The young warrior Son Goku sets out on a quest, racing against time and the vengeful King Piccolo, to collect a set of seven magical orbs that will grant their wielder unlimited power.
The giddy, anything-goes spirit of Japanese manga comics and Hong Kong martial arts flicks animates Dragonball Evolution. Not enough to make it a good movie, mind you, but enough so you won't hate yourself if you sit through it with the kids.
– Joel Brown,
Boston Globe,
13 Apr 2009
rotten:
Fans of the best-selling Dragonball comics (and cartoons, and videogames...) might have a shot at untangling the knotty dream-logic that strangles Dragonball: Evolution's live-action adaptation.
– Adam Markovitz,
Entertainment Weekly,
13 Apr 2009
rotten:
The film is crammed with treats for old-school Dragonball fans. For everyone else, this amounts to another seen-it-before, probably-willing-to-see-it-again distraction, a passable collection of 'splosions and special effects for a slow film weekend.
– Tasha Robinson,
AV Club,
13 Apr 2009
rotten:
There are a few entertaining fight scenes. But there is also uneven CGI, bad dialogue and a host of cliched moments that make Dragonball Evolution just another disappointing matinee movie.
– Jennie Punter,
Globe and Mail,
13 Apr 2009
fresh:
Evolution is far more entertaining than it deserves to be, unless you're a 10-year-old boy, in which case it's only the greatest movie ever made.