'Pokémon Detective Pikachu' Is Not a Great Film, but It's a Great Treat

Pokémon Detective Pikachu is the very first live-action film of the giant multimedia franchise Pokémon.  Specifically speaking, it’s a film adaptation of the spin-off video game Detective Pikachu rather than of the anime or the main Pokémon game series.  Still, this is universally treated as a general bringing-into-the-big-screen of the property as a whole, and thus, virtually everybody who has experienced Pokémon in whatever medium – manga, anime, video games, cards, toys, etc. – was excited to check this milestone out.

To be honest, when I first learned that there was a Detective Pikachu movie in production, I had to groan and roll my eyes.  I was extremely sceptical.  I thought it was another cynical, ill-thought Hollywood attempt to make a quick buck.  But when the first trailer finally dropped, it completely changed my mind.  Based on what I saw, I learned that there was actually care and effort put into the nostalgia-inciting visuals, and that there was overwhelming entertainment value from a Ryan Reynolds-voiced, wise-cracking, deerstalker-wearing, caffeine-addicted, mystery-solving Pikachu to build a full movie out of.  From then on, it became one of my most anticipated films of 2019.

Pokémon Detective Pikachu tells the story of a 21-year-old man named Tim Goodman (Justice Smith), who used to have the same dream as Ash Ketchum’s when he was younger: to become a Pokemon master.  A tragic event, however, led him to become disillusioned of it, and he instead ended up having a career in insurance.  One day, he receives news that his estranged detective father died in a car crash.  While putting things in order in his father’s apartment, he encounters his father’s Pokemon partner – an amnesiac Pikachu that can somehow speak.  However, strangely, only Tim can understand him; other people can only hear the usual, adorable “Pika pika.”  Pikachu convinces Tim that his father may still be alive and that they must investigate what really happened.  As they go deeper down the rabbit hole, they stumble upon a conspiracy that threatens the status quo between humans and Pokemon.

I am not aware of what’s the story in the Detective Pikachu game, but I predicted all but one of the plot twists in the movie.  Seriously, I could see them coming from a mile away, thanks to the very obvious red herrings and the choices it made on what to show and what not to show.  And I think almost everyone who has seen this movie has had the same experience.  The only twist I didn’t predict was the one involving Ditto, but in retrospect, it should have been as obvious as the rest.

Honestly, Pokémon Detective Pikachu didn’t take my breath away as much as I hoped.  The dynamic between Tim Goodman – who is easily a better human character than Ash Ketchum – and Detective Pikachu is terrific, and they carry the film wonderfully.  However, the storyline they’re in isn’t as clever, thrilling, and subversive as what’s ideal, and I didn’t care for any of the subplots – especially the romantic angle.  Moreover, none of the human characters outside of Tim are worth paying attention to.

It can definitely be said that its script is not a very well-written one.

Nevertheless, I don’t really think it matters in the big picture.  The only barometric measure for success necessary for me is if it actually feels like a Pokémon film.  And the goofy, occasionally sloppy script doesn’t really make it less of a Pokémon film.  In fact, I’ll argue that it’s only in line with the usual tone, narrative quality, and level of writing that Pokémon is known form.  Actually, when compared to most Pokémon storylines in the anime series and films, Pokémon Detective Pikachu’s comes off as thoughtful.

The main appeal of Pokémon has never been hinged on smart, worthwhile storytelling.  It’s all about stirring childlike wonder for its assortment of fabulous fantastical creatures and the imaginative world they inhabit.  At this end, I think Pokémon Detective Pikachu knocks it out of the park.  And thus, I think it succeeds as a Pokémon film.

The best part then of Pokémon Detective Pikachu is its worldbuilding.  It’s clear from the CGI and production design that the realization of this world is conducted by people who are not only familiar with the source material, but actually care for it.

The rendition for the Pokemon perfectly nails the balance between accurately depicting the cartoonish character designs they’re known for and making them realistic-looking enough to believably interact with human characters.  Thus, every time a Pokemon shows up on screen is a delight.

Moreover, there are no copouts when it comes to detailing its world.  The easy but lazy route is to establish a world that is basically 1:1 akin to ours that just happens to have Pokemon in it.  Impressively, this isn’t what was done in the film.  The world established is exactly how a modern society would have turned out if there had been Pokemon all along.  Thus, though it’s a world closely similar to ours, it doesn’t feel like ours.  It doesn’t have the same brands as ours, and the existing technology and institutions clearly stemmed out from a place where the thought of how Pokemon fit into them was considered.  In other words, the film’s world is seemingly the same as the worlds that developed in the anime and games.

In the end, I was satisfied with what Pokémon Detective Pikachu turned out to be.  Of course, I would preferred it if it had been tighter and had more effective surprises as a film.  But as far as giving the ten-year-old in me the live-action big screen Pokémon experience that would have blown his mind away, it undoubtedly delivers.  Hopefully, this movie only serves as a stepping stone for bigger and better treats in this new live-action Pokémon world.