Dragonball Movie Update! What is UP with this?

Discussion regarding the entirety of the franchise in a general (meta) sense, including such aspects as: production, trends, merchandise, fan culture, and more.
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Post by Xyex » Mon Jun 30, 2008 3:17 am

Kendamu wrote:
Kid Trunks wrote:I dunno if this is old news or not, but here it is anyway...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=omOw70q2Kw8

Despite the poster, Emmy Rossum said she died her hair blue :shock: Maybe things aren't all bad.
Oh. Good. Now only if they had somehow let people in on this idea on a poster that has her mugshot on it.
I get the impression that the current EARLY poster is of their EARLY looks in the movie. No real evidence for this, but that's just my feeling.
Thats an interesting leap in logic to make.
Yes, it is, but you did it anyway.
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Post by AleezaChocolat » Mon Jun 30, 2008 4:38 am

Kendamu wrote:
Kid Trunks wrote:I dunno if this is old news or not, but here it is anyway...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=omOw70q2Kw8

Despite the poster, Emmy Rossum said she died her hair blue :shock: Maybe things aren't all bad.
Oh. Good. Now only if they had somehow let people in on this idea on a poster that has her mugshot on it.
I think she might've just meant that she dyed parts of her hair blue (for ex., this pic). I don't even see why she'd have to even highlight her hair blue in the first place, though. (Blue hair extensions, anyone?) Same thing goes for if she really did, at some point in the movie, have a full head of blue hair --- they'd just fit her for a wig (like with Storm from X-Men). So I don't know what "dying" she's talking about. =/

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Post by Victator Supreme » Mon Jun 30, 2008 6:42 am

Yes, it is, but you did it anyway.
Um no I didn't, reading is fundemental.

What I said was a person born in a city would have a much different personality than someone raised in the moutains. which you somehow attempted to turn into "Durr everybody in the city gangsters durr." Which I would suspect is you projecting your own prejudices on to others.
Last edited by Victator Supreme on Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:25 am, edited 2 times in total.

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Post by Captain Awesome » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:11 am

Xyex wrote: Hell, I've got a fic where Goku's essentially from Otherworld, spent the first 6 years of his life in a crowded orphanage in a big city, got adopted by Gohan and lived with him and Krillin in the mountains for 12 years, then moved to live with Roshi in the city and started going to highschool. And guess what? He's still the same Goku in personality that we see at the end of DB and start of DBZ.
This really is a bad example.

You're transplanting an established character into events and circumstances you've written yourself.

I could write a fanfic where Goku was kidnapped as a child by Son Gohan and chained up in his underground lair, where he forced Goku to watch him torture and kill animal people for ten years, then after Goku murders Gohan and escapes, he rejoins society as a happy-go-lucky kid.

I find Goku going through high school and still being the same Goku we know and love to be just as plausible as Goku being a well adjusted young man at the end of my awesome fanfic.

P.S, I'm not having a go at you for writing fanfics, I've actually read and enjoyed a number of things you've written.

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Post by Kid Trunks » Mon Jun 30, 2008 9:04 am

Xyex wrote:This is really basic psychology, a person is more than the sum of their experiences.
Not in behavioral psychology though :P

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Post by Kendamu » Mon Jun 30, 2008 11:20 am

Xyex wrote:
Kendamu wrote:
Kid Trunks wrote:I dunno if this is old news or not, but here it is anyway...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=omOw70q2Kw8

Despite the poster, Emmy Rossum said she died her hair blue :shock: Maybe things aren't all bad.
Oh. Good. Now only if they had somehow let people in on this idea on a poster that has her mugshot on it.
I get the impression that the current EARLY poster is of their EARLY looks in the movie. No real evidence for this, but that's just my feeling.
Maybe, but I think they're really trying hard at making Dragonball fans go into some kind of nerd rage. They only have to do little things here and there to appeal to a larger portion of the fanbase than the ones who are like "It says Dragonball on it so I must see it!"

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Post by djkalteraphine » Mon Jun 30, 2008 11:25 am

Kid Trunks wrote:
Xyex wrote:This is really basic psychology, a person is more than the sum of their experiences.
Not in behavioral psychology though :P
No, a person is the sum of their experiences. But there I go being an existentialist again.

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Post by Kid Trunks » Mon Jun 30, 2008 11:40 am

djkalteraphine wrote:
Kid Trunks wrote:
Xyex wrote:This is really basic psychology, a person is more than the sum of their experiences.
Not in behavioral psychology though :P
No, a person is the sum of their experiences. But there I go being an existentialist again.
Yeah. Thats what I meant. Experience and learned behaviors shapes how they'll behave and react in certain environments/situations.

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Post by djkalteraphine » Mon Jun 30, 2008 11:44 am

Kid Trunks wrote:
djkalteraphine wrote:
Kid Trunks wrote: Not in behavioral psychology though :P
No, a person is the sum of their experiences. But there I go being an existentialist again.
Yeah. Thats what I meant. Experience and learned behaviors shapes how they'll behave and react in certain environments/situations.
Oh, I was replying to Xyex. . forgot to take your quote out, sorry. We're agreed.

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Post by Xyex » Mon Jun 30, 2008 2:38 pm

So I don't know what "dying" she's talking about. =/
Just because other movies do wigs or extensions doesn't mean some don't just dye the hair. I think Kirsten Dunst dyed her hair for the Spider-man movies, for instance.
Um no I didn't, reading is fundemental.
Yes. So you really should learn how to do it.
What I said was a person born in a city would have a much different personality than someone raised in the moutains. which you somehow attempted to turn into "Durr everybody in the city gangsters durr." Which I would suspect is you projecting your own prejudices on to others.
Yeaaaaaah, nice try considering I'm the one arguing against that. What you said was that location determines exactly what personality a person has (if a person in the Bronx and a person in the mountains can't have similiar personalites (which they can and often do)) and thus anyone in location A is so-and-so and everyone in location B is such-and-such. Nice try shoving words into peoples mouths that contradict what they just said, though.

Now, let me repeat what I've said in the hopes that maybe you'll read (understand?) it his time.

LOCATION does not define a character. EXPERIENCES do not define a character. BOTH of these together help to shape a character but they alone do NOT define one. The are HUNDREDS of factors that influence a person's developement. Just because "Person A" goes one way to get somewhere does not mean that "Person B" can't follow a different route to get the the same outcome. Will they be exactly the same? No, of course not. Can they be similar enough that there's really no difference and, thus, appear the same from the outside? Absolutely.

Now, can we please stop arguing about something that doesn't even matter yet since we know nothing of movie Goku's background?
This really is a bad example.

You're transplanting an established character into events and circumstances you've written yourself.

I could write a fanfic where Goku was kidnapped as a child by Son Gohan and chained up in his underground lair, where he forced Goku to watch him torture and kill animal people for ten years, then after Goku murders Gohan and escapes, he rejoins society as a happy-go-lucky kid.

I find Goku going through high school and still being the same Goku we know and love to be just as plausible as Goku being a well adjusted young man at the end of my awesome fanfic.
Actually, you just brought up another point I've been trying to get across in this thread. Just because Hollywood sticks Goku in a highschool, or even goes so far as having him grow up in city if that's the full extent of it, doesn't mean that they'll alter his personality (chances are we're getting dub Goku for the movie anyway) to conform to this. Just like you didn't in your example. 8)
P.S, I'm not having a go at you for writing fanfics, I've actually read and enjoyed a number of things you've written.
:D
Not in behavioral psychology though
Yeah, sure. That's why even behavioral psycology teaches that that similar events can have completely different effects on different people. :P
Maybe, but I think they're really trying hard at making Dragonball fans go into some kind of nerd rage. They only have to do little things here and there to appeal to a larger portion of the fanbase than the ones who are like "It says Dragonball on it so I must see it!"
Ah, the power of pessimism. You see them as not trying while I see it as quite possible they're, oh, I don't know, doing one of the oldest marketing ploys in the book. Building hype. You "Start at point A and work to Point D".

IE, start off with the characters in less recognizable form, get the name and the word out, etc. And then, as you get closer to release and are more comfortable releasing details about your film (these guys are being VERY tight-liped so far) you start throwing out new crumbs of details. A Bulma with blue hair poster here, a trailer with Goku in his gi there.

Not only does this appeal to those who, as you put it, are like "It says Dragonball on it so I must see it!" but it also lets the wind out of the sails of the complainers and starts building up the doubters from "I can't see this working at all" to "hmm, this might have some potential" where as just thrusting out all the information at once has time for it to get old and stale.

Sure, maybe you're right and they're just not bothering. Maybe their current advertising material is stuff they came up with way back when they had planned an August movie release so it's not got much effort behind it. But let's not forget that the movie isn't even finished yet. They've still got a lot of post-production work and reshoots to do. I don't expect anything resembling a final product, even (or rather, especially) in advertisments until they actually have a final product.
No, a person is the sum of their experiences. But there I go being an existentialist again.
Oh? So then, two people growing up under the same conditions will have the exact same personality? This goes back to my inner city example. If a person is just the sum of their experiences than everyone in the inner city is a gang member. :P

The human brain is far more complex than you give it credit for. 8)
Yeah. Thats what I meant. Experience and learned behaviors shapes how they'll behave and react in certain environments/situations.
Shapes, but does not define. If a person was the sum of their experiences then their experiences would define them and there would be no difference between two people who grew up in the inner city, or who grew up in the country, or who grew up Amish. The very fact that there are differences illustrates my point. Experiences do not define a person.
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Post by Victator Supreme » Mon Jun 30, 2008 3:57 pm

Yeaaaaaah, nice try considering I'm the one arguing against that. What you said was that location determines exactly what personality a person has (if a person in the Bronx and a person in the mountains can't have similiar personalites (which they can and often do)) and thus anyone in location A is so-and-so and everyone in location B is such-and-such. Nice try shoving words into peoples mouths that contradict what they just said, though.

Now, let me repeat what I've said in the hopes that maybe you'll read (understand?) it his time.

LOCATION does not define a character. EXPERIENCES do not define a character. BOTH of these together help to shape a character but they alone do NOT define one. The are HUNDREDS of factors that influence a person's developement. Just because "Person A" goes one way to get somewhere does not mean that "Person B" can't follow a different route to get the the same outcome. Will they be exactly the same? No, of course not. Can they be similar enough that there's really no difference and, thus, appear the same from the outside? Absolutely.

Now, can we please stop arguing about something that doesn't even matter yet since we know nothing of movie Goku's background?
Jesus Christ how dos somebody write so much yet say nothing.

Locations and experiences do shape a persons character and personality. There is no way around this fact. Yourproblem seems to be that everyone should come in a vanilla mold. they are either good or bad. a person could grow up in the inner city and grow up to be a good person. Just like a person could grow up in solitude and become a bad person.

Whether negative or positive their personalities would be much different. This is not complicated. The person who grew up in the city. Would be more street wise and be much better at dealing with people. While they may not be as good in a rural enviorment or using their hands. Again this is community college writing class stuff. You cannot just shove a character into any enviorment and change his background and have him be exactly the same. Thats shitty writing. Its even more shitty when you do it to a character you did not create.

As far as I'm concerned this thing is a pile of shit til it proves otherwise. These movies are almost alays garbage. So its a pretty safe bet.

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Post by Kendamu » Mon Jun 30, 2008 4:02 pm

Xyex wrote:
Maybe, but I think they're really trying hard at making Dragonball fans go into some kind of nerd rage. They only have to do little things here and there to appeal to a larger portion of the fanbase than the ones who are like "It says Dragonball on it so I must see it!"
Ah, the power of pessimism. You see them as not trying while I see it as quite possible they're, oh, I don't know, doing one of the oldest marketing ploys in the book. Building hype. You "Start at point A and work to Point D".

IE, start off with the characters in less recognizable form, get the name and the word out, etc. And then, as you get closer to release and are more comfortable releasing details about your film (these guys are being VERY tight-liped so far) you start throwing out new crumbs of details. A Bulma with blue hair poster here, a trailer with Goku in his gi there.

Not only does this appeal to those who, as you put it, are like "It says Dragonball on it so I must see it!" but it also lets the wind out of the sails of the complainers and starts building up the doubters from "I can't see this working at all" to "hmm, this might have some potential" where as just thrusting out all the information at once has time for it to get old and stale.

Sure, maybe you're right and they're just not bothering. Maybe their current advertising material is stuff they came up with way back when they had planned an August movie release so it's not got much effort behind it. But let's not forget that the movie isn't even finished yet. They've still got a lot of post-production work and reshoots to do. I don't expect anything resembling a final product, even (or rather, especially) in advertisments until they actually have a final product.
Well, they have a lot to learn about word-of-mouth and viral marketing, then. At least with productions like The Dark Knight, while they were barely saying a thing and only releasing a little bit here and there, they were still releasing stuff that got people saying, "Yeah, this looks like it could work and I can't wait to see more!" What I'm getting from what we've been shown so far is, "Wow. It looks like they just threw the name Dragonball on it but it doesn't really resemble Dragonball at all."

Going back to TDK, I don't mind things being somewhat different. Batman doesn't run around in tights. His car (and new motorcycle) are more utilitarian than stylized. What looks to be his cave is well-lit. Harvey Dent is blond and his transformation origin has changed to something that could fit the context of the film more easily. The Joker applies make-up and his smile is a scar that looks to be caused by a knife instead of a chemical bath. Lots of changes.

However, even back when all they showed was a dark shot of Batman standing on a police car in his new costume, a somewhat blurry picture of the Joker from an odd angle, and a teaser with a few lines of dialog that gave the essence of the attitude of the movie without actually using any lines that are in the actual movie, I could still say right away that, "Yes. This is Batman. That's the Joker. This movie will fit the tone of what Batman should be about even with some creative differences in it."

Same can be said for Batman Begins. Almost nothing was known about that and nobody had ever seen what Chris Nolan could do with Batman. Even with similar information to what we're getting about TDK, I still was able to say, "Yes, this is Batman. That's the (TDKR) Batmobile. This feels a lot like Year One. This is what Batman should've been all along."

The reason I'm skeptical of Dragonball is that, insofar, none of the officially-released information and pictures really say to me, "This is going to be an epic martial arts fantasy adventure with humor, a little bit of Japanese cheesiness, and some serious epic action when things finally get serious." Instead, what I'm seeing is, "So, they basically gave these guys names from Dragonball, threw the Dragonballs into the plot, and they're trying to squeeze Dub Ball Z-esque GWAR! WE'RE HARDCORE AND SERIOUS! GOKU'S A MONKEY BADASS WHO TRAINS WHILE LISTENING TO ANGRY WHITE BOY MUSIC!! feeling into a story that was actually dubbed rather faithfully compared to its more popular counterpart."

If this were a Dragonball Z movie and what I saw so far was the same amount of information and it gave me the feeling of, "This is a live version of the dub," I would accept it and move on the same way I just accept that I don't really like the dub of Dragonball Z and just move on. What it feels like they're doing, though, is trying to fit something that made its way to America in a much more pure form and trying to give it FUNi's Dragonball Z treatment.

That's why I'm skeptical. And I mean that, too: skeptical. I'm not saying, "This downright sucks and I have no hope for this making it as a movie," or, "This is just the DBZ dub in DB form. I'm not going to watch it." I wanna see it in motion before I decide on that. However, right now, I'm just very skeptical because I haven't seen anything from what they've shown us that makes me think it'll have the "epic, humorous, and mystical martial arts road trip" feel that Dragonball has. All I've seen is, "Hi, we're making a movie called Dragonball. Oh, you're wondering if it'll be anything like the series? Well, here's some images that'll tell you insofar that it only resembles the series by sharing the same name. See you in 2009 because we know you'll buy a ticket no matter what, nerd!"

So, even if they only released maybe three more images sometime in July (none of them being Piccolo) and then left it to our imaginations until next year, they'd make me less skeptical if I saw Goku in a dogi in an action pose or looking happy and adventurous, Bulma with blue hair dressed in whatever clothes they wanted her in, and Yamcha looking as if he was nervous because he just saw Bulma, I would think that they got the general spirit of the series down and I would be content until TV spots came out to make a final judgment. They would potentially have $9 from me.

Right now, though, my $9 seems to be set aside for a sandwich, a sports drink, some baked chips, and a cookie... or four beers and two songs on the jukebox at the bar sometime in 2009.

Just a long-winded clarification, though. Don't think I'm telling anyone else how they should feel.

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Post by Raz » Mon Jun 30, 2008 6:02 pm

Experiences help shape a person's understanding of the world. Location is irrelevant unless it becomes part of a person's experiences. Where I am going with this is if the two of you continue arguing this location and experience jabber you could merely chalk it up to experiences.

Depending on how you define a person, they may be the sum of their experiences. This however is a broad topic and if you wish to refine it a little, you need to consider that behavioral psychology, for example, does not answer all questions.

There are genetic predispositions, as an example, that also help shape a person's character. Personality traits, diseases, skin color, alcoholism are all examples of elements that sharply contradict a 'sum of all their parts' theory. Aside from experiences and genetic predispositions there are other examples, such as seasonal affective disorder which I am sure some of us have here, that effect personality.

Speaking of learned skills (example given above as a collective of 'street smarts',) just because an environment presents a condition does not necessarily mean anything is learned by it. There are many people who choose to ignore the world around them and manage to be a part of the society they are brought up in regardless.

Before we run another gamut of school versus country mentality and outlook I would actually think exploring how living in the countryside <i>actually</i> effects people. Does it make them happy and energetic young people? Having lived in countryside environments and urban environments throughout both childhood and adulthood I can say with conviction that each place in and out of cities has its own quirks.

But for arguments sake, what about living alone in the woods with no one to take care of you, no one to love you, no basic communication or learning makes a young child a cheery, outgoing and optimistic young person? Aside from these traits Goku is a very skilled and independent person.

I won't pretend to study the lives of hermits, but when I picture a hermit living on their own i do not picture a person such as Goku.

If anything, what is extraordinary about Goku is his perfect personality. He barely changes in demeanor throughout the series no matter what life throws at him. i could never see him in the corporate environment but I could easily see him going to school. If he did I would picture him always getting into trouble, wandering off, and in general causing a lot of mischief. It actually doesn't seem that hard considering his personality. He does tend to go along with whatever is happening around him except for when he is off training. I <i>can</i> see it as a challenge when revealing this story arc though and I do understand the concerns of everybody discussing this topic.

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Post by JulieYBM » Mon Jun 30, 2008 6:48 pm

How is this a live action version of FUNimation's dub, exactly?
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Post by Xyex » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:12 pm

Locations and experiences do shape a persons character and personality.
....

You're not even reading my posts, are you?

Yes. I said this. Location and experiences do shape a person's personality, but they do not define it. The same location and the same experiences will not produce the same person everytime. Location and experience are just a part (and a fairly small part) of the full picture.
Yourproblem seems to be that everyone should come in a vanilla mold.
Youre the one trying do the 'vanilla mold' by requiring certain circumstances to get to certain points. Every individual starts off with a clean slate. Then you add in the genetic factors. The the earliest childhood experiences, those within the first two years. Those are the primary building blocks upon which everything else about a person is errected. The genetic aspect is the strongest because it determines reaction to instances as a child which in turn shape the adults inate reaction to a given situation.
The person who grew up in the city. Would be more street wise and be much better at dealing with people.
Says who? I grew up in a city and have only very basic 'street smarts'. I also can't deal or relate to most people and, in fact, perfer not to. Hell, Goku is better in social situations than I am and I've been around people my entire life. So, would you care to try again?

And on that note, I'm done with the nonsense. I'm tired of arguing psychology over a Dragonball movie. I've got better things to spend my nerd points on.
Kendamu wrote:*Long post snipped*
Oh, I don't enitrely disagree. If I am right about their choices and the reason behind what material we've got so far I think it's a good route to take. Truthfully, I don't see them giving a rats ass about what the nerds (us) think. This movie isn't being made for us, it's being made for mass consumption by the average Dragonball fan and their friends/family. So catering to the niche DB nerd market right from the start isn't high on their list of priorities. They want to get the bigger demographic interested (include the non-Dragonball fans) before they worry about a bunch of nerds who are willing to spend their freet time complaing about a lack of bangs on Goku. You know?

We're not that big of a group and we're not that powerful. Our word of mouth efforts might draw in two or three dozen more viewers at best. Meanwhile if they cater to the right groups they can draw in a few thousand people with the loss of, perhaps, a few dozen angry nerds.

I don't know. I'll see the movie myself. Maybe not at the theaters as I prefer to have adjustable volume levels (and cheaper sodas) but I'll see it, one way or another. Not just because it's Dragonball but because it's a new spin on Dragonball and that always interests me. No matter what I know the movie will be awesome. Either biggest blockbuster of 09 awesome or The Magic Begins' new rival awesome. Either way, it's worth the money IMO.

Also:
The reason I'm skeptical of Dragonball is that, insofar, none of the officially-released information and pictures really say to me, "This is going to be an epic martial arts fantasy adventure with humor, a little bit of Japanese cheesiness, and some serious epic action when things finally get serious." Instead, what I'm seeing is, "So, they basically gave these guys names from Dragonball, threw the Dragonballs into the plot, and they're trying to squeeze Dub Ball Z-esque GWAR! WE'RE HARDCORE AND SERIOUS! GOKU'S A MONKEY BADASS WHO TRAINS WHILE LISTENING TO ANGRY WHITE BOY MUSIC!! feeling into a story that was actually dubbed rather faithfully compared to its more popular counterpart."
Was there really any doubt it'd have more of a Z-Dub feel than a DB one? The movie was originally being called the "Dragonball Z" movie and it only exists as a kick-off point to the following DBZ movies. I've been coming into this expecting something more akin to the DBZ dub than DB.
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Post by SSj_Rambo » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:14 pm

JulieYBM wrote:How is this a live action version of FUNimation's dub, exactly?
I think he means that they might have only bothered to watch the Funi dub before writing this movie as apposed to taking the time to study a translation of the official Japanese version.

Also, I think he was comparing the way Funi messed up Dragonball to how Twentieth Century Fox might mess up this adaptation, correct me if I'm wrong here, just trying to help.

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Post by Kendamu » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:25 pm

JulieYBM wrote:How is this a live action version of FUNimation's dub, exactly?
Look at the difference between a trailer for Dragonbox singles and Orange Bricks:

One feels all upbeat with "Cha-La Head Cha-La" and has Masako Nozawa as Son Goku giving information in a cheerful manner about a colorful series full of crazy adventures, lighthearted humor, and fantastic martial arts action featuring heroes who are the personification of selflessness and boyish charm of different types.

The other is some kinda heavy metal instrumental with Chris Sabat putting on something between his Vegeta voice and his Piccolo voice trying to play up the atmosphere of Dragonball Z being his hardcore moshpit of superstrong aliens and robots kicking the crap out of each other just because that's what the cool kids are doing.

When I look at what's been released about the Dragonball movie so far, the feeling I get from it is an Orange Brick commercial. If this were a Dragonball Z movie, it would be understandable because that's the American interpretation of DBZ. I wouldn't like it, but I'd understand it and would understand why so many American dub fans like it.

However, in America Dragonball was dubbed with pretentious Japanophiles in mind so they translated the script more faithfully, got fan input on who the cast should be, left the original music in (with the exception of a few insert songs), released it with the intention of getting the general Japanese Dragonball feeling out there, but in English.

So, seeing a Dragonball movie poster that gives me the feeling of Chris Sabat growling into my ear about how awesome and hardcore the series is just goes against what I think Dragonball is. Of course, it goes against what I think DBZ is as well, but in America its doomed to have that reputation from now until forever and I stopped nerd raging about that a long time ago.

Until the studio releases some more info or pictures that give off the aura of what I feel Dragonball is (Makafushigi Adventure, only in English) I'll still remain skeptical.

Again, I'm going to state that I'm not expecting anyone else to feel the same way. I'm just sharing my outlook and what it'll take for FOX to make me want to see this.

EDIT!
Xyex wrote:
Kendamu wrote:*Long post snipped*
Oh, I don't enitrely disagree. If I am right about their choices and the reason behind what material we've got so far I think it's a good route to take. Truthfully, I don't see them giving a rats ass about what the nerds (us) think. This movie isn't being made for us, it's being made for mass consumption by the average Dragonball fan and their friends/family. So catering to the niche DB nerd market right from the start isn't high on their list of priorities. They want to get the bigger demographic interested (include the non-Dragonball fans) before they worry about a bunch of nerds who are willing to spend their freet time complaing about a lack of bangs on Goku. You know?

We're not that big of a group and we're not that powerful. Our word of mouth efforts might draw in two or three dozen more viewers at best. Meanwhile if they cater to the right groups they can draw in a few thousand people with the loss of, perhaps, a few dozen angry nerds.

I don't know. I'll see the movie myself. Maybe not at the theaters as I prefer to have adjustable volume levels (and cheaper sodas) but I'll see it, one way or another. Not just because it's Dragonball but because it's a new spin on Dragonball and that always interests me. No matter what I know the movie will be awesome. Either biggest blockbuster of 09 awesome or The Magic Begins' new rival awesome. Either way, it's worth the money IMO.
I understand, but Dragonball as it is (Goku in an orange dogi being a dope unless he's fighting someone seriously evil) has a really large fanbase as it is in America. As of a couple weeks ago, all 5 of the released Orange Bricks made up 5 of the Top 10 anime releases on Amazon.com and I read elsewhere (IGN, maybe?) that Orange Brick #5 was the top selling TV show on DVD in the USA.

Showing Goku in his orange dogi doing something Goku-esque instead of just blankly staring off into the distance like someone just asked him to tell them the cure of AIDS off the top of his head would not only get the general fanbase that this movie is aimed at as well as some people who were convinced to go see it by that general fanbase, but it would pick up the nerds as well. If they're aiming at a wide audience, all they have to do is what's already established about Dragonball.

After typing that, I take back what I said about not trying: Instead I think they're trying too hard. As-is, Son Goku finding Dragonballs and kicking the crap out of Piccolo is something mainstream America would already go see without having to do things that alienate the nerds.
Also:
The reason I'm skeptical of Dragonball is that, insofar, none of the officially-released information and pictures really say to me, "This is going to be an epic martial arts fantasy adventure with humor, a little bit of Japanese cheesiness, and some serious epic action when things finally get serious." Instead, what I'm seeing is, "So, they basically gave these guys names from Dragonball, threw the Dragonballs into the plot, and they're trying to squeeze Dub Ball Z-esque GWAR! WE'RE HARDCORE AND SERIOUS! GOKU'S A MONKEY BADASS WHO TRAINS WHILE LISTENING TO ANGRY WHITE BOY MUSIC!! feeling into a story that was actually dubbed rather faithfully compared to its more popular counterpart."
Was there really any doubt it'd have more of a Z-Dub feel than a DB one? The movie was originally being called the "Dragonball Z" movie and it only exists as a kick-off point to the following DBZ movies. I've been coming into this expecting something more akin to the DBZ dub than DB.
True, but DB is pretty successful as-is. They don't need to alter it to be more like FUNi's DBZ. It just seems so unnecessary and it feels like FOX is treating the American fans, general and nerds, like we're all too stupid to keep up with something that feels like Forbidden Kingdom with a more human-looking Monkey King. So, instead, they're making it into Wanted with Dragonballs thrown in the mix.

EDIT 2

By the way, I'm not really taking this as serious business. I'm enjoying the conversation a whole lot and that's why I'm contributing. I enjoy expressing my opinion on the matter. Worst case scenario, the movie turns out to be total crap, I make a few jokes about how its total crap, they become inside jokes for awhile, and I eventually forget it ever happened. Its the same scenario as the Street Fighter movie compared to the Street Fighter II anime movie.

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Post by Raz » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:53 pm

Actually Xyex I agree with you. I wasn't arguing at all about your opinion I see exactly what you are saying.

You take a stand of not being comitted to being a pessimist about the movie, taking a middle avenue in seeing the possibility in the movie while others refuse to believe you can make a half descent film if an element is changed about the story of Goku.

I find it a little frustrating that people can stand on definitive statements with nothing substantial.

I don't think many of us like the fact he is now in school but most people can accept the fact that they are taking liberties with the film.

While still some others can vehemently deny that a descent film can be made if in fact Goku goes to school.

I tend to believe doing so legitimately will pose a challenge to the storytelling if they put the effort into it. Anytime you bring a movie to a live action platform from a cartoon the personality and story evolves into something at least a little different from what it originally was. I can't think of a single film like it managing to do so without making alterations.

If Super Man can't manage living in the woods then he certainly shouldn't have a bastard son with Lois Lane out of wedlock in the 2006 adaptation. For better or worse, it happened. (We have yet to see a really descent Super Man movie though.)

Even the original X-Men which most people that I know really liked took several incredible liberties with the comic. Without listing them off, I can think of four things just off the top of my head.

This will not be a true to form rerelease of 'The Arrival' DVD and they will have to start somewhere and introduce as many of the characters we love without buying into the MK: Annihilation story-boarding.

While we the fans will have legitimate gripes about how the characters are portrayed, we do need to understand this movie isn't just about us; it is about reaching out to an audience mostly unfamiliar with the series as a whole. Therein lies the challenge that Hollywood must take on, in presenting a faithfully inspired story that we can appreciate while pusuing an interest in the film to capture a wide audience.

This WILL without a doubt cause difficulty for the old fanbase, especially when people begin asking rather innoscent questions about Dragon Ball and how it evolved, or how the cartoon is nothing like the movie; but we do have an opportunity to see someone elses take on the film, establishing a larger fanbase and ultimately up our chances of better releases and better acceptance of the series OUTSIDE of the Funimation-endorsed way of appreciating Dragon Ball.
Last edited by Raz on Mon Jun 30, 2008 8:06 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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Post by JulieYBM » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:54 pm

Kendamu wrote: Look at the difference between a trailer for Dragonbox singles and Orange Bricks:

One feels all upbeat with "Cha-La Head Cha-La" and has Masako Nozawa as Son Goku giving information in a cheerful manner about a colorful series full of crazy adventures, lighthearted humor, and fantastic martial arts action featuring heroes who are the personification of selflessness and boyish charm of different types.

The other is some kinda heavy metal instrumental with Chris Sabat putting on something between his Vegeta voice and his Piccolo voice trying to play up the atmosphere of Dragonball Z being his hardcore moshpit of superstrong aliens and robots kicking the crap out of each other just because that's what the cool kids are doing.

When I look at what's been released about the Dragonball movie so far, the feeling I get from it is an Orange Brick commercial. If this were a Dragonball Z movie, it would be understandable because that's the American interpretation of DBZ. I wouldn't like it, but I'd understand it and would understand why so many American dub fans like it.

However, in America Dragonball was dubbed with pretentious Japanophiles in mind so they translated the script more faithfully, got fan input on who the cast should be, left the original music in (with the exception of a few insert songs), released it with the intention of getting the general Japanese Dragonball feeling out there, but in English.

So, seeing a Dragonball movie poster that gives me the feeling of Chris Sabat growling into my ear about how awesome and hardcore the series is just goes against what I think Dragonball is. Of course, it goes against what I think DBZ is as well, but in America its doomed to have that reputation from now until forever and I stopped nerd raging about that a long time ago.

Until the studio releases some more info or pictures that give off the aura of what I feel Dragonball is (Makafushigi Adventure, only in English) I'll still remain skeptical.

Again, I'm going to state that I'm not expecting anyone else to feel the same way. I'm just sharing my outlook and what it'll take for FOX to make me want to see this.
Bah, you speak as if Chris Sabat is to blame. :P (By the way, that narration voice of his...I really don't detect any of his Vegeta in it)

As for interpertation...the sad fact is 'Dragonball = DBZ = GT' to American casuals and the stigma will stay until those in power wish to change how they market. American action films are all advertized as being bad*** or whatever. The happier tone of the original just is not what they want to use to advertize. Most people only remember DB for the fighting not as 'fine art' like we geeks do.


'Sides, I like the orange brick commercials. :P
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Post by SSj_Rambo » Mon Jun 30, 2008 8:13 pm

JulieYBM wrote:'Sides, I like the orange brick commercials. :P
Yes, me too, they are very fitting for DBZ, but not for DB. I really hope they take a different approach for the commercials of the DB seasons, it'll be fine if it's the same for DBGT, but DB needs a more comical advertisement.

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