Detective Pikachu is a heavily stylized adventure movie with a surprisingly strong mystery! Not to mention, an adorable one at that! “Pika-Pika”
I recently attended the Detective Pikachu premiere back in April – in Tokyo no less – and have been itching to talk about this little guy for weeks! The minute Pikachu pops up on the screen you’ll want to hug him; trust me, it’ll be an automatic response. My only worry from early on in trailers was that Ryan Reynolds voice would be too distracting or out of place for the character, but I promise you it works. This little coffee loving fur-ball will steal your heart, and most of this film.
I would describe Detective Pikachu as a wild mix of Roger Rabbit meets Zootopia, set in the style of Blade Runner. It’s both a huge achievement in visual effects – with some of the best character animation in years – as well as a thought provoking mystery and heart-warming story. Pokemon fans and Non-Pokemon fans alike will be delighted by the carefully crafted world building of this new live action Pokemon universe.
Detective Pikachu centers around a young man named Tim Goodman (Justice Smith). Tim a seemingly distant kid, who receives news that his estranged father Harry has been killed in a car accident. Tim is forced to visit his dad’s old apartment in Pokemon capital Ryme City and deal with his final affairs. Unlike the typical Pokemon video games we’re used to, catching and fighting Pokemon is outlawed in Ryme City. Here humans and Pokemon coexist as one, and are treated as equals. Tim however, who once dreamed of becoming a Pokémon trainer, no longer feels the need to have a Pokemon. He just wants to clean out his dad’s apartment and go. Which is when Pikachu shows up. This is where things get a little “twisty.” It turns out that Pikachu was in fact his dad’s Pokemon, and Tim can surprisingly understand him. Unfortunately Pikachu doesn’t remember a thing about what happened to Harry, but he’s certain that he’s still alive. Which leads to a good ole fashion Pokemon mystery.
While the human characters in this film are very enjoyable, the true stars are the Pokemon. It’s true that Pikachu absolutely steal this entire movie, but I do have to get it up to Psyduck for coming in at a close second. Pokemon fans will have a blast trying to distinguish their favorites in the big city scenes, as well as some hidden easter eggs throughout. I don’t want to give it away, but one of the best scene in the film has to do with the original Pokemon TV show theme song. So brush up on your lyrics.
Detective Pikachu is a great introduction to the summer blockbuster season, and will sure to have fans and non-fans alike clambering to squeeze a Pikachu of their very own. I sure did!
Have you seen Detective Pikachu? What did you think?!
