Pokémon: Detective Pikachu Review (VIDEO SCRIPT)

The movie’s about Tim Goodman, a 22 year old insurance salesman -- I think -- that goes to Ryme City -- a pokeball, training and battle-free metropolis where humans and pokemon live side-by-side in complete harmony -- upon finding out that his detective father died in a car crash.

He stumbles upon his father’s partner -- a pikachu in a Sherlock hat that has amnesia -- and finds out that Tim can understand him.

So then Tim reluctantly works with the pikachu in solving the mystery that pikachu and his father were solving, and hoping to find the truth about him in the process

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Story

The story was a very interesting mix of Who Framed Roger Rabbit and the last act of Batman 89 if that makes any sense

The surprising part about it is that it works really well, especially considering how the story plays out over time

As a mystery movie aimed at young kids, I felt it got all the proper points across.

It did a good job making sure the overall mystery was properly balanced in its complexity. It wasn’t overly complicated and too dumbed down for older viewers

But that doesn’t mean the movie doesn’t dish out curveballs, because it totally does if you don’t pay attention to detail

There are aspects of the movie that are “blink and you’ll miss it” moments tied to the red herrings of the story that helps place things about the initial plot in perspective, like mystery movies often do.

Someone with a keen memory and an eye for detail would catch them probably midway through the movie. And that’s normally me.

But I was enjoying the ride so much, that it took me seeing the things play out to actually remember when said things were referenced earlier in the movie for them to register.

Also, considering how they used Mewtwo in this, there’s a chance that this movie possibly takes place in the same universe as the anime?

Like, there weren’t any references to Ash, Misty and Brock. But from the info they gave, there’s the possibility that this is very much the same Mewtwo from Pokemon: The First Movie. That was definitely a nice touch.

Also, there’s a VERY nice Home Alone easter egg in the beginning of the movie that everyone of my age bracket really appreciated at the theater I went to.

Characters

I really enjoyed Justice Smith’s Tim Goodman in this.

This is the first leading role of his that I’ve seen since Netflix’s The Get Down, and I really enjoy his range and how he was able to perform someone like Tim. Especially when he has the opportunity to convey complex emotions on screen

My only gripe about his character is that I felt that the jump over the first hurtle of his development was a bit rushed

Like, don’t get me wrong; when they got to it, I thought that Justice handled it perfectly and did a fantastic job

But considering what happened before that point in the movie happened, I didn’t feel like it was rightfully earned yet.

Especially since the bits of it we got leading up to it were in the form of very quick flashbacks of his childhood

Not enough time dedicated to the reflection OF said flashbacks for them to resonate with the audience properly

And Tim deflecting from conversations that otherwise would’ve helped flesh that out to be both genuine AND believable, as opposed to just genuine

Kathryn Newton’s Lucy was alright, but she fell into that trap of having little to do, despite having enough personal goals and desires to say otherwise, kinda like the character Audrey Timmonds from the 1998 Godzilla movie

She’s definitely one of those spunky characters that has something to prove, and she does a good job delivering that on screen.

And I’m SO glad they didn’t go full “you’re just a girl-tern, nobody’s gonna take you seriously” in order to deliver that

I just wish there was more time to see what Lucy could REALLY do to. Especially when it came to fleshing out her and Tim’s overall dynamic

So I won’t spoil it, but there’s an in-story reason why Pikachu is voiced by Ryan Reynolds and not Danny DeVito, AND IT WORKS

That being said, his Pikachu was FANTASTIC

I loved his quirks, both with and without context.

I loved that a good chunk of his humorous dialogue are actually crucial flaws in his character that he has to overcome later on in the movie

It also helps that the chemistry between he and Tim works in that buddy cop type of way where either one or both are reluctant at first, but they naturally form and strengthen a bond over the course of the story

But let’s not forget about the TRUE hero of Detective Pikachu. Psyduck. Also known as “My Son.”

Overall

Readers, Detective Pikachu was just...a delight.

The story and overall plot was a very well executed mash of familiar elements that make up a nice original story

It works as both a stand-alone movie and could possibly be integrated with the timelines of either the anime or the video games

And while the only nitpicks I had were with how certain aspects of the main human characters were handled, they were ALSO enjoyable and were well handled by their actors at the end of the day.

This movie is definitely a watch regardless if you’re a die-hard Pokemon fan, a novice, or someone like me who has the first two gens under his belt and didn’t recognize a third of the Pokemon that were on screen

While I understand why you’d WANT to only pay matinee price for a movie ticket, I still say its worth a full price admission.