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Goku and a handful of friends battle for the Earth against the deadly forces of the Saiyans, who are sweeping across the universe, leaving a path of destruction. Goku and his friends' best chance for survival rests with the Namekian DragonBalls, which provide them the power to summon a mighty dragon.

I'm a huge fan of the original Anime and Manga versions of the Dragonball franchise, and if the fans reading this are like me, nothing said about this movie will keep them away. That being said, this movie is a miserable failure. But I'll be fair, and give proper dues, as I break it down by category.

Story: (con)
I can't completely dismiss the film's story as crap because it is based around a story that I love, but the film's version shares nothing with the original other than character names, terminology, and a VERY broad semblance of the original plot. The 14 plus year plotline of the anime has been condense and jumble into one film (with possible sequels). It was an attempt to make the story more open for non-fans of the anime/ manga and reinvent the story for this generation- they failed.

Characters: (con)
You will definitely notice the absence of several main characters- Krillin, Tien, Chaotzu, Kami, Popo, and all of the anthropomorphic animal characters just to name a few. The characters that are in the story are misrepresented terribly, different in personality and attitude Goku is now an unpopular highschooler that is picked on and struggles to refrain himself from hurting the bullies. The naive and gentle nature he had in the anime is gone. Bulma is fairly close to capturing the arrogant, prissy attitude- but she is now a gun slinging rough and tumbler. Yamcha is still a desert bandit- but not a fighter and has an attitude like a surfer bum. Roshi is close, not quite enough of a lech, but a decent portrayal (despite the fact that Gohan- his student is inexplicably much older than Roshi himself). Piccolo was also portrayed in a decent manner- but he has far too little screen time for a main antagonist. Chi-Chi shows glimpses of her dominant attitude, but the relationship with Goku is completely different than in the original story.
Also the Namekians (not even known about in the original Dragonball franchise until Z) are portrayed as evil, human haters. And the Ozaru, the saiyan's ape transformation, is now a demon minion of Piccolo trapped in Goku's body- and he is nowhere near large enough when he makes his appearance.

Special Effects: (neutral)
The effects in the film aren't bad, but they don't really fit the tone of the film. They are the kind of effects that would fit well in a full 3-d film (think Final Fantasy: Spirits Within) but for a live action they appear cartoon. Intermittent slow motion similar to the Matrix is used through-out the film much to the film's detriment. Also the Ki engery waves look to wispy and are constantly referred to as "Air Bending" -(Avatar ripoff).

Acting: (meh)
With the exception of the dope playing Yamcha, the acting is decent. At least I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt- given the poorly written dialogue of the film, I'm not sure acting legend could have done any better.

Other botches include the Eternal Dragon (who is named Shenlong instead of Shenron), and the real world setting rather than the alternate Earth of the original Dragonball.

Actually the only thing the film accomplishes well is humor. Even with the distraction of everything bad, the film provides a good giggle or two. And to put some minds at ease- the slight change in hair styles isn't that bad.

I know that all sounds harsh, but its true.

Genres: Action/Adventure, Science Fiction/Fantasy and Adaptation

Running Time: 1 hr. 25 min.

Release Date: April 8th, 2009 (wide)

MPAA Rating: PG for intense sequences of action/violence and brief mild language.

Distributors: 20th Century Fox

U.S. Box Office: $9,142,557