Review of Pokémon Detective Pikachu (2019) by Davrosdaleks1 — 11 May 2019

This was a lot better than I expected.

Detective Pikachu is a movie that knows how to entertain and improves in quality as it progresses. It is such a perfect blend of humor, heart, action and world-building. It also helps that the evil plan is a little new and that although some reveals are pretty predictable, there is one that is pretty well done.

A lot of credit should be given to director Rob Letterman, whose previous Goosebumps movie was also a lot better than anyone expected. There were so many ways this film could've gone wrong given the history of video game adaptations. Heck, the movie could've just had some Pokemon characters brought into our world, which is a trend these days. However, Letterman actually managed to adapt the basic structure of the fantasy world of Pokemon into a real world-esque environment. The movie actually cares about the world of Pokemon and should probably please fans. However, it is also mostly accessible to newcomers, by showing how Pokemon work without getting too expositioney. (MOSTLY. I felt the Pokemon's ability to evolve was kept a little vague.).

The amount of computer animation that went into the Pokemon is short of astounding. The entirety of Rhyme City is populated by them. Kids should love them considering how unique and often cute they are. Considering that Pokemon were 2D creations originally, the ability to make them more realistic without losing their qualities was impressive. Although, the texture on the fleshier Pokemon is a little peculiar. It kind of looks like what you'd think a fetus would feel like.

They are also some visually-arresting action scenes. I wasn't a big fan of the constantly grey sky. I mean I know this is supposed to be pseudo-Noirish, but considering how colorful the games were, I would've preferred some more light. Music is distinctive.

The fuzzy mouse-esque Detective Pikachu especially looks good. (And let's be honest, extremely marketable. He's like a teddy bear.) Ryan Reynolds brings on the funny with the character, but he and the script also make you take his deductive skills and more heartfelt moments seriously.

Also, I just want to give props to veteran British actor Bill Nighy appearing in this and treating his role so professionally given the ridiculousness of the film.

Overall, I really enjoyed this.