Pokémon : Détective Pikachu

(Theater impressions--short review) Semi-casual Pokémon fan here--played through a few of the games (never played Detective Pikachu), watched the anime as a kid, but not super invested in the franchise. A lot of people seem to be giving this movie high ratings. Detective Pikachu is not without merit, but the film's good points (namely, Ryan Reynold's performance, some good humor, some nice character interaction and overall high production values) are unfortunately outweighed by its bad points (namely, a needlessly and hopelessly convoluted plot, hit-or-miss performances from the remaining cast, some jokes that didn't land, some heavy-handed dialogue and some poor character interaction, and lack-luster CGI). The film is overall inconsistent in tone; it doesn't seem to really know who it's for or what it wants to be. I had fun watching the film with my friends in the theater (who are also familiar with Pokémon), but if you're unfamiliar with Pokémon or if you're watching it on your own on the small screen it might not quite be an enjoyable experience.

While I like Pokemon, I've never been a collector of cards or watcher of the cartoons. Still, the characters are cute and I like the idea of the competitive fights. From the trailer, the movie looked funny and cute, so I wanted to see it. And that's basically what you get from the film. Ryan Reynolds is funny and charming as the title character. The Pokemon are cute and the CGI is well done. Yet, underneath the surface, the plot is nearly nonexistent and the acting is subpar at best. So, is it worth watching? Yes. It's cute and funny. You'll laugh and be visually entertained. But once it's over, you realize you really gained nothing from the time spent watching.

As the titel says, this movie is great, but only if you like Pokémon. If you are a long time Pokémon fan you will love this movie, but if you don't like Pokémon, if Pokémon doesn't really interest you or the small chance that you've never heard about it, most of the movie will not be very interesting. There's a lot of inside jokes and the likes. I'm not saying you need large amount of Pokémon knowledge to watch this movie, but if you need to google Mewtwo or Psyduck to know what they are, then this movie is most likely not for you.

Okay, enough about that. This movie is the best game adaptation I've seen to date. It's funny, the visual effects are amazing and it has heart when it wants to. There is something for all ages. Pikachu is adorable and Ryan Reynolds is really great. The human actors are unfortunately this movies weak point. Justice Smith is good and Bill Nighy is Bill Nighy, but the rest are not great and mostly not believable (they're not terrible though), fortunately they don't get that much screentime. The plot is good, but a bit predictable (gets a little wierd in the end).

Just to clear up my thoughts, Ryan Reynolds and the Pokémons really makes this movie for me. For me it's an 8 out of 10.

Hope this helps any potential moviegoer.

I am not saying the movie is great. Far from it. Its full of flaws. But its fun and nostalgic.

I watched it at a moment when I was sad and terrified and alone. I put it on and felt better at then end. That's it. It did its job. And sometimes that's enough.

It's very rare that I ever watch kid's movies any more. I couldn't even tell you what the last one I saw before this was. But 'Pokémon Detective Pikachu' just really interested me for some reason. I'm not even much of a 'Pokémon' fan (I watched it briefly as a kid, but that was about it). I think it was the casting choice of Ryan Reynolds as 'Pikachu' that took my fancy. A really enlightened choice. He has the comedic skills to make anything funny, and ultimately that is the strongest thing this movie has going for it.

I also loved the concept of the story being based around a mystery. I'm a sucker for mysteries in films. Unfortunately the one they chose for this movie didn't really work for me. It just never hooked me in. I didn't absolutely need to know the answer, and that is always the key to a mystery element working in a story.

The other thing that impressed me was how good the animation was. The 'Pokémon' looked absolutely fantastic. I think this is a great movie in the sense that kids are going to have a great time with it, but also the adults that take them along are going to enjoy it more than they might other children's movies. A worthy effort.