c'mooon we have cookieeeees
Not a snowball's chance in Hell, buddy. I think this movie will be just fine, and I'm not gonna let any of the rest of you grumpbags change that.

I was just kidding, I don't want to force you on my side of course...

And abut transformers - They SUCKED to me! Action and effects were awesome, but man...story... and those two teenagers... bloody hell...hollywood jsut CAN'T without that trivial bullshit...

Sorry it was just stronger than me

SuperSaiyan3Goku · Post by **SuperSaiyan3Goku** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 5:27 pm

SSj Kaboom wrote:Oh here we go again...

EDIT: And if DragonBall is of *anywhere* near the excellent quality of Transformers, I will be quite the happy camper

Yes, Transformers had some awesome special effects. If Dragonball was done like that, I will truly be happy!

Rocketman · Post by **Rocketman** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 6:03 pm

NeptuneKai wrote:People seriously liked this movie?

I thought it was alright. My dad got a kick out of the lines where the girl supposedly demonstrated how much she knew about cars, though.

Post by **desirecampbell** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 6:25 pm

I used 'Transformers' as an example because that is what we can expect from this film.

-The plot differed greatly from the source material, to the extent that the only connection was that the characters fighting each other had the right names.
-There are one or two good actors connected with it, but the majority of the cast is comprised of less-than-average thespians.
-The film is marketed towards being 'visually exciting' and 'action packed', instead of being marketed as 'good' or 'well written'. This is not an oversight.

That's what is true about 'Transformers', and from what we've heard so far, is also either true for 'Dragon Ball', or is very likely for 'Dragon Ball'

We're not here to discuss 'Transformers'. It was a badly made movie, just trust me on this. If you enjoyed that, then you'll enjoy a live action Dragon Ball movie that has A) little or no connection to the source B) terribly directed action sequences C) bad acting D) big explosions. If you enjoy it, fine - you'll probably like this movie too.

JAPPO · Post by **JAPPO** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 6:42 pm

I don't know what we're supposed to be arguing about now?... If you don't want the movie, don't watch it?

Anyway, New pics have surfaced, it'll be Roshi's island.

Rocketman · Post by **Rocketman** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 6:44 pm

desirecampbell wrote:The film is marketed towards being 'visually exciting' and 'action packed', instead of being marketed as 'good' or 'well written'. This is not an oversight.

Considering the same applies to Dragon Ball itself.... your point?

JAPPO · Post by **JAPPO** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 6:45 pm

Rocketman wrote:
desirecampbell wrote:The film is marketed towards being 'visually exciting' and 'action packed', instead of being marketed as 'good' or 'well written'. This is not an oversight.
Considering the same applies to Dragon Ball itself.... your point?

Yeah, do you realize most of Dragon Ball was written off the top of Akira Toriyama's head?

The writing was never a masterpiece.

Post by **desirecampbell** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 7:26 pm

Rocketman wrote:
desirecampbell wrote:The film is marketed towards being 'visually exciting' and 'action packed', instead of being marketed as 'good' or 'well written'. This is not an oversight.
Considering the same applies to Dragon Ball itself.... your point?

Sorry, perhaps I wasn't clear enough with "this is not an oversight". I meant "Transformers had no redeeming value beyond the fact that there were explosions, whereas other films can boast good acting, scripting, cinematography, and plot".

Dragon Ball, as a manga and anime, has more than simple action. The plot, dialogue, and characters are well developed, and in the anime the acting is exceptional. The only complaints are that there are some shoddily animated episodes, and the numerous plot inconsistencies.

Big Momma · Post by **Big Momma** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 7:37 pm

What's with all the Transformer bashing? I think it was a good flick. Shia Lebeauf(I can't spell his name >.<) Was pretty good in that movie. Sure, I know almost zip about the original, but even if it wasn't true to the Transformers name, it was still an okay movie.

Thats what I think/hope Dragonball will be. It may not be completely true to the series, but it can still be a pretty decent movie in and of itself.

Post by **desirecampbell** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 7:52 pm

Big Momma wrote:...good ... okay ...pretty decent...

That's some quickly degrading expectations. Which is what I expected.

"That movie was awesome!"
But the plot was nonsensical and the dialogue was terrible.
"It wasn't that bad, besides, [male lead] did a great job"
No he didn't. Even if he was a great actor, the direction and script were so poor we wouldn't know.
"Well it was a good action-popcorn flick"
What? What does that mean? The action was short terribly - you could barely make out what was going on half the time.

It's fine to enjoy a film, even if it's badly done. That's fine. But it's still a bad movie, don't pretend it's better than it is.

Sebastian (SB) · Post by **Sebastian (SB)** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 8:00 pm

I think this is where you kinda draw the line and opinions tend to differ. I do believe Dragon Ball is a masterpiece. From setting the foundation of Shonen Jump is now (alongside other classics like Hokuto no Ken aka "Fist of the North Star & Kinnikuman), ushering in the "Golden Era" for SJ, and influencing the future generation of manga artists like Kishimoto & Oda.

Beyond the gags, frenzic fighting, & uberly muscular men. For me, it was a story of growing up in a world of martial arts. It was story of Son Goku and how the Dragon Balls, in turn, affected his lifestyle from meeting others like Bulma, Yamcha, Kame-senin, etc., starting a family, to his destined confrontation with the Saiyans & Freeza. Regarding Toriyama writing the story from the top of head... He did a pretty damn impressive job of it. Dragon Ball originally started off as a gag manga then went to a "visually exciting" martial arts sci-fi epic, but to clearly label itself as a "visually exciting" feature alone is a bit disheartening.

Even so, I do understand that marketing decision. The general Western audience wants to their big explosions & visual fiestas without knowing really what the hell is going nor even caring so. Thus hence, which is exactly why we have things like the FUNi dub treatment etc., etc.,.
Just understand that there are people that really do care about the franchise as a whole & what it stands for. Not just "Dragon Ball Z" as separate entity. Which seems what exactly FOX is trying to rush to & cash in on.

Come out with half assed or incomplete story to what originally started off as a naive little boy exploring the world, meeting new opponents & ultimately finding his roots. Instead, we get a pubescent teenage boy who has a crush on a girl named Chi-Chi (which he was never ultimately interested in to begin with), finds out he's an alien by a opponent....who's not suppose to know he's an alien until some time later by the way. Then he fights NINJAS! OMG. etc., etc.,...I realize that last part was a bit exaggerated on my part, but whatever.

In conclusion, don't get me wrong I do understand that this is an adaptation and it's not suppose to follow the story 100%, but when you have little things like Son Goku being in "school" or martial arts school filled with other students and having a crush with a girl, little things like that tend to destroy the character of what I fondly remember, cherish of them, and what they ultimately are. Sure most of the elements like "Ki & martial arts" are seemingly intact, but about the characters? What about naive Son Goku or Piccolo Daimao? Are they getting shafted because of the "visually exciting" features? This is my major concern. While the story may not be 100%, I pray for the life of me that the actors do their research, read some of the manga, & get into the character's heads. However, some of the settings and story changes prove to be an obstacle for even that. I really want to enjoy the movie. I hope they prove me wrong.

Kanzenshuu

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