"Dragonball" Evolves

Twentieth Century Fox’s upcoming film, Dragonball: Evolution, a live-action adaptation based on Akira Toriyama’s hit Dragonball manga and anime series, debuts in theaters in the states on April 8th. The film follows the story of the young, warrior-to-be Goku (Justin Chatwin), who must embark on an epic journey to find the seven dragonballs and summon the wish-granting dragon before the evil Lord Piccolo (James Marsters) can. He meets friends along the way who aid him in his conquest, including the intelligent and technologically-advanced Bulma (Emmy Rossum) and his wise and humorous teacher, Master Roshi (Yun-Fat Chow).

Director James Wong has mentioned that the film will be a fusion of Western and Eastern cultures, creating a new-yet-familiar world. And, since the original story is very much a fantasy, “[it will] start off in a world that felt familiar, then gradually introduce the fantastic elements of Dragonball, so by mid-movie we are in full on Dragonball mode,” says screenwriter Ben Ramsey.

The adaptation has received a lot of heat from fans of the source material, which is not at all uncommon when it comes to live-action adaptations. Many different factors of the film have spawned negativity, from the casting choices to the character designs. Wong and the cast alike, though, have admitted that not everything from the massive Dragonball world from the manga and anime can be condensed into one film.

Followers of the film believe it will soon be subjected to Fox’s typical promotion explosion, where a cornucopia of new clips, images and promotional footage flood all forms of media. And, after the recent slew of new trailers and television spots, they may be right.

The latest footage (below) was shown on Japanese television and features new clips, highlighting some of the unique fighting and special effects scenes.

Watch the official domestic trailer here.