Pokemon: Detective Pikachu

When Tim Goodman receives word that his father, a famous detective, might be dead, he travels to Ryme City to investigate.  Here, in a city where humans and Pokemon live together as equals, Tim stumbles onto a case involving experimentations that might have gotten his father killed.  He also finds his fathers Pokemon partner: an amnesiac Pikachu that can talk.  With a hunch that Tim’s dad is still alive, Tim joins forces with Pikachu and a beautiful news intern to unravel a lingering web of deception building underneath the utopia that is Ryme City.  Little do Tim and Pikachu know that the search for Tim’s father will soon become a battle for the fate of both mankind and Pokemon…and they are the only hope to save both species.

 

Whether you’ve been into it or not, there’s no denying the impact Pokemon has had on Anime and nerd culture for the last two decades and change.  From the early days on the Gameboy Color to the long running Anime franchise to the somewhat still socially relevant Pokemon Go, this massive army of Pocket Monsters is as synonymous with us all like Disney or Star Wars.  And yeah, it may have taken the better part of 20 years to get a live action Pokemon movie into existence.  However when you consider the colossal failures of the Super Mario Bros. Movie, most of the Resident Evil franchise and the potentially doomed to fail Sonic the Hedgehog movie, I’m happy for the long wait.  It isn’t flawless by any means, but Pokemon: Detective Pikachu is a win nonetheless for anyone who has been a Pokemon fan for even the most fleeting of moments.

 

For this movie to work on any level, Detective Pikachu needed to excel at three things: bringing a fully realized Pokemon world to life; the bond between Tim and the titular detective; and, maybe most importantly, the adorable fluffy detective himself.  Rest assured, all three important factors are the best parts of the entire movie.  My fears the Ryan Reynolds was going to try and go for a more child friendly Deadpool as Pikachu were erased quickly after a couple of minutes with the coffee chugging furball.  Sure, there’s a lot of Reynold’s signature smart ass snark and comebacks but there’s also a great deal of wisdom and care in his performance.  He’s having an absolute blast bring to life one of the most unique portrayals of Pokemon’s signature mascot.  You could imagine talking to him like any normal person while also hugging the crap out of him for being so adorable. And props to the visual effects department, which clearly worked overtime to bring Pikachu and his hundreds of Pokemon brethren to life.  These aren’t some swiftly thrown together visual effects that the actors have to dance around.  Never, for one moment, was I not convinced that Ryme City was a living, breathing Pokemon world plucked right from one of the video games.  The movie begs to be freeze framed every second on Blu Ray in order to play the ultimate game of “Who’s That Pokemon?”  Bulbasaur, Charizard, Jigglypuff, Psyduck, Mr. Mime, freaking Mewtwo.  I had to turn to my sister during the Ryme City intro and just freak out that I was actually seeing a real life Pokemon world on the big screen and it was glorious.

 

Of course, the fully realized onslaught of Pokemon can only get a movie so far if the human actors aren’t up to the task.  While the supporting cast isn’t nearly as strong, Justice Smith as Tim is giving every scene his all from the moment he first appears.  From being a cynical ex-Pokemon fan to his wide eyed freak out at a talking Pikachu to his sadder moments thinking about the family he’s missed all these years, Smith is the very strong third of the beating heart of Detective Pikachu (alongside Pikachu and the world they live in).  This helps the bond between Tim and Pikachu soar.  One second theyre a bickering pair of buddy cops (especially during the movie stealing Mr. Mime interrogation scene), the next they’re having a heart to heart like they’re brothers.  It makes me glad that long time Pokemon hero Ash wasn’t chosen to be the lead character in this film.  Pikachu can bond just as flawlessly with other humans and Tim is one of those great examples.

 

As I said, the supporting cast isn’t nearly up to Reynolds and Smith’s level in the movie.  Kathryn Newton’s Lucy is kind of all over the map with how hyper and serious she tried to be at the same time.  Bill Nighy and Ken Watanabe could have been serviced better with stronger roles too, I really like both of them as actors.  The plot of the movie also tends to get a little familiar.  At times I felt like Detective Pikachu was taking cues from the first Pokemon movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back, though it righted that ship throughout the movie.  There are some twists and turns that, frankly, I saw coming from one of the earliest trailers and the reveals did make me shake my head a little.  Honestly, im not sure how I would have personally corrected some of these nitpicks.  The movie as a whole does feel like it could have been one of the many Anime features in its pacing and overall feel.  I just wish the mystery was less predictable and that the villains of the movie were more memorable.

 

Well folks, I can safely say that despite some nagging flaws, Pokemon: Detective Pikachu does prove that a competent Live Action Video Game movie is possible to make, not just an OK one like Mortal Kombat (though that movie is still a guilty pleasure, the second one is trash).  The story falls a little flat but we’re still looking at Pokemon interacting with humans in a real world setting, something myself and many others have dreamed of seeing ever since we first plugged Pokemon Red and Blue into our Game Boys.  Better yet, the titular gumshoe and his human partner shine the brightest with their bond and character arcs.  Throw on your nostalgia goggles and prepare for a fun trip down memory lane.  Perfect it may not be but that doesn’t mean Pokemon: Detective Pikachu isn’t trying it’s hardest to be the very best…like no one ever was.

7.5/10