Back To The Drawing-Board

Unequivocally, while many outside audiences arguably see it as a series full of characters staring each other down, powering-up and fighting one another in a grandiose manner, there’s a reason why Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball is seen as one of the best anime show’s of all time and why so many Shōnen’s of similar ilk try to emulate its formula. Indeed, from its vast collection of episodes & different stories, to the 149 video game titles that have sold over 44 million units and even an holiday in Japan called “Goku Day” which is celebrated every year on the 9th May, Dragon Ball’s popularity is certainly unrivalled and it’s not just down to its lauded battles between different alien races and literal gods. As imperative as the implied East Asian martial arts is in abstracting Goku’s ascend from a beginner to a master, it’s the shows inherent way of moulding different cultural stories and ideologies together that results in the characters being boundless and authentic. This is certainly noticeable in the franchises latest cinematic outing – Dragon Ball Super: Broly – a full length animated feature that appropriately modernises a nostalgic story for those familiarised with the 1993 film, Dragon Ball Z: Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan. It’s within this latest cinematic Dragon Ball adventure where we see the first canon appearance of the maniacal Broly and how it appropriately expands on the title character’s backstory whilst also offering necessary context for both Goku and Vegeta’s origin. With all that said however, does this latest cinematic outing for Dragon Ball make a lasting impression in comparison to other Japanese animated films?…

Upon the devastation of Planet Vegeta, a now destroyed home to a powerful race, three Saiyans are scattered amongst the stars destined for different fates. While two of these Saiyans, in the forms of Goku and Vegeta, found a new home of Earth, the third was outcast and raised on a remote planet to become the ultimate weapon for vengeance. Despite their separation on different planets for so many years, their paths are crossed once again as both Goku and Vegeta face Broly; an unknown Saiyan with enough destructive force to wipe anything and anyone…

In rather oddly similar circumstances to how different audiences will perceive Mary Poppins Returns in terms of their own acquaintance with the character and whether or not they’ve seen the original, what’s naturally going to make cinema-goers either deter or be joyful of Dragon Ball Super: Broly will be down to individual familiarity of the aforesaid franchise. Whilst a devotee of the said Shōnen series will be inherently interested in the way in which Broly will be finally be involved in Dragon Ball’s main contextual canon and how this revision of the series’ 1993 film sheen’s more nostalgic light on Goku and Vegeta’s connection with the title character and the history of Saiyan’s destruction (which is appropriately depicted for necessary means), it’s equally arguable to suggest that those who are not knowledgeable of this anime and its characters will, understandably, have a hard time trying to process the story and the rather unorthodox comedy that’s amalgamated in. As I’ve come to mention in recent times when reviewing My Hero Academia: Two Heroes and other anime cinematic releases of similar ilk, what’s rather imperative for the likes of Funimation and other similar animated distribution companies is their process of localisation and the steps they take in marketing anime films for all audiences; not just the fans of the specific series that will go to see the film in the first place. As much as these one-off anime films are made solely for the fans of the animated T.V. series, one of the more important aspects a cinematic-feature like this has to achieve in coercing all audiences to be invested in the film is to uphold a context that is broad and attainable to understand. Granted, being that Dragon Ball is a franchise that has been releasing different manga and anime series for over thirty years, a newcomer of the aforesaid concept watching this latest will understandably be bewildered by its level of great character depth and the random humour moulded in. Yet, what’s clearly distinguishable to see that Akira Toriyama has done with this latest cinematic-venture of Dragon Ball is to create a space of transcendence; an attainable conversion whereby all audiences can feasibly understand the intricacies of the context and the motives behind a characters actions or line of dialogue. This is certainly the case when you consider how Toriyama rather takes the best aspects of Dragon Ball and smashes them together into a single whole. Not only is this film a true testament to the original 80’s and 90’s series by including a backstory that is attainable and rather mirrors the origins of Superman, but it’s also an appropriately modern anime films that wholeheartedly utilises a style of animation that is ripe with clarity and authenticity. 

While many fans of the show will be miffed over this films change of Broly from what he was before, it’s a necessary change that brings about a compelling context and reason as to why the title character has this much destructive power and why he essentially becomes the occupancy of an abandoned and vengeful child who’s left to die. This, in return, brings forth a level of social commentary that audiences who aren’t familiarises with the anime series may come to grips with. compared to the 1993 feature, this telling see’s Broly’s father Paragus train the unknown Saiyan for vengeful means against King Vegeta and it’s their specific father-son relationship that fleshes this theme of parental control; how free time for a young child should be used for more practise for the battlefield of educational examination or social standing and shunning internal desires. For those who’ve come to use their free time as children revising for a test or training for something else important, Broly’s indoctrination into being an un-suppressed power is a visual metaphor for those who’ve experienced the same. If there’s one small contextual detail that may feel weird for those acquainted in watching the Super series, it would be Broly’s physicality and his powering-up state since it mirrors the likenesses of another character from the latest series, Kale. During the latest T.V. series, the character Kale from Universe 6 resembled Broly physically and had similar powers of rage. What’d odd, given the similarities between Broly and Kale with the latter being recently acquainted with the protagonists, is how neither Goku or Vegeta never once mention this distinctive resemblance, even though those who’ve watched the series will notice it. As much as it’s not an overly imperative aspect to the main context of the story, it’s interesting non-the-less that this physical connection is never referenced. Possibly the biggest qualm the film has going for it is the inclusion of the fight sequences; specifically, the pacing and longevity of these moments. While the construction and detailing of these scenes are eye-gasmic to perceive and ponder long after, one slight issue they bestow is their wayward pacing and how there’s never an instance within this second half of the film of fighting where the characters or story take a break for more development. In many ways, as it’s if you’re watching Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel or one Michael Bay’s inferior Transformer films.  

As much as I was personally disgruntled at the fact that Dragon Ball Super: Broly doesn’t expand its character roster beyond to the likes of Gohan, Krillin or Piccolo (who does show-up for about 5 minutes), what’s appreciative that Toriyama has done with the characterisation is to reduce the number and place greater emphasis on Goku, Vegeta and Broly who all share an unlikely connection despite their contrasting paths. With the focus solely being on these three aforesaid characters and expanding their histories together, Dragon Ball Super: Broly is smart to showcase a slimmer roster of characters than the preceding entries as 2013’s Battle of Gods or 2015’s Resurrection F since the drama in return becomes more clearer and concise for those who’ve never watched Dragon Ball before, It’s contextual choice that benefits the watcher from understanding the characters and their motives and even makes someone as enraged as Broly seem that more compelling. Rather than seeing him as the villain of the peace, you learn to sympathise with Broly’s position as a person who’s been goaded to fight someone else’s fight and how he’d rather live a solitude life. Indeed, the drama is improved by making use of the right character at the right time and the way the film balances between the likes of Goku, Vegeta and Broly, is near enough perfect. Much of the same can be said of Freiza’s inclusion to the story since he rather interjects to the story with his comically wily mannerisms and becomes an integral part to the backstory of the central characters’ fates.

As one would expect to see from any form of Dragon Ball entertainment, the action scenes that this film has to exhibit evoke the same spine-tingling thrills as seen in the T.V. series. However, what’s more impressive and appealing to be aware of is the films overall formatic style and how the blend of different animated techniques all amalgamate with one another to create something which no other anime feature has been ambitious to full incorporate fluidly. What I’m referring to is the films inherent sense of blending the accepted drawn cel animation style with the CG animated technique that makes certain moments of action seem more fluid and bolder to perceive. As much as I’m not necessarily an advocate for CG animation in anime, considering how distracting and unnecessary it is, the animators of this film feasibly manage to incorporate in a subtle way that’s not off-putting. In a sense, it adds to the impact of certain character movement and motion of fists or kicks flying though the air. Although my views are greatly heightened by the fact that I personally went to see this film in a big IMAX sceen, there’s no way around in saying that Dragon Ball Super: Broly is the most beautifully looking entry in the franchise and upholds lengthy and fast action sequences that wholly provide the necessary impact of a punch or a Kamehameha. What’s distinguishable to notice within this film compared to preceding Dragon Ball series is minute detailing and how character frames are prominent from their harsh black-outlines; evoking this sense that a piece of art, or manga in this case, is being brought to life. What’s also an odd stylistic choice to fathom was the films sound design as well considering how there are times when diegetic voices of character battles cries echo into being non-diegetic. For instance, when Goku performs the typical Kamehameha, the words that he would normally say are spoken off-screen as if an announcer is narrating the words of dialogue from a speaker. As weird as it is to comprehend this peculiar formality, it oddly adds to the grandeur of the fighting moments.

Whereas many anime cinematic features of similar ilk more than likely tend to be forgotten due to their mistake of not catering to all audiences, it’s clear from the moment it starts that Dragon Ball Super: Broly attempts to cater to new and familiarised cinema-goers by not only implementing aspects that made the franchises 80’s and 90’s T.V. series so popular, but also a modernised approach that changes certain story and character backstories for the better. As much as their are gripes to be had with the films control in pacing the lengthy fights and how they negate any further compelling progression for the likes of Broly, it’s hard to equally ignore the construction of the animation that’s also on offer and how utilises a blend of animation techniques for an abstract and grandiose purpose. Indeed, what director Tatsuya Nagamine showcases is quite possibly the best Dragon Ball film to be made and it’s no wonder really how it’s become one of the highest grossing anime films of all time and the second highest-grossing anime feature in the U.K… 

And on that note, it’s time for me to end this week’s Film Review. As always everyone, thank you for reading my latest Film Review of Dragon Ball Super: Broly and if anyone happens to have an opinion on either the film or the review, you’re more than welcome to share your thoughts down in the comments section. For next week, as I was supposed to review this week, I will finally get around to discussing M. Night Shyamalan’s Glass. With that said, thank you once again for reading my latest Blog entry and I hope you all have a nice weekend! Adieu! 😁😠👊💥💫😈👽👾

★★★★☆ – Alex Rabbitte