There are two ways to judge a movie like this: either compared to the general culture and craft of films as a whole, or to the specific category of video game movies. That body of work hasn’t exactly set the world on fire…ever. Sure, there are box office hits like “Rampage (2018)” or “Warcraft,” but you’d be hard pressed to find a game adaptation that the general populous would agree on as being good.
Writer/director Rob Letterman (“Goosebumps,” “Monsters vs. Aliens”) and his team of writers; Dan Hernandez and Benji Samit (“The Tick (2017),” “One Day at a Time (2017)”), Derek Connolly (“Safety Not Guaranteed,” “Kong: Skull Island”) and most notably Nicole Perlman (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Captain Marvel”) have delivered a video game movie that is, at the very least enjoyable and good.
Breaking down exactly what that means is where the trouble sets in, because as enjoyable as it is, “Pokémon Detective Pikachu” has an incredibly rote plot. It is made more enjoyable thanks to the dialogue throughout and the chemistry between Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu and his human companion Tim Goodman, played by Justice Smith (“Paper Towns,” “The Get Down”). The pair not only play off each other well, but their growing friendship is portrayed extremely well and is immediately believable.
The supporting cast is also surprisingly excellent; Kathryn Newton (“Blockers,” “Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri”) is a charmingly aggressive wannabe reporter paired with an anxious Psyduck. Chris Geere (“You’re the Worst”) and Bill Nighy (“Pirate Radio,” “Love Actually”) are well performed, if a bit bland, as a father son duo of corporate leaders, though Nighy gets some especially cheesy good material in the later half of the film. Ken Watanabe (“Inception,” “Letters from Iwo Jima”) is good, though his role is almost little more than a cameo. Special shout out to a silent performance by Suki Waterhouse (“Assassination Nation”) than ends up turning into one of the film’s weirdest and best moments.
That is where “Detective” is at its best; the times where the film gets weird. Yeah, it may be comprised of every detective film plot known to man, with every cliché known to man, but the writers are clearly not afraid to spice things up with the weirdness inherent in the source material. There’s a hell of a difference between an interrogation of a small-town thug and a Pokémon mime.
At the very least, this film is worth a view thanks to the top-notch production across the board. Not only do the Pokémon have a look that manages to perfectly blend the cartoony nature of the games and a real-world aesthetic, but the entire look of the film feels as though it was pulled right from the games. The sets have a warped look to them, accentuated by the heavy use of bright colors, giving a true sense of life to this fantastical world. This is only helped thanks to some great camerawork from John Mathieson (“Gladiator,” “Logan”) and a thumping score from Henry Jackman (“Kick-Ass,” “Wreck-It Ralph”).
It is fun to spend time in this world, when the plot isn’t grinding to a halt. A few sequences in the first half of the film seem to exist just to have characters explain parts of the plot, forcing everything to slow down and hurting the pacing as a result. Thankfully, this disappears in the second half, but it doesn’t forgive the problems in the first.
Pacing problems, plot problems; all of that aside, it’s hard to describe this film as anything but charming. The effort that has gone into bringing these creatures and world to life is evident constantly. Not once does it feel like a corporate product and that might just be the film’s biggest surprise; it has heart and soul.
“Detective” feels as though it is built on the very foundation of charm. Every frame seems tailored made to induce even the tiniest bit of smiles; whether it’s Pikachu flipping his empty coffee cups over like empty shot glasses or the many, many, cool Easter eggs and plot twists throughout. The cast, the world, the visuals, every bit of it is chemically engineered charm.
Be warned though, this is still a Pokémon movie through and through. If you’re not already familiar with the concept, there’s very little explaining that goes on to get you up to speed. It’s not impossible to enjoy without outside knowledge, but it’s definitely tailored made for those already indoctrinated with Pocket Monster fever.
Completely and unabashedly weird, “Pokémon Detective Pikachu” is a joyful mess. Its poor pacing and routine plot are accompanied by an almost unnecessary amount of charm from the cast and world, and a sheer sense of love and dedication to its source. material. It’s not perfect, but it is enjoyable. For a movie based on a video game, it is unquestionably super effective. 3.5/5
No comments:
Post a Comment