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Detective Pikachu Movie Discussion Thread

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Kutie Pie

"It is my destiny."
NuosyD0.jpg

Ahahahaha holy shit, it looks like Ken Watanabe's character is fearful to touch that Snubbull XD.

Where'd you find that, by the way?
 

Redstar45

The Anime/Special's canon know it all.
Ahahahaha holy shit, it looks like Ken Watanabe's character is fearful to touch that Snubbull XD.

Where'd you find that, by the way?
You can find it on Twitter.
 

Bguy7

The Dragon Lord
I actually like the Snubull. I think it's the first furry Pokémon that actually looks like it was done properly. Not too furry like Pikachu or Jigglypuff.

Where'd you find that, by the way?

Also, Serebii had it on the top of the homepage yesterday.
 

mockingjay

swift and lol
A reminder that 'We Got This Covered' is a highly unreliable site that is capitalising on readers interest in a Pokemon movie, all their "scoops" are not real.

TCPi wouldn't want a movie based off Red/Blue anyway as they know that is just a recipe for a disaster, hence why it's taken them 20+ years to approach a movie studio to adapt Detective Pikachu into a movie, as they never really had any other source material that seemed viable in the past.
 

Prof. SALTY

The Scruffy Professor
A reminder that 'We Got This Covered' is a highly unreliable site that is capitalising on readers interest in a Pokemon movie, all their "scoops" are not real.

TCPi wouldn't want a movie based off Red/Blue anyway as they know that is just a recipe for a disaster, hence why it's taken them 20+ years to approach a movie studio to adapt Detective Pikachu into a movie, as they never really had any other source material that seemed viable in the past.

We were speaking hypothetically, though good work on getting the word out about dubious news.
 

Orphalesion

Well-Known Member
Then there's Pokemon Origins. That is a great example of a video game adaptation done right but the thing is not only do more people trust the studios behind Pokemon Origins to make a good product, great video game film adaptations are still a rarity, even moreso in the west.

Pokemon Origins done "right"? o_O Imho that miniseries was a boring, disjointed, pointless mess.

I think Red and Blue are a terrible basis for a movie due to how thinly spread and repetitive. You can't make a movie, let alone several, out of some kid challenging the Gym leaders to 8 repetitive battles. I'm pretty sure that's the reason why in the Anime it often seemed like Ash did everything except actually battling the gym leaders to get his badges, you have to do something else entirely with that plot.
It would probably also be difficult to develop the main character, any potential travel companions and a full team of six Pokemon (plus, again those of any travel companions) in a single movie, but even here I'd hope they'd do something more than what Origins did with Red (which was basically nothing)
Maybe if they focused on the team rocket plot...

I see what you meant by the problem with video game adaptions, but I think it might be more than that. Video games like Pokemon might be more difficult than books because you have at the same time too much storyline (or rather the storyline is spread too far) too little storyline (there is very little in Red Blue really) and what you have is too repetitive (difficult to do the standard Hollywood plot formular)
The Lord of the Rings pretty much had similar problems, because it also has a rather unconventional and atypical plot flow (arguably the main plot/plots doesn't really kick off until the last book, with the second book being spent on some sort of weird dress rehearsal for the climax) which is why such an extensive reworking of the whole thingwas necessary for it to become Hollywood movies.

Red/Blue would need possibly even more reworking...and you can't do what they did in Origins in a Western, life-action theatrical release. It would not be popular.
 
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shoz999

Back when Tigers used to smoke.
Pokemon Origins done "right"? o_O Imho that miniseries was a boring, disjointed, pointless mess.

I think Red and Blue are a terrible basis for a movie due to how thinly spread and repetitive. You can't make a movie, let alone several, out of some kid challenging the Gym leaders to 8 repetitive battles. I'm pretty sure that's the reason why in the Anime it often seemed like Ash did everything except actually battling the gym leaders to get his badges, you have to do something else entirely with that plot.
It would probably also be difficult to develop the main character, any potential travel companions and a full team of six Pokemon (plus, again those of any travel companions) in a single movie, but even here I'd hope they'd do something more than what Origins did with Red (which was basically nothing)
Maybe if they focused on the team rocket plot...

I see what you meant by the problem with video game adaptions, but I think it might be more than that. Video games like Pokemon might be more difficult than books because you have at the same time too much storyline (or rather the storyline is spread too far) too little storyline (there is very little in Red Blue really) and what you have is too repetitive (difficult to do the standard Hollywood plot formular)
The Lord of the Rings pretty much had similar problems, because it also has a rather unconventional and atypical plot flow (arguably the main plot/plots doesn't really kick off until the last book, with the second book being spent on some sort of weird dress rehearsal for the climax) which is why such an extensive reworking of the whole thingwas necessary for it to become Hollywood movies.

Red/Blue would need possibly even more reworking...and you can't do what they did in Origins in a Western, life-action theatrical release. It would not be popular.

I guess it overall depends on the viewer however Red & Blue focusing on a lone traveler has more potential for storytelling than you think. Pokemon Adventures RGB Story Arc proves this as it's often hailed by many as the best adaptation of Gen 1 AND before you some of you guys say it, I know it's a subjective opinion but there is some truth in a commonly-held opinion or what some of you may consider an overrated opinion. It has Red building relationships with his Pokemon, human characters and even some of the villains including Giovanni. So I do believe you can make several movies out of a single generation. It's only a big problem when were talking about focusing on a single movie adaptation because you know things are going to be cut out, I definitely understand that. In fact the writer of Pokemon Adventures, Kusaka, explains the hardest part may be actually adapting the Pokemon content itself which may bore or disappoint some fans. He explains the hardest thing about adapting Pokemon to another story medium is that you can't afford to create a story that people playing the video games don't like. However he continues on that on the other hand, if everything was exactly like the games, the story would be boring and predictable. He explains that when you're playing a Pokemon game, you put yourself into the character, whereas an established character has to drive the story. That balance between what's changed and what remains is the most difficult part and I feel this holds true for a possible video-game movie adaptation too, perhaps all video-game movie adaptations.

So yeah. Your right. Red/Blue would definitely need a reworking but for me personally at least, not in a way that cuts down content but rather adds to it.
 

Prof. SALTY

The Scruffy Professor
They're not made for the TCG, they're not screencaps, these are movie stills.

??? Screencaps ARE movie stills? What are you talking about?

The lighting and posing is completely different to the way the movie looks. There's no way the movie is going to stop、 change it's style completely for a second、 and continue with its regular editing afterwards. These are made specifically for the cards.
 

Orphalesion

Well-Known Member
I guess it overall depends on the viewer however Red & Blue focusing on a lone traveler has more potential for storytelling than you think

I wasn't saying anything for or against a "lone traveler" story. I was talking about Origins being crap because it sticks too close to the games, has a disjointed story were large parts are told in voice over and refuses to do much for Red in characterization and character development. It was pretty much just continuity porn for very comitted fans.
What I meant was that you can't really do a broad audience, Western, cinematic movie that tells the story like Origin does.
The trouble with a lone character in movies is usually that they can't talk to anybody (which is a reason additional characters are sometimes included in adaptions) however in a Pokemon movie you could substitute the starter as a living thing the main character could talk to.

As far as Adventures goes (which I didn't mention at all...), I actually think that they should look at that one to get ideas on what to do with Red and with some other aspects of the story. Though you gotta remember that a manga has more room for extra content than a movie. And that expecting a trilogy of movies to come from Red/Blue is not very realistic.

And well, I stand by saying that you can't really include all the gym battles + elite four in the movie, since it would be super repetitive and eat up too much time. I bet you by the time Red battles Lt. Surge at the latest people would be fed up with it.
 

shoz999

Back when Tigers used to smoke.
I wasn't saying anything for or against a "lone traveler" story. I was talking about Origins being crap because it sticks too close to the games, has a disjointed story were large parts are told in voice over and refuses to do much for Red in characterization and character development. It was pretty much just continuity porn for very comitted fans.
What I meant was that you can't really do a broad audience, Western, cinematic movie that tells the story like Origin does.
The trouble with a lone character in movies is usually that they can't talk to anybody (which is a reason additional characters are sometimes included in adaptions) however in a Pokemon movie you could substitute the starter as a living thing the main character could talk to.

As far as Adventures goes (which I didn't mention at all...), I actually think that they should look at that one to get ideas on what to do with Red and with some other aspects of the story. Though you gotta remember that a manga has more room for extra content than a movie. And that expecting a trilogy of movies to come from Red/Blue is not very realistic.

And well, I stand by saying that you can't really include all the gym battles + elite four in the movie, since it would be super repetitive and eat up too much time. I bet you by the time Red battles Lt. Surge at the latest people would be fed up with it.
You said Red & Blue would be a terrible basis because it's repetitive and thinly spreaded out and although you explained it to be Gym Leaders, I thought you also meant the classic "traveler" story which also contains such problems, especially the non-fictional kind as Pokemon can actually relate to similar movies due to it's pseudo-realistic setting in the outdoors. As for the repetitive Gym Leader issue, I understand that which is why I think it can be decorated better through a multi-part film series and it can actually work in a single film without flashbacks, just much harder. It's the type of action-scene where it's cut shortly so you can let the audience know it's important, it's been done while staying focus on the plot. It's very common in boxing movies actually where they feature multiple boxing matches but don't actually show the entire match. We've actually seen this before in Pokemon Generations where Green battles the Elite Four and the battles are shorten to their last Pokemon which is good enough for a short. Of course the thing is you can't do this for all the Gym Battles, just some of them otherwise it loses it's importance and focus in a film overtime.
 

mockingjay

swift and lol
??? Screencaps ARE movie stills? What are you talking about?

The lighting and posing is completely different to the way the movie looks. There's no way the movie is going to stop、 change it's style completely for a second、 and continue with its regular editing afterwards. These are made specifically for the cards.

You clearly aren't familiar with movie production and have no idea what "movie stills" are. Movie stills are not screencaps, lol.

Movie stills are captured on set by a separate on-set photographer (that isn't through the official photography cameras for filming) that provides a "still" of the movie/scene.

They just released a still from DP. Example of a still vs. actual movie scene:

pikachu-still-1154650.jpeg


bwiwOaA.png

undefined.png
 

Prof. SALTY

The Scruffy Professor
You clearly aren't familiar with movie production and have no idea what "movie stills" are. Movie stills are not screencaps, lol.

Movie stills are captured on set by a separate on-set photographer (that isn't through the official photography cameras for filming) that provides a "still" of the movie/scene.

They just released a still from DP. Example of a still vs. actual movie scene:

pikachu-still-1154650.jpeg


bwiwOaA.png

undefined.png

first of all, you can't take an on-set photo of CGI. That picture was likely ripped from the editing software the CGI was rendered in where you can get high quality freezeframes like that.

The cards artwork are very clearly not from the movie. The framing on the Pikachu card isn't conventional camera work, the lighting and composition are completely different from anything you would see in a movie, Greninja and Charizard are VERY obviously posed specifically for the cards and follow the same lighting and composition as the Pikachu one. Like I dunno how you're not seeing that???
 

Cyclone

^ where it all began
I've played every single Pokemon game since Red & Blue. I would never pay money to see this bizarre bastardization of the franchise. The Pokemon look disturbing. Pikachu should not talk, and if he does talk, having him be a disgruntled middle aged man is a funny gag but turns the entire film into a Pokemon parody, rather than an accurate portrayal of what the Pokemon universe is supposed to be; the universe that Nintendo spent 20 years creating for us. Why choose the first CGI Pokemon film to shatter that universe and instead present us with some twisted version of the Pokemon world that we've never seen before? It is one that I would never have been interested in to begin with.
 

lemoncatpower

Cynical Optimist
I've played every single Pokemon game since Red & Blue. I would never pay money to see this bizarre bastardization of the franchise. The Pokemon look disturbing. Pikachu should not talk, and if he does talk, having him be a disgruntled middle aged man is a funny gag but turns the entire film into a Pokemon parody, rather than an accurate portrayal of what the Pokemon universe is supposed to be; the universe that Nintendo spent 20 years creating for us. Why choose the first CGI Pokemon film to shatter that universe and instead present us with some twisted version of the Pokemon world that we've never seen before? It is one that I would never have been interested in to begin with.
I agree with you but at the same time not enough to not pay money to see it.

On the other side it can be seen as a good idea for testing how well a live action Pokémon would be before they go right in with the characters we already know well and will have higher expectations for. I will never understand why they chose Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu though... I’d rather they just have the MC be able to understand the pikachu’s pikas completely without us having to hear what it’s saying in English, pretty much like how Ash does in the anime.
 

BCVM22

Well-Known Member
I've played every single Pokemon game since Red & Blue. I would never pay money to see this bizarre bastardization of the franchise. The Pokemon look disturbing. Pikachu should not talk, and if he does talk, having him be a disgruntled middle aged man is a funny gag but turns the entire film into a Pokemon parody, rather than an accurate portrayal of what the Pokemon universe is supposed to be; the universe that Nintendo spent 20 years creating for us.

You sound like you're unaware of what this film is adapting. And if you are, that's fine, of course, because no one has heard of everything. But the source material is as legitimate of a game as anything else in the franchise. Nothing is being made into a "parody" or being "bastardized."

https://www.serebii.net/detective/

Why choose the first CGI Pokemon film to shatter that universe and instead present us with some twisted version of the Pokemon world that we've never seen before? It is one that I would never have been interested in to begin with.

They're adapting Detective Pikachu because it's already an established narrative with a clear story, a beginning, a middle, and an end, complete with a talking titular character, all of which make it the perfect place to start if you're going to do something as difficult and nebulous as adapting Pokémon into film. Trying to adapt a game like Red/Blue would have been far more open-ended and thus far more difficult as a final product is concerned. If it's not for you and you've already decided you hate it, that's fine, but starting where they did was the right call, absolutely.

I will never understand why they chose Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu though... I’d rather they just have the MC be able to understand the pikachu’s pikas completely without us having to hear what it’s saying in English, pretty much like how Ash does in the anime.

Because the titular Detective Pikachu already talks in the source material, which gave them the chance to cast a name actor to lend his voice to the proceedings, and that matters some when you're marketing a movie. Furthermore, we all love Ikue Ōtani and I'm delighted that they found a way to incorporate her work into this film, but two hours of Pika-pika-ing at the audience would have been beyond excessive.
 
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Bguy7

The Dragon Lord
Pikachu should not talk, and if he does talk, having him be a disgruntled middle aged man is a funny gag but turns the entire film into a Pokemon parody, rather than an accurate portrayal of what the Pokemon universe is supposed to be; the universe that Nintendo spent 20 years creating for us.

BCVM22 already covered what Detective Pikachu began as, but I just wanted to add that I found the game to be really good, and really enjoyable. Surprisingly serious too. Nothing like a parody at all. And outside of the one extremely special exception of Detective Pikachu (who actually has a story-based reason for why he talks and sounds like a "disgruntled middle aged man"), the rest of the game probably has one of the best representations of the Pokémon World we've ever gotten from a video game, arguably including the main series games. Can't speak for the movie yet, but the game gets my seal of approval, without a doubt.
 

shoz999

Back when Tigers used to smoke.
I've played every single Pokemon game since Red & Blue. I would never pay money to see this bizarre bastardization of the franchise. The Pokemon look disturbing. Pikachu should not talk, and if he does talk, having him be a disgruntled middle aged man is a funny gag but turns the entire film into a Pokemon parody, rather than an accurate portrayal of what the Pokemon universe is supposed to be; the universe that Nintendo spent 20 years creating for us. Why choose the first CGI Pokemon film to shatter that universe and instead present us with some twisted version of the Pokemon world that we've never seen before? It is one that I would never have been interested in to begin with.
I love the passion going into this answer however this is actually a far more smarter and safer move than you think for several reasons. Think of it as a prototype for something bigger.

First off, video game film adaptations. There is a practically a lot of infamy and taboo surrounding video game film adaptations and in this day and age where film studios are milking off of people's nostalgia's, Detective Pikachu is a safer bet because if film studios were to milk off and experiment with the nostalgia of Red and Blue, it might lead to mass disappointment from fans as many fans these days are no stranger of keeping their expectations at extremely high levels out of nostalgia despite the reoccurring trend of bad movie's failing to understand what fans want while at the same time making their own surprises to keep things interesting. Most film studios have a bad habit of not understanding the source material and even then, they have a bad habit of experimenting with video game concepts that are too large for filmmaking. Detective Pikachu is far safer because it's an adaptation of a spin-off and is a great compromise and start for a potential Pokemon film franchise and introducing the concept of the Pokemon World while maintaining that hype and nostalgia from people's childhood memories of Pokemon through a more smaller and less-grandiose story that not many casual Pokemon fans are familiar with and yet won't be as disappointed because they know this isn't Red, Green and Blue. This is Detective Pikachu, based on a spin-off which also leaves for more experimentation to see what works in a video-game film.

The second reason is Nintendo themselves. As reasons mentioned before, the film studios have less chance of messing a Detective Pikachu film as the first live-action Pokemon film then an actual adaptation of the main series games we all know and love and through this they have one chance of slowly earning Nintendo's trust in video game film adaptations which could lead to Nintendo possibly opening their doors full of video game properties to carefully pick film studios creating a series of Nintendo films after over 20 years of Nintendo never trusting a film studio ever again with their video game properties after the disastrous movie known as the Super Mario Bros. movie which is to this day a masterful example of how often western film studios do not understand their audiences that well.

To sum it up. If successful, Detective Pikachu will be a very important movie in cinema and video game history and may determine the possible future of not only a Pokemon Red & Blue movie but a wide array of possible Nintendo film adaptations that could represent the bulk of video-game film adaptations. If it fails, we may never see a Nintendo film adaptation in what I assume the next 10 to 20 years.
 
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