“Pokemon: Detective Pikachu” will be released into theaters on May 10, 2019 in the United States and a week prior to that in Japan. It is a science-fiction, action-comedy and mystery film directed by Rob Letterman.
The plot is of that Tim Goodman, a former Pokémon Trainer and the son of prominent Ryme City detective Harry Goodman, being is invited by his father to work the precinct. One of detective Goodman’s friends named Detective Yoshida sends a ticket to Tim to come to Ryme City and, soon after, Yoshida learns that Harry has gone missing while in the middle of a case.
Tim ends up staying at his father’s place until he is found and, when there, he meets Pikachu. To both of their surprise, Tim can understand when Pikachu speaks. Pikachu, unfortunately, suffers from a severe case of amnesia, and the resulting interactions between the detective Pokemon and Tim lead to them working as partners to find out where Harry went and what happened.
Along the way, they meet a reporter named Lucy Stevens, who has the same goal as the duo and has a Psyduck. The clues they uncover lead the quartet to an underground fighting ring, accompanied by a man named Sebastian who owns a Charizard, a Mr. Mime that may know some information they need, and a plot that threatens the Pokémon universe.
Letterman co-wrote the screenplay along with Dan Hernandez, Benji Samit and Derek Connolly. The story is written by Hernandez, Samit and Nicole Perlman. The producers of the film are Cale Boyter, Don McGowan, Mary Parent and Hidenaga Katakami.
The music is by Henry Jackman, the cinematography is done by John Mathieson, and the film ’s editors are Mark Sanger and James Thomas.
In post-production, the film’s visual effects were provided by the Moving Picture Company (MPC), Framestore, Image Engine, Rodeo FX and Instinctual VFX. Several visual effects were done by the same team behind the live-action versions of “The Jungle Book” and “The Lion King” as well as “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”
Letterman gave the comparison of the Pokemon in “Detective Pikachu” to that of Rocket Raccoon from “Guardians of the Galaxy.”
This movie is a Japanese-American joint production between Warner Bros. Pictures, Legendary Pictures and The Pokemon Company in association with Toho Co., Ltd.
It is the first Pokemon movie that mixes animation with live action and may be the start to a longer series. The film takes place in an offshoot continuity from the videogames and anime of the main series.
The film will be released in RealD 3D and Dolby Cinema. “Pokemon: Detective Pikachu” will be the first Pokemon film distributed theatrically by Warner Bros. Pictures since 2001, when they released “Pokemon 3: The Movie.”
Along with this, it is the first film within the franchise to not receive a G rating and is instead a PG rating for action/peril, some rude and suggestive humor and thematic elements.
Early in November of 2018, a test audience was shown an incomplete version of the film. It drew positive reactions with the praise mostly aimed towards visual effects, the script and Ryan Reynolds’ performance as Pikachu.
Originally, “Detective Pikachu” was an idea of the anime series back in the 1990s, but Game Freak decided against it. The idea came to life in 2016 when a “Detective Pikachu” video game was released on the Nintendo 3DS to solid reviews and impressive sales.
Due to the game’s success, the film was greenlit and began pre-production in 2017.
The projected gross for the box office domestically is $75-90 million in the United States and Canada. It will be opening against the films “Tolkien,” “Poms” and “The Hustle.”
A sequel, as Legendary Entertainment confirmed with The Hollywood Reporter, is already in the works.
Erika Brandenburg
Arts and Entertainment Editor