Pikachu — one of the most famous video game and pop culture characters in the world. It was only a matter of time until Nintendo’s little yellow mascot for the “Pokemon” franchise would have its own movie.
For those who remember the long-running anime involving Ash Ketchum and his trusty Pikachu, the film take a different route in terms of story and characters. Yet, your inner child will be wildly excited every time you see a recognizable Pokemon appear on screen.
Story
Zack Kellogg | Argonaut
“Detective Pikachu” was originally a video game spin off from the original “Pokemon” series, where a young boy teams up with a talking Pikachu only he can understand, and the unique duo team up to solve crimes.Our protagonist, 21-year-old Tim Goodman (Justice Smith), receives a phone call from the Ryme City police department. He learns his father Harry, a well respected and successful detective, has died in a car crash while investigating a case.
Tim goes to Ryme City, a place where battles have been outlawed and people live in peace with Pokemon, to collect his estranged father’s belongings and return home.
But while Tim is looking around his father’s apartment and opens a mysterious vial of gas, he finds a Pikachu (Ryan Reynolds) lurking around as well. Pikachu proceeds to talk, saying he is a world class detective with a case of amnesia, and is trying to figure out why he has a hat with Harry’s address.This is a basic story — an unlikely bond between two characters which turns into a deep friendship. Despite semi-interesting supporting characters and a few interesting twists along the way, don’t expect to be blown away by the average script.
Visuals
Detective Pikachu
One of the film’s main standouts is the bold choice to ditch the Pokemon’s iconic anime character design. Surprisingly enough, giving them a photo-realistic makeover works.
With very few exceptions, almost no Pokemon look out of place or overtly crazy. Even Detective Pikachu, with his cat-like fur, is one of the cutest things I have seen on a movie screen.
Nintendo certainly helped make sure the visuals were top notch, and they delivered with flying colors.
Certain environmental CGI is lacking, with the actors looking as if they are standing in front of a greenscreen. And during one intense hill-sliding scene about halfway through the movie, things look just slightly off. But the film has a few saving graces like the care put into each Pokemon — whether it’s cute and cuddly or mean and intimidating. Additionally, the few battle scenes are the most visually pleasing.
Acting
Reynolds, with his natural wit and comedic timing being on full display, was perfectly cast fir the roll of Detective Pikachu.
Although unfortunately not every joke lands, Reynolds does most of the heaving lifting to keep the film from being a bore.
Smith also did a solid job as the lead role. Sometimes coming off as trying too hard and a bit lackluster, it was overall a solid outing for the young actor next to an A-lister like Reynolds.
The supporting cast was solid with the likes of Bill Nighy, Ken Watanabe and Katheryn Newton putting in solid performances, but nothing to write home about.
Results
This is a good summer flick. It’s a movie where you can simply sit and enjoy the impressive visuals which keep you interested during the story. There will be no abstract ideas or complex stories you’ll need to follow, but simply some good Pokemon fun with above-average comedy anda couple twists sprinkled throughout. If you have a few hours to kill, take the time to go see probably one of the best video game-based movies to date.
Zack Kellogg can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @kellogg_zack.