Dragonball Evolution is a 2009 American action-adventure fantasy film directed by James Wong and produced by Stephen Chow, Tim van Rellim and written by Ben Ramsey.
The film is loosely based on the Japanese Dragon Ball manga created by Akira Toriyama, and stars Justin Chatwin, Emmy Rossum, James Marsters, Jamie Chung, Chow Yun-fat, Joon Park, and Eriko Tamura. In Dragonball Evolution, the young Goku reveals his past and sets out to fight the evil alien warlord Lord Piccolo who wishes to gain the powerful Dragon Balls and use them to take over Earth. The film began development in 2002, and was distributed by 20th Century Fox. It is the first official live-action adaptation of the Dragon Ball manga.
Dragonball Evolution was released in Japan and several other Asian countries on March 13, 2009, and in the United States on April 10, 2009. The film received negative reviews by both critics and Dragon Ball fans and was a box office disappointment, grossing $57.5 million with a production budget of $30 million.
Two thousand years ago, the demon Lord Piccolo (James Marsters) came to Earth, wreaking havoc along with his minion Ōzaru (Ian Whyte). Seven mystics created the Mafuba and thought they sealed him away for eternity. However, Piccolo breaks free and with his ninja henchwoman Mai (Eriko), begins to search for the seven Dragonballs (each one has stars numbering between one and seven), killing anyone in his path.
On his eighteenth birthday, high school student and martial artist Son Goku (Justin Chatwin) is given the four-star Dragonball by his grandfather,[4] Grandpa Gohan (Randall Duk Kim). Returning home from a party hosted by his crush Chi-Chi (Jamie Chung), Goku finds his home destroyed and his grandfather near death after Piccolo's failed attempt to acquire the Dragonball.
Before he dies, Gohan tells Goku to seek out martial arts master Muten Roshi (Chow Yun-fat), who holds another one of the Dragonballs. Along the way, Goku meets Bulma (Emmy Rossum) of the Capsule Corporation, who was studying the five-star Dragonball until it was stolen by Mai. Goku offers Bulma his protection in exchange for her help in finding Roshi. They ultimately track him down in Paozu City. Under Roshi's wing, Goku begins training his ki, knowing that they must get all the Dragonballs before the next solar eclipse, when Ōzaru will return and join forces with Piccolo.
In the midst of the group's search for the six-star Dragonball, they fall into a trap set by the desert bandit Yamcha (Joon Park) but Roshi convinces Yamcha to join by promising 1/3rd of the royalties for Bulma's invention. Together, the group fight off an ambush by Mai and successfully acquires the next Dragonball. As the group continues their quest, they travel to a temple where Roshi consults his former teacher Sifu Norris (Ernie Hudson) and begins preparing the Mafuba enchantment so he can reseal Piccolo, while Goku must learn the most powerful of the ki-bending techniques: the Kamehameha.
During the night, Mai – disguised as Chi-Chi – steals the team's three Dragonballs, adding them to the ones that Piccolo already acquired. With the Dragonballs successfully united, Piccolo begins to summon Shen Long, but is stopped by the timely arrival of Goku's team. During the ensuing battle, Piccolo reveals to Goku that he himself is Ōzaru, having been sent to Earth as an infant to destroy it when he grew older.
Comments
Post a Comment