Pokemon is more than just a series of games, anime, and manga. Starting all the way since 1990’s, when the first Pokemon game saw the light of day and up until today, these little creatures have conquered the hearts and minds of millions, if not billions of kids! Well, they used to be kids in the 90’s, but now we’re all grown up, have jobs, families, cats, etc. But the moment the first Detective Pikachu trailer dropped, the sheer force of nostalgia knocked us all back into our childhood years. We really got an actual live-action Pokemon movie. The trailer was witty, and showed us realistic-looking pocket monsters, which is everything the fans have ever wanted, really. But did the movie live up to our sky-high expectations?
Yes and no. Look, it’s complicated. Let’s dissect the best and worst things about Pokemon: Detective Pikachu!
1. The Fun Factor (Good)
If overall the movie felt a bit too childish (as it should), the sheer fun I had while trying to spot all the hidden Pokemon cameos was quite rewarding. It was just like back in the day when we sat in front of our TVs and played “who’s that Pokemon” game. Also, the jokes were pretty funny, even though we saw most of them in the trailers.
2. The Setting (Bad)
Establishing your first ever huge live-action movie about Pokemon in a city where battles are forbidden is like making a movie about the Ghostbusters, but they can’t bust any ghosts. Give us the League, or a Gym at least. That underground battle was a huge tease.
3. Plot Twists (Good)
For a kids’ movie, it really had a lot of “wow” moments. The main villain, although somewhat obvious, was still well-masked, and they even pulled off a perfect switcheroo at the end! Another mystery worth noting
4. Humans Are the Worst Part of the Movie (Bad)
I don’t know about you, but to me it seemed like Pikachu and Mr. Mime were the best actors on the set, despite being 100% digital. Hopefully, the next Pokemon movie will address this.
5. CGI Is Amazing (Good)
There’s not much I can say here. The designers really did a great job coming up with realistic-looking Pokemon. The fur, scales, skin – it all looked great! If Pokemon lived among us, that’s exactly how they’d look and feel.
6. Nothing New (Bad)
Even though the movie is based on a game of the same name, nobody would mind if the writers only took the idea of a talking Pikachu, and built the world and adventures around that, instead of taking the whole plot of the game, maiming it, and then saying “screw it” in the last act.
7. Action Scenes (Good)
We got to see Pokemon attack in real life, basically! How freaking cool is that? Sure, action in the anime sometimes looks even better than this, but this is live-action! Special shout out to the Squirtle Squad water-gunning a house fire. That’s was a dope little reference.
8. The Whole Middle Part (Bad)
Starting from the moment when they arrived to the lab and up to the part where they’re back in the city, is an incredibly boring snooze fest. I have so many problems with the evens that were unfolding there, it could be a whole separate list. Why is the lab empty? How did the villain control Greninjas? What is up with those mountain-sized Torterras? What do they eat? Why are they all covered in forests if the experiments took place a few years back? No, seriously, what do they eat? Ouch, my head is doing a Psyduck…
9. Mr Mime and Ditto Are Both a Win (Good)
Lastly, I’d like to commend these 2 amazing Pokemon – Ditto and Mr Mime, for taking the movie from 6/10 to a 7. That interrogation scene was pure gold and I really wish they’d kept it out of the trailers. And as to Ditto, I’m very happy they kept his quirk (Ditto eyes) in the movie.
As you can see there are more positives than there are negatives, and I really struggled with the latter. Go see Detective Pikachu, you’ll probably enjoy it!
