Initial Dragonball Movie Expectations

[Avenged]

Back around 2000-2002 when a live action movie of DragonBall was heavily debated over the internet and elsewhere, so many fans had highs hopes for an epic live action version of DragonBall/DBZ. Sometime around 2002 it was announced the movie we were hoping for would eventually be made but we all had to wait 7 years to only get Dragonball: Evolution. Was any of you involved in the several community debates a decade ago? I certainly was and can say that I was very hyped for this. And if so, what were your expectations of the movie? It wasn't until 2007-2008 when DB E was introduced, so I am speaking of the time gap of when it was first announced till DB E began production.

Also, anyone remember this photo? (and I think to this day has not been confirmed whether or not it was an official concept or fan made).

[Chuquita]

I remember that photo! It was on a site whose name I can't remember which probably no longer exists.

This account I have here on Daizex was pretty much the first DB forum I signed up for, so while I was active during the years you mentioned, I wasn't actually putting any posts out there.

I do remember seeing people talking about who they'd like to see in what roles should there be a DB film, but I never got involved in those since that aspect wasn't my thing. However, I did think that if there ever were to be a film, that it would be big. Like, summer movie blockbuster big; think Transformers, Spiderman, Batman. It was going to be one of my fandoms' turns for a change. I imagined something very action/special effects heavy; the kind of popcorn flick where even if I had to turn my brain off for parts of it I could still really enjoy. I also imagined that they'd pick an attractive male lead who had experience in, if not martial arts, then at least stunt-heavy work. I also pretty much figured they'd start with the saiyajin arc like almost everything else seems to.


I was wrong on so many accounts. >_>


I still kinda want that complete reboot.

I check in on your site every now and then, along with that 2012 DB reboot IMDB page (they've removed all the credits, even Toriyama, some time in the past couple days).

It'd be really nice to know what FOX is planning on doing with the license. If that IMDB listing isn't valid, that means Paramount probably doesn't have the rights after all.

[Avenged]

I remember that photo! It was on a site whose name I can't remember which probably no longer exists.

This account I have here on Daizex was pretty much the first DB forum I signed up for, so while I was active during the years you mentioned, I wasn't actually putting any posts out there.

I do remember seeing people talking about who they'd like to see in what roles should there be a DB film, but I never got involved in those since that aspect wasn't my thing. However, I did think that if there ever were to be a film, that it would be big. Like, summer movie blockbuster big; think Transformers, Spiderman, Batman. It was going to be one of my fandoms' turns for a change. I imagined something very action/special effects heavy; the kind of popcorn flick where even if I had to turn my brain off for parts of it I could still really enjoy. I also imagined that they'd pick an attractive male lead who had experience in, if not martial arts, then at least stunt-heavy work. I also pretty much figured they'd start with the saiyajin arc like almost everything else seems to.


I was wrong on so many accounts. >_>


I still kinda want that complete reboot.

I check in on your site every now and then, along with that 2012 DB reboot IMDB page (they've removed all the credits, even Toriyama, some time in the past couple days).

It'd be really nice to know what FOX is planning on doing with the license. If that IMDB listing isn't valid, that means Paramount probably doesn't have the rights after all.

Hey, glad to hear you check my site for updates! Sorry that nothing concrete has been released yet, you'd think we'd know by now if they officially cancelled the trilogy or plan if they do plan a sequel.

And yes, the old school dream casting. I remember these two as the most popular: Bill Goldberg as Nappa and Leonardo DiCaprio as Trunks(very similar actually, too bad he is 10 years older now).

Truthfully, outside of Justin Chatwin I was pretty pleased with the DB E cast. Emmy Rossum was great, Marsters seemed to be the only actual fan (too bad his part was very short, you'd think a main villian would have a larger role), Eriko Tamura was a decent Mai, Chung was ok at Chi Chi (she had the looks atleast), and Chow Yun Fat played Roshi pretty damn good I thought. It just all came down to the screenplay and the basic storyline of the film. Everything was too generic, boring and did not have that DragonBall magic. I can't blame the actors (except Chatwin, even though this Goku was to Hollywood cliche to begin with, he still just could not act it out, very boring). Oh and Yamcha, Joon Park was ok, I was just disappointed Yamcha was oblivious to martial arts and even used a gun to defend himself, Bulma did more fighting than him haha.

I think a lot of people would agree with me that the soundtrack to this film was 200% better than the movie itself. Brian Tyler knows how to compose epic music, and I felt it all had somewhat of a DB vibe. Rule was underrated, that song needed more appreciated. But don't get me started on Worked Up, that damn song had nothing to do with Dragonball or DB E other than the song was played during that lame highschool party in the beginning of the movie.

So, yes I too would prefer a reboot someday. Although if a sequel does ever come to light, I'll report it and try and find some interest in it. It would need a lot of improvement. And yes, the IMDB listing is not valid at all.

Anyways, this topic isn't about DB E, so I'm done talking about the finalized version of it.

[AnimeMaakuo]

.

[Kingdom Heartless]

Aside from the outfits, those two Piccolo's don't look too different.

[Kaboom]

Piccolo was actually one of the better-adapted characters in DBE. It's a shame he was so under-utilized, otherwise the film could have been at least moderately better.

Also, let's try not to let this devolve into a low-brow "lol DBE sucks" thread, okay?

[Raithos]

Hmm, I had moderate expectations when I saw some of the initial revelations. When Chatwin was announced, I was like "Hmm skinny white guy playing Goku"... Ok... it can't get any worse.

O_o. Wrong.

I went from hopeful aspiration to utter disappointment when the TV spots started coming in. The part where he's at the party and then the High School 'cool kids' come to beat him up and he starts spinning in the air etc to evade them, was just plain stupid. And I thought to myself: "Oh great they're going in 'that' direction". Basically- the high school kid every nerd can relate to, that has super powers and defeats the ultimate super baddy in the end through a variety of crappy effects and poor storytelling.
And that's what they did, and I was disgusted and disappointed.
The end.

[Ahiru77]

And yes, the old school dream casting. I remember these two as the most popular: Bill Goldberg as Nappa and Leonardo DiCaprio as Trunks(very similar actually, too bad he is 10 years older now).

Surprise, surprise....

Truthfully, outside of Justin Chatwin I was pretty pleased with the DB E cast. Emmy Rossum was great, Marsters seemed to be the only actual fan (too bad his part was very short, you'd think a main villian would have a larger role), Eriko Tamura was a decent Mai, Chung was ok at Chi Chi (she had the looks atleast), and Chow Yun Fat played Roshi pretty damn good I thought. It just all came down to the screenplay and the basic storyline of the film. Everything was too generic, boring and did not have that DragonBall magic. I can't blame the actors (except Chatwin, even though this Goku was to Hollywood cliche to begin with, he still just could not act it out, very boring). Oh and Yamcha, Joon Park was ok, I was just disappointed Yamcha was oblivious to martial arts and even used a gun to defend himself, Bulma did more fighting than him haha.

I think a lot of people would agree with me that the soundtrack to this film was 200% better than the movie itself. Brian Tyler knows how to compose epic music, and I felt it all had somewhat of a DB vibe. Rule was underrated, that song needed more appreciated. But don't get me started on Worked Up, that damn song had nothing to do with Dragonball or DB E other than the song was played during that lame highschool party in the beginning of the movie.

I agree with cast and soundtrack.....shame they put Rule when he was biking to school.

[Super Sayian Prime]

I expected something "big". I expected this to be an event movie, but it was the opposite. The $100 million+ budget movie that was set to film in Montreal became a $30 million movie filmed in Mexico that wasn't advertised until the week of release (of which advertising consisted entirely on children's channels), had no print advertising at all, and is non-existent to most people. I expected this to be a big rebirth of Dragon Ball, instead it just came and went without even a whimper.

[SuperSaiyan3Goku]

The movie itself was meh, but I don't tend to think of it as a Dragon Ball movie. Just a generic "Cheesy" Martial Arts flick.

Oh, and I very much remember the Piccolo "Concept Art". I was a member of "Live Action Anime" (A forum that has long since died out) and we existed mostly for well, Live-Action Anime Movie adaptations. Dragon Ball was pretty high up there, and the fans there pretty much think the same way the fans here think. (With their feelings toward Dragonball Evolution)

[kaialone]

When the movie was announced I wasnt really into DB,I was just like :"Huh,wasnt there a Detective Conan live-action movie ,too?Didnt kow live-action versions of anime where so common."

[Piccolo Daimao]

When Chatwin was announced, I was like "Hmm skinny white guy playing Goku"... Ok... it can't get any worse.

*Sigh*...yes, of course the movie was hindered from the start because Goku wasn't played by an Asian, wah wah wah, get over it.

Moving on...

When Dragon Ball Evolution was announced, I didn't really know what to think. When I saw that Justin Chatwin was playing Goku, I couldn't remember who he was at first, but then I found out he was in War of the Worlds. Still, I didn't have much experience of his acting, so I didn't know what to expect, nor did I for the rest of them. I had a feeling that it would be bad, since I didn't think they'd take it seriously (and, obviously, I was proved right), but I did have some hope.

[Ringworm128]

I thought the movie was going to decent until I read the words "High School" and "18 Birthday" in a magazine I used to read at the time. Then I new something was wrong.

[Super Sayian Prime]

When Chatwin was announced, I was like "Hmm skinny white guy playing Goku"... Ok... it can't get any worse.

*Sigh*...yes, of course the movie was hindered from the start because Goku wasn't played by an Asian, wah wah wah, get over it.

Moving on...

When Dragon Ball Evolution was announced, I didn't really know what to think. When I saw that Justin Chatwin was playing Goku, I couldn't remember who he was at first, but then I found out he was in War of the Worlds. Still, I didn't have much experience of his acting, so I didn't know what to expect, nor did I for the rest of them. I had a feeling that it would be bad, since I didn't think they'd take it seriously (and, obviously, I was proved right), but I did have some hope.

A Dragon Ball movie played serious would literally be the worst thing imaginable.

[Raithos]

When Chatwin was announced, I was like "Hmm skinny white guy playing Goku"... Ok... it can't get any worse.

*Sigh*...yes, of course the movie was hindered from the start because Goku wasn't played by an Asian, wah wah wah, get over it.

Moving on...

When Dragon Ball Evolution was announced, I didn't really know what to think. When I saw that Justin Chatwin was playing Goku, I couldn't remember who he was at first, but then I found out he was in War of the Worlds. Still, I didn't have much experience of his acting, so I didn't know what to expect, nor did I for the rest of them. I had a feeling that it would be bad, since I didn't think they'd take it seriously (and, obviously, I was proved right), but I did have some hope.

Actually, I would have been ok with it if he simply had more muscle mass (Goku has been pretty muscular from the get-go even as a kid, and I'm sure he'd have considerable muscle mass in his teens). The guy's skinnier than my 8 year old little brother, so am I going to be envisioning him mastering martial arts and kicking alien ass? Nah. But like I said, I still invested some hope into the film, up until the TV spots, and then I knew it was in the crapper.

[Chuquita]

(I think this is the best thread to post the following in?)
It looks like someone's started up posting more fake information to that IMDB page. They've got a run-time of 124 minutes, the budget now says an estimate of $120 million, and someone named Daniel Henney is listed as Goku.


This sort of thing is going to keep happening until the entire DB Reboot page is deleted from the database, isn't it?

[Eddie]

^Yes. Yes it will. In the last several months, IMDB has posted all sorts of craziness about the supposed reboot. They even listed Tatsuya Fujiwara (probably best known for his role as Light Yagami) as Yamcha.

[Chuquita]

He'll take a potato chip and eat it. :3
(Oh Death Note, I miss you, but I'm enjoying Bakuman, so....)


Anyway and on a far less silly note, there wouldn't happen to be a way to get the entire listing removed from IMDB, would there? It'd prevent a lot of the confusion that keeps coming about whenever someone goes in to tamper with the file if there weren't a file there at all.

Would they need confirmation from FOX to remove the entire page altogether?

[Piccolo Daimao]

When Chatwin was announced, I was like "Hmm skinny white guy playing Goku"... Ok... it can't get any worse.

*Sigh*...yes, of course the movie was hindered from the start because Goku wasn't played by an Asian, wah wah wah, get over it.

Moving on...

When Dragon Ball Evolution was announced, I didn't really know what to think. When I saw that Justin Chatwin was playing Goku, I couldn't remember who he was at first, but then I found out he was in War of the Worlds. Still, I didn't have much experience of his acting, so I didn't know what to expect, nor did I for the rest of them. I had a feeling that it would be bad, since I didn't think they'd take it seriously (and, obviously, I was proved right), but I did have some hope.

A Dragon Ball movie played serious would literally be the worst thing imaginable.

You know what I mean. I mean, casting appropiate actors (Chatwin can't act, nor does he fit the role of Goku), proper fight scenes, coherent plot, a good script...all those things that make a film good. Fox and James Wong didn't take it seriously because they didn't care about making a good adaptation of the film. That's evident from the amount of things DBE gets wrong.

When Chatwin was announced, I was like "Hmm skinny white guy playing Goku"... Ok... it can't get any worse.

*Sigh*...yes, of course the movie was hindered from the start because Goku wasn't played by an Asian, wah wah wah, get over it.

Moving on...

When Dragon Ball Evolution was announced, I didn't really know what to think. When I saw that Justin Chatwin was playing Goku, I couldn't remember who he was at first, but then I found out he was in War of the Worlds. Still, I didn't have much experience of his acting, so I didn't know what to expect, nor did I for the rest of them. I had a feeling that it would be bad, since I didn't think they'd take it seriously (and, obviously, I was proved right), but I did have some hope.

Actually, I would have been ok with it if he simply had more muscle mass (Goku has been pretty muscular from the get-go even as a kid, and I'm sure he'd have considerable muscle mass in his teens). The guy's skinnier than my 8 year old little brother, so am I going to be envisioning him mastering martial arts and kicking alien ass? Nah. But like I said, I still invested some hope into the film, up until the TV spots, and then I knew it was in the crapper.

Fair point. Chatwin was a horrible cast for Goku, for reasons aforementioned. I just get annoyed with people saying that the film was bad because Chatwin was Caucasian, as if Goku had to be Asian for the film to be good. And then you get pages of people arguing back and forth about Goku being a Saiyan anyway, so it doesn't matter, or Goku was based on someone from Chinese legend, so he has to be Asian, or whether he looks Caucasian or not, etc.

[The Time Traveller]

Does being skinny really matter? Have you seen the Machinist, Christian Bale was thin as a rake, then next year he was Batman and managed to bulk up, though it was a little too much apparently.

Chatwin was the right size in Evolution anyway.