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FIRST LOOK

Awesome Dragonball Movie Set Photo Found!

by Alex Billington
March 24, 2008
Source: SlashFilm

We've only ever mentioned the live-action Dragonball movie once before, in relation to casting. The reason is that I just have a feeling that it's going to be complete crap. It's being directed by the Final Destination guy (James Wong) with a script from the writer of The Big Hit (Ben Ramsey) and Wong again as well (who also wrote the scripts for Jet Li's The One and some episodes of "The X-Files"). I could be completely wrong, but I've got to be convinced otherwise. A new set photo has appeared and it actually looks pretty awesome. Maybe this is the first good sign?

Thanks to our friends at SlashFilm for finding this. Peter only mentions that it came from someone named Troy Mustang from the shoot in Mexico City. As reported previously, most of it is being shot in Mexico.

Click the photo for full size.

The photo has been removed at the request of 20th Century Fox.

Typically we don't post photos like this, but this one really caught my eye. It actually looks pretty damn impressive and I thought it was cool enough to share with all of you. Maybe the set design on this is just incredible and it's still going to be crap or maybe I'm being fooled and we've got a solid action hit in the works?

Dragonball stars Justin Chatwin as Goku, James Marsters as Piccolo, Emmy Rossum as Bulma, Chow Yun-Fat as Master Roshi, Jamie Chung as Chi Chi, and Park Joon as Yamcha. The movie arrives in theaters on April 3rd, 2009.

Dragonball fans - can you help us figure out what this is? Any clues as to what this might be or how it might be involved in the film?

Explore tags: Cool Stuff, First Look, Hype

Evan

That does look pretty awesome. I'm very excited for this movie even if it will be bad.
Tirrell

It's a hole!!! Lol
Stephen

Alex just a quick correction, this movie is not modeled after Dragonball Z but after Dragonball. Also I am pretty sure this set is a volcano.
Chris

looks like it could either be a flashback of when goku first arrived on earth or the beginning of the movie where he does arrive to earth. who knows
ha1rball

If this is done right, which it probably wont be but IF it is it has the potential to be one of the coolest action movies ever! If anyone has seen the show they would know just how frickin awesome it can be!
Justu

i agree with ha1erball this could be an amazing action movie if done right i highly doubt it will be done right but we can pray, i can say one thing though the special effects and sets are most likely going to be out of this world.
craziemutant

wait, is this an actual place in mexico that we can go and visit if we wish to? or is this a masked area that was made just for the movie? cause it looks super alien and creepy. i'm not complaining, cause it looks awesome. but i'm just wondering.
http://www.myspace.com/coreywilson10 www.myspace.com/coreywilson10

Wow!!!! That setting looks so amazing They did an amazing job! It looks very creepy and alien like, just like "Craziemutant" said. I can't wait until Dragonball hits theaters. I'll defiantly be there on opening day!! Im guessing that this might be the scene with Goku battles Piccolo. There probally going to fight in that Volcano or crater. Hey make sure you guys check out http://www.Dbthemovie.com
Ruby

I think this is for the big-budget, highly anticipated, TMNT 4
Ariel

Wow, I mean, I don't care if this movie sucks, I'm gonna see it and enjoy it anyway, Dragonball (including Z) being what I read when I first dicovered mangas. This set looks amazing. I can't wait.
Mel

A couple of years late. : ( I'm too old to be watching a DB movie. The show was awesome though. Maybe if it's done good enough I'll catch it.
JNYCE

looks like a spirit bomb explosion...lol
http://movieguyreviews4u.blogspot.com Ryan

#11 that is a really good point. Anyone feel that they are a couple or FEW years late? I would think it would be better to do it in CGI but who knows.
Avelanch

seeing how old Justin Chatwin (Goku) is, I'm going to assume this is based on DB-Z, not the original DB (where goku was a small child). that being said this looks like it could be on Namek (piccolo's home planet) or in the spirit world. looks cool either way
Dusty

AHHHH... gorgeous image... and I am right with you Mel#11... my 8 yr old watches frickin DB:GT now... hmm.. and it was ~10 years ago that DB was launched on the Cartoon Network.. and was shown earlier than that on the International Channel in the Midwest I believe... With all the buzz that was back then... they could have built an amazing epic off of the storyline that was developed in each series... I have to look at it this way... I will get to watch a whole season recap in one 2 hour(hopefully) movie.... that works for me. and NOTE::: as much as I would love it to be R so we could see the carnage of the battles... I am figuring on PG13... and will be PISSED to see it go PG ... I want at least some blood on those thunderous, grunting, earth shattering punches... hahaha
brent-83

its pritty hard to say depends on where the battal is and witch enemy it is but it looks sick cant wait
silver

Hell's yeah "Dusty" can't wait to see the major beat-downs everyone got lol, but I really hope this does well so we can see a full on DBZ with Cell Saga and everything.
http://www.freewebs.com/thedsreviewer thedsreviewer

This looks like the crater made by goku spaceship when he came to earth as a baby.
Sean

It was taken inside one of the macrosets built in Durango for the movie, one was called the Temple of the Dragon, another one was called the Colliseum, and they said there was a volcano built right next to the Temple of The Dragon so I'm assuming that's exactly was this is. The green screen is probably going to be filled in later with a lot of CGI lava, so I think it's safe to say we can expect a great finale here at the end of the movie.
Avelanch

the fact that Stephen Chow is the producer of this makes me feel both warm AND fuzzy at the same time, not to mention it makes me feel ALOT better about the film in general. My hype meter on this actually just shot up. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1098327/fullcredits#cast
cangriman

hmmm dis has got to be at da very beginnin wen gokus space pod firsts lands on earth..well das wut i think....hopefully da movie wont be a piece of **** =]
Sean

New pics on DragonBall, great quality! http://www.joblo.com/dragonball-pics
Eoghan

look i think it shud be given a chance,i thought transformers was going to be a DISASTOR,but that turned out classy,and you cant say if ur a true fan that you never wondered what Dragonball would look like in a live action movie...nows our chance.
Dirsir

Those who are praising this movie instead of boycotting it like the good citizens of Japan are, either they have no idea what Dragonball is, or they've got a real problem
http://acmilan.com rio

i'm guessing that this is the part when songoku's ball-look-like space plane just landed to earth. pretty good view, i hope it won't be a disapointing movie
http://db-lam-protest.forumotion.com/ Tlaloc

Well said Dirsir! This the protest forum: http://db-lam-protest.forumotion.com/ And this is the petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/dblam444/petition.html Don't listen to Corey Wilson, he is an employee of FOX.
Omar

I cant believe the cast of this movie. How can they cast an entire cast of Asian descent and the main character (goku) as a frail skinny ass punk bitch. I am ashamed to claim this as my favorite cartoon of all time. When i saw the poster at the top i wanted to cry. Words cannot express the disappointment that i feel about the cast. The only way i believe this movie will make any money is by by showing the the currently casted Bulma naked. Then again, it is hollywood. Oh by the way i have nothing against Justin Chatwin. Hes a good actor but not for this one buddy sorry. Try Josh Hartnet, or Ashton Cutcher or a god damn wrestler for crying out loud but this isnt even close. VERY VERY SAD !!!
http://www.myspace.com/mafiawayz Lil Osiris

sorry but we gotta get matrix producers involved with this (Wokowski brothers I think ) Please we need to see instant transmition
Jamie

James Marsters is a wicked actor...
Brutha B

Omar I have to respectfully disagree with you on the your choice of words for the cast of Dragonball being of Asian Descent... You OBVIOUSLY don't know the series... it would make sense for most of the characters to be of Asian Descent because It is the Only Culture that openly encourages mind/body/spiritual synchronisation while fighting, Secondly most of the main male Characters are Monks or hermits. I applaud their selection of Justin Chatwin playing the role of Goku. His Character Couldn't be of the same Racial Decent (forgive my term) because Goku wasn't even from Planet Earth. I have been a fan of the Dragonball, DBZ and GT series for over 10 years and I have to say that all of you guys who are knockin the first REAL effort at a live-action movie are complete idiots. For starters, The producer of the upcoming movie is in a league of his own- with movies like Shaolin Soccer and Kung-Fu Hustle under his belt. I mean- have any of you even seen the movie "A Man Called Hero"? The Physics concepts, visual effects, choreography and sets were absolutely Stunning. And these movies came out LONG B4 The Matrix Trilogy. So stop comparing them to The Matrix. Because when you see Justin in action- He's gonna make Neo look like the Power-Puff Girls. Think about it guys, Before Toby Mcguire played as Peter Parker in Spiderman 1, no-one thought of him being capable of producing an Action-packed performance. And Back to the Matrix- B4 Keanu Reeves played the role of Neo, He played the role of a blubbering idiot in Johnny Mnemonic. who was to say that he'd successfully Pull a 'white rabbit' outta the hat with The Matrix Trilogy? Its Now Justin Chatwin's Time to Shine... If they could do it- why can't Justin play the role of a Martial arts Genius? Secondly, to put the rest of you haters is your place- Dragonball first aired in 1986. Back then the fighting scenes were revolutionary... Akira Toryama 'invented' High Speed visuals such as the "after-image" technique - which is an advanced version of the so-called "bullet-time" concept. In Other words, every other Cartoon and/or movie that came out ever since merely copied those special effects for their own glorification. The Wachowski Brothers produced many (awesome) visual concepts that were already invented. Such as the arial fight scenes, the schock waves, the ground impacts, etc...All such concepts were introduced from Dragonball first. My point is this. This movie is going to wipe the smirk off of everyone's faces who ever said that Dragonball was a bad idea. Justin Chatwin's Career is set for life... Because the Dragonball universe is soooo vast. All in all, this movie is worth the wait. And I wish you guys who like to make your negative comments would do your research first and then bring FACTS to the table not opinions.
Brutha B

Remember Omar, This is Dragonball... NOT DRAGON BALL Z. They Had to start from the beginning of Goku's Spiritual Journey. The movie is placed near the end of the Dragonball Series During the King Piccolo Saga. He wasn't a short kid with thick arms (as seen in earleir episodes of Dragonball). he was in his mid teens and much taller than his Childhood counterpart. Lil Osiris, Instant transmission is A FUTURE technique that Goku learned On the Planet Yardrat AFTER he became a Super Saiyan (at the Beginning of the Android Saga). So don't expect to see it in this movie. And Please open your mind to see that the Wachowski Brothers aren't the Only ones that can Come up with Stunning Visuals.
PWO

You know Brutha, you're simply finding a justification for Hollywood's idea theft and originial rape, and besides you will find yourself wiping your face on the ashphalt when you see they flick bomb
HatakeHinata

You hate me don't you?!?! I swear I am gonna cosplay as Bulma and PROTEST this movie. Long Live the MANGA and ANIME!