Dragon Ball Super: Broly opened Jan.16 in the United States, and has since grossed $23.6 million domestically. It became the first Japanese-Animated movie since 1999 to open at No. 1 at the Box Office.
This marks the third “Dragon Ball” movie since 2014 to reach the big screens in North America, following a resurgence due to the popularity of the “Dragon Ball Super” anime.
The movie retells the story of fan-favorite Dragon Ball villain Broly, an unknown warrior who gets stronger as he fights his opponents.
Goku and Vegeta, the main characters of “Dragon Ball Super,” are the same species as Broly and while they have no memory of it, they were all sent off of their home world right before it was destroyed by an evil emperor named Frieza.
The movie takes the first minutes to recap the infant lives of Goku, Vegeta and Broly and how their upbringing affected their methods of training over the years.
Goku and Vegeta had trained by fighting countless world-destroying villains and sometimes each other. Broly honed his strength from pure survival skills after being exiled to a desolate planet by the King of his world.
Frieza, seeking revenge on Goku and Vegeta for defeating him in the past, tricks Broly and his father into helping him kill Vegeta, reminding Broly how much better Vegeta was treated as a baby compared to him.
Throughout the opening half of the movie, long-time “Dragon Ball” fans will love seeing big moments in “Dragon Ball” history fully animated on the big screen. Fan-favorite English voice actors are unchanged from the anime.
At the halfway point, the movie gets to what everyone in the theater was waiting for: the big fight scenes. We see Goku and Vegeta cycle through transformations, while Broly continues to get powerful.
Big money was spent on this fight scene and it shows. The camera changes between wide sweeping third-person shots and intense first-person fights.
Blasts and punches are smoothly drawn with sound effects that make the viewer feel like they are right there along in the action.
The movie is pure fanservice, showcasing heroes in fan requested forms rarely seen, while also using moves any “Dragon Ball” viewer knows by heart.
The soundtrack is ear-candy, though some may find issue with the booming choir that plays through some fight scenes, which can be distracting.
“Dragon Ball Super: Broly” is a must-watch for any “Dragon Ball” fan. No knowledge of the “Dragon Ball Super” anime is required, so even fans of the original “Dragon Ball Z” can have a great time.
If you enjoy intense animated action and muscular men punching each other in the face, you’ll get a kick out of “Dragon Ball Super: Broly.”
