Dragonball Evolution
“The legend comes to life.”
Director
James Wong
Screenplay
Ben Ramsey
This live-action adaptation of Akira Toriyama's beloved manga follows a teenage Goku who discovers a mystical Dragon Ball on his eighteenth birthday and must gather the remaining six scattered across the world before a resurrected warlord, Lord Piccolo, can claim all seven and wish for total domination. The film strips down the sprawling source material's decades of mythology into a compressed, Americanized teen-adventure plot, casting Justin Chatwin as Goku and relocating much of the story's tone toward generic fantasy-action beats. It was met with near-universal derision from both critics and the franchise's devoted fanbase upon release. Now regarded as a cautionary tale in anime-to-live-action adaptation, frequently cited among the worst films based on beloved source material.
Release
Mar 12, 2009
Budget
$30M
Country
United States of America
Revenue
$58M
Cast
Justin Chatwin
Goku
Chow Yun-Fat
Master Roshi
Joon Park
Yamcha
Jamie Chung
Chi Chi
Emmy Rossum
Bulma
James Marsters
Lord Piccolo
Randall Duk Kim
Grandpa Gohan
Ernie Hudson
Master Mutaito
Texas Battle
Carey Fuller
Shavon Kirksey
Emi
Luis Arrieta
Weaver
Richard Blake
Agundas
Julian Sedgwick
Mr. Kingery
Megumi Seki
Seki
Jon Valera
Moreno
Gabriela de la Garza
Avatar
Reviews
TMDB
2.9/10
★★★★★★★★★★
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Trailer
Official trailer
Dragonball Evolution
Where to Watch
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