Unlike the Dragonball Z movies, the original Dragonball films adapted arcs of the television series, albeit in a condensed format, rather than tell completely new stories. The animation was also a bit more primitive and the action a lot less intense, leaving many to prefer the Dragonball Z films over the Dragonball ones. Personally, I thoroughly enjoy the Dragonball movies as well as the television series, which is something I can’t say for Dragonball Z, at least in its entirety. This initial Dragonball movie, “Curse of the Blood Rubies”, condenses the first 13 episodes of the TV series (referred to as the “Goku Saga”) into about 45 minutes. So, naturally, you’re going to lose a bit in translation.
In a peaceful village, the greedy King Gurumes has begun mining for Blood Rubies. However, with the Blood Rubies come a terrible curse which transforms the once gentle King into a gigantic monster. His hunger unable to be satisfied no matter how much he eats, King Gurumes sends his thugs out across the globe to track-down the Dragonballs: 7 mystical orbs which, once united, can summon the Eternal Dragon to grant a single wish. Unbeknownst to King Gurumes, a teenage girl named Bulma is after the Dragonballs, too, and her quest leads her to the home of the orphaned wildboy, Goku. Goku’s a talented martial artist but a bit on the naïve side. King Gurumes’ goons steal Goku’s Dragonball, a gift from his deceased Grandfather, and Goku and Bulma head out to get it back. Along the way, Goku and Bulma meet Penny, a girl from King Gurumes’ kingdom, Oolong, a shape-shifting pig, Yamcha, the desert bandit, Puar, Yamcha’s assistant, and Master Roshi, the geriatric martial arts master of the Kamehameha.
While it’s the most classic story in the Dragonball mythos, I can’t help but feel a little bored whenever I watch this movie, mostly because the story has been retold at least 4 times: the manga, the TV series, “Curse of the Blood Rubies” and “The Path to Power”. It’s classic, for sure, but you can only watch it so many times. On the bright side, they manage to condense the story and work-in all the characters rather well. The subsequent Dragonball films do a better job of adapting episode arcs while providing more original material, though.
As of right now, the only version of this film available in the US is the edited cut from the late 90’s. While I do hate edits, a part of me somewhat appreciates the edited version. It maintains nearly all of the violence of the original version as well as some of the cruder jokes (Bulma wetting herself) but removes the perverted gags. To this extent, it’s perfect for young children, because honestly, even with the dirty jokes intact, most teenagers are going to find this movie a little childish. The added scene-transitions and wipes do look very tacked-on and ugly, however.
The dub performed by the Ocean Group, one of their earliest works in regards to Dragonball, is actually pretty good. They definitely improved over time (becoming fantastic by Dragonball Z), but they hit many of the character’s with a perfect bullseye. Saffron Henderson does a good Goku, Gary Chalk is a menacing King Gurumes and I really like the voices for Bulma, Yamcha and Oolong. I suppose my only major complaint is Puar’s voice, which is a little on the irritating side (I think they were trying to go for a British accent but it still sounds off). A lot of fans of the Japanese dub never liked the US voice-portrayal of Master Roshi as a senile old man, and it is a little too cartoonish, but I’ve always found it funny. Roshi had many English voices over the constantly fluctuating cast of Dragonball and Dragonball Z, but his best was definitely the later Funimation voice actor.
The animation by Toei Studios isn’t anything to write home about. A few of the fight scenes, such as Goku’s fight with Yamcha and Goku’s aerial battle against Gurumes’ thug on the hoverboard, are worthwhile but I wouldn’t qualify them as “visually stunning”. The animation is consistent and smooth, but nothing about it screams “movie quality”.
“Curse of the Blood Rubies” is a good introduction to Dragonball and the edited version is perfect for kids. For the Dragonball fanboy, though, the movie loses its rewatch value rather quickly. The future Dragonball movies, such as “Sleeping Princess in Devil’s Castle” and “Mystic Adventure” are a bit better.
Grade: C
Dragonball Z movie 6: “The Return of Cooler”
The Return of Cooler is another one of my favorite Dragonball Z movies and a very epic conclusion to Cooler’s story arc. The Return of Cooler is also longer than the previous film (62 minutes as opposed to the 45 minute-long “Cooler’s Revenge”) and packs in a lot more story and action.
New Namek (homeworld of Piccolo’s people) is suddenly attacked by a planet-eating war world called the Big Gete Star (think Unicron from Transformers the Movie only squishier). Dende, the new Guardian of Earth, senses the disturbance and enlists Goku and friends to save the troubled Namekians. Goku, Gohan, Krillen and the rest arrive on New Namek and face-off against a legion of powerful Cyclopean Drones. The battle is tough, but things only get more complicated when the mastermind behind the planet-chomping operation rears his ugly head: Meta Cooler!
Cooler is easily my favorite returning villain of the Dragonball Z movie franchise and the Return of Cooler is the best of his two appearances. Clocking in at 62 minutes (that’s actually pretty long for a Dragonball Z movie), this movie manages to work-in an excellent story, lots of fight sequences and one of the most epic final battles in any Dragonball Z movie. What I appreciate most about this film is that the odds really *are* against Goku and his friends which actually leads to a thing called “tension”, which tends to be absent from many Dragonball Z movies. More often than not, Goku defeats the lead villain by simply turning to a new level of Super Saiyan or just pulling out some dues ex machina attack, like the Spirit Bomb. This time around, Meta Cooler beats the mortal Hell out of both Goku and Vegeta when they’re at their very best and they actually have to find a way to defeat the enemy by, *gasp!*, using their wits!
This installment also marks the first appearance of Vegeta in a Dragonball Z film (he’d been a regular in the TV series for quite some time, however). His big entrance was exceptionally pleasing, though Cooler does toss him around like a bit of a chump. Although I’ll always prefer Brian Drummond’s rendition of Vegeta from the old Ocean Group dub of the television series, I will admit, Christopher Sabat’s take on the character managed to grow on me. He’s very deep and growly, not quite as hissy-sounding as Drummond’s, and he sounds suitably evil.
Toei’s animation is magnificent all-around. The fight sequences are gloriously violent and perfectly choreographed. This installment contains some of the best aerial battles between characters, deploying numerous “camera” tricks which result in a very dizzying effect. As characters race all over the skies, teleporting from one spot to another, the landscape beneath them spins like crazy. They move really *fast*, you almost have trouble keeping up with them. Meta Cooler’s hordes of Cyclopean Drones are also a nice break from the standard minions the lead villain tosses at the good guys in previous films. While they lack colorful personalities, they’re plethora of attacks, such as grappling arms, machine guns and rocket-launchers, make them a definite visual treat. Meta Cooler-himself looks especially awesome as well as…shiny. Really, really shiny.
A shame to say it, but after this installment, the Dragonball Z movie series becomes a bumpy ride in regards to quality. Up until this point, the only decidedly bad installment was “Lord Slug”. However, from here on out, the movies will range mostly from bad to mediocre with only a few good ones thrown in. So enjoy this movie for now, because you won’t be seeing anything as good until “Wrath of the Dragon”. But, to assign the standard letter grade, I give the Return of Cooler a B+.
Grade: B+
Dragonball Z movie 5: “Cooler’s Revenge”
“Cooler’s Revenge” is one of the better installments in the Dragonball Z film franchise and certainly one of my favorites. Cooler has always been my favorite returning villain of the movie series, as I definitely prefer him over the annoyingly overrated Broly. While this movie is short in length (45 minutes) it has one of the more intriguing stories and some very consistent animation.
When Goku was just an infant being shuttled from planet Vegeta (homeworld of the Saiyans) his ship was spotted by Cooler, the brother of Frieza. Cooler allowed Goku’s ship to proceed, a choice that would eventually come back to haunt him, as Goku would later kill Frieza in an epic confrontation on planet Namek. Wanting to challenge the Saiyan who killed his brother, Cooler and his minions come to Earth. At the same time, Goku, Gohan and the rest of his friends are on a camping trip. Cooler quickly makes his presence known and Goku must now fight a foe even more powerful than Frieza ever was.
Cooler’s a great villain; basically Frieza minus the homoeroticism. I particularly liked his transformed state during the film’s climax, as it reminded me of Super Shredder from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II. While there isn’t much more to the character other than being Frieza 2.0, his connection to Goku’s origin was pleasantly ironic, and not half as stupid as Broly’s connection. Cooler’s Armored Corps (his minions) weren’t so good, however. Another bland set of thugs, these guys just didn’t have much to make them stand out (as opposed to the thugs in “Tree of Might”, who were all very unique).
The animation in Cooler’s Revenge is top-notch, remaining visually pleasing from beginning to end and rarely cutting corners, even during the “slow” segments. But, of course, this movie is only 45 minutes-long, so don’t be expecting too many slow segments. The fights are excellent, the two best being Piccolo’s scrap with the Armored Corps and Goku’s final showdown with Cooler. I’m also grateful that the non-Saiyan characters such as Piccolo and Krillen haven’t been reduced to either comic relief or ineffectual losers quite yet. Krillen only tussles with Salsa (leader of Cooler’s Armored Corps) for a few brief moments, but it’s a far cry better than how they treated the character in “Broly’s Second Coming”.
The voice acting in the movie is both good and bad. The cast of TV regulars are as good as usual, and I really do like Sean Schemmel’s Goku quite a bit. Cooler also has an excellent voice which gets even better once he transforms. No, the major voice acting problem is with Cooler’s Armored Corps. They’re really annoying, particularly Salsa’s random German (?) accent.
Cooler’s 2 movie arc remains one of the better portions of the Dragonball Z movie series and marks a definite highpoint in the franchise. I’d give it a B. It might have gotten a “+” had it been a bit longer and the Armored Corps not been so damn annoying.
Grade: B
Godzilla (Gojira, 1954)
When most people hear the name “Godzilla” they instantly think of the cheesy films like “Godzilla vs. Megalon” or “Godzilla vs. Gigan”, blissfully unaware that, at one point in time, Godzilla meant a whole lot more than some goofy mascot used to sell action figures. The original Godzilla produced in 1954 isn’t some schlocky B-movie. Quite the contrary, it’s a dark and frightening look at the horrible consequences of nuclear weapons and a magnificent commentary on the fears of Japanese citizens post-World War II.
The fishing boat Eiko-Maru mysteriously vanishes out in the Pacific in a blinding flash of light bursting from beneath the waves. Shortly afterward, the people of Odo Island fall victim to a bizarre rampage that destroys half their village, leading them to believe that a legendary beast known as “Godzilla” has come to destroy them. While investigating the strange footprints left on the island, Professor Yamane, his daughter, Emiko, and her lover, Ogata, come face-to-face with the titanic beast-itself. Godzilla soon appears in Tokyo Bay, destroying homes and murdering scores of people. The Japanese government races to find a means to destroy Godzilla before his next attack, but all standard military weaponry is absolutely useless against the monster. Emiko’s fiancé, Dr. Serizawa, has created a weapon that might be capable of killing Godzilla, but the weapon is so incredibly destructive it could be worse than any nuclear bomb.
By 1954, the effects of Japan’s defeat in World War II were still being felt all over the country and few had gotten over the atomic destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Additionally, the Japanese fishing ship, the Lucky Dragon, had been accidentally caught in a US atomic bomb test, killing all onboard. Atomic weaponry was a concept the Japanese feared tremendously at the time. Godzilla wasn’t just a giant monster, he was atomic destruction personified, given a corporeal form and a face. His behavior is unpredictable, uncompromising and unstoppable. People look at the original Godzilla and see another giant monster B-movie along the lines of “Earth vs. the Giant Spider”, but they do themselves a great disservice by ignoring the extensive social commentary and historical significance of the film.
Godzilla-himself is nothing like the Irish-jig dancing, child-rearing, kid-friendly character you’ll see through-out the 60’s and 70’s. He’s a brutal killing machine; an absolute force of nature. He levels homes and businesses, murders thousands, sets cities on fire, kills women and children indiscriminately; Godzilla is pure evil. His eyes glow in the darkness, completely devoid of emotion or sympathy; at times he seems to actually target the people scurrying beneath his feet. The aftermath of his devastation of Tokyo is shown with full force. Bodies lined up and down hospital hallways, numerous orphaned children weeping for their parents; this isn’t Power Rangers or Gamera, Godzilla’s attack is looked at like a real disaster situation with all the tragic repercussions that follow. Director Ishiro Honda never spares the audience the gruesome outcome of Godzilla’s rampages and does a startling job of making the entire scenario disturbingly realistic.
The human characters in this movie are all very interesting and carry the story along with ease. Dr. Yamane is hesitant about killing Godzilla because he’s the last of his kind. Emiko, Serizawa and Ogata have a love triangle going which adds depth to their situation. Serizawa is a very stand-out character and possibly the most memorable human of any Godzilla movie. His tragic sacrifice at the end is truly heart-breaking.
Eiji Tsubaraya’s special effects are phenomenal considering the time they were made, the budget they were made with and the short period of time they were provided to produce them. In fact, they’re nothing short of miraculous. Godzilla’s suit is extremely detailed and frightening, mixing aspects of both dinosaurs and mythical dragons. The miniatures are by far one of the most impressive accomplishments of the film, with dozens of buildings crumbling beneath Godzilla’s feet and actually looking like they have a weight of tons rather than ounces. There are a few instances of dodgy effects, such as the Godzilla hand-puppet used through-out the film or the wires on the fighter planes being clearly visible. Yet these noticeable errors are easily forgivable considering the overall impressive special effects work of the film.
The opening of Godzilla is something I also think is note-worthy in that it immediately expresses the dread the title character embodies using an incredibly minimalist approach. You are presented with a black screen accompanied by loud, crashing stomps which is soon followed by a bizarre, unearthly roar. It then leads into the title and opening credits which make way for the movie’s theme. The late Akira Ifukube’s score is truly epic and one of the most memorable movie themes out there. The opening of the film, which consists of nothing more than title cards, sounds and music, sets the entire atmosphere of the movie in a matter of minutes. A very impressive display.
While I will always enjoy the American version of this film, “Godzilla, King of the Monsters”, I must admit that the original Japanese version of the film is truly superior. Godzilla is a magnificently dark and moody film that has a whole lot to say.
Grade: A+
Ninja Scroll
One of the first movies people watch when they’re starting to get into the whole anime-thing, Ninja Scroll is a movie that’s easy to like. A fairly cut and dry story, Ninja Scroll is entertaining mostly through its outstanding animation, bizarre characters and unforgettable fight choreography.
During the days of feudal Japan, wandering Samurai, Jubei Kibagami, is enlisted (against his will) by the geriatric government spy, Dakuan, to take down Lord Gemma and the Eight Devils of Kimon. The indestructible Lord Gemma intends to hijack a massive shipment of gold and use the wealth to become the all-powerful Shogun of the Dark. Along the way, Jubei and Dakuan meet-up with a cold-hearted female ninja, Kagero. It’s an uneasy alliance at first, but the trio gradually learns to like each other as they are hunted down by the freakish Devils of Kimon.
Mad House Studios, the same people that brought us Spawn the Animated Series, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust and Perfect Blue, animate this movie and do a magnificent job. Despite being over a decade old, the visuals in the film are stunning and the fight scenes are brutal beyond words. Director Yoshiaki Kawajiri, whose resume includes the likes of Wicked City and Kimba the White Lion (what is wrong with this guy?), knows how to keep the audience’s adrenaline pumping with his numerous “holy crap!” fight sequences.
You can’t talk about the fight scenes in this movie, however, without talking about the characters, as their individual quirks attribute largely to the action. The Eight Devils of Kimon are monstrous human beings, each blessed with a unique special ability. There’s a guy made of rock, a guy with a wasp’s nest in his back, a guy who can travel through shadows, a blind swordsman and so on. These villains are each very memorable with hardly a single lame-o in the bunch. Jubei, Dakuan and Kagero each have their own special abilities and skills which make them stand out in the crowd, as well. This element of “super powers” almost gives the movie a comic book-feel to it, which might be why it became so instantly popular in the west. Even if you don’t like anime, you’ll most likely enjoy Ninja Scroll.
There are a few downsides to the movie, however. Despite having worked on kid’s shows like Kimba the White Lion and the Fantastic Adventures of Unico, Yoshiaki Kawajiri is a total pervert. While one instance of severe molestation/borderline rape is somewhat essential to a part of the plot, there are unnecessary scenes of people doing it doggy style or women having snakes in their whats-its. I’m not a prude about this sorta thing, but it will most certainly scare off a number of viewers, especially since the rape sequence happens pretty early in the film. These scenes make-up for only a miniscule portion of the actual film, but they’re hard to forget and make anybody watching the movie look like a total perv.
13 years and Ninja Scroll has hardly aged a day. A perpetually cool movie, even if it’s a little unnecessarily erotic. It also spawned a 13-episode television series in 2003, partially due to its overwhelming popularity in America and the Western demand for more Jubei action. Ninja Scroll gets a B+. Would’ve gotten a perfect score if it weren’t for that doggy style bit.
Grade: B+