Dragon Ball: The Magic Begins

Dragon Ball: The Magic Begins
Directed by Joe Chan Jun-Leung
Produced by Jeremy Cheung
Joe Chan
Written by Screenplay:
Jackie Lam
Original Story:
Akira Toriyama
Starring Charles Chen
Jeannie Hsieh
Wong Chung-Yue
Cheng Tung-Chuen
Pang Sam
Kam Tao
Lee Yee-Kuen
Music by Allan Ko
Cinematography Sam Chan
Edited by Grand Cheung
Distributed by Filmswell International Limited
Release dates
 1991[1] (Original Edition)
2007 (Ultimate Edition)
Running time
 85 min (Original Edition)
100 min (Ultimate Edition)
Country Taiwan
Language Mandarin
The protagonists, from left to right: Seetoe, Piggy, Jen, Turtle Man, Gohan, Goku, and La Ping.
The antagonists, from left to right: Zebrata, King Horn, and Maria.

Dragon Ball: The Magic Begins (新七龍珠　神龍的傳說 Xīn qī lóng zhū Shén lóng de chuán shuō, or Dragon Ball: Ultimate Edition) Originally released in America as "Dragon's Pearl," is an unofficial live-action remake of the first Dragon Ball feature film The Legend of Shenlong, made in 1986. The plot revolves around a rag-tag group of heroes, led by Son Goku ("Monkey Boy" in the English dubbed version) trying to stop the antagonist named King Horn from using the wish-granting Dragon Balls to rule the world.

It was produced by Taiwan and shot in Nantou forests, with some scenes shot in Nong Nooch Tropical Botanical Garden, Thailand.

Plot

In order to conquer mankind and rule the universe, King Horn sets out to find all seven of the Dragon Pearls. With two of the seven already in the evil king's possession, it is now up to the remaining five owners of the pearls — Son Goku (Son Gohan is the owner, Son Goku is his adopted grandson), Piggy, La Ping, Turtle Man and Seetoe — to destroy King Horn and his two powerful warriors, Zebrata and Maria, before it is too late.

Characters

Monkey Boy (孫悟空 Sūn Wù-Kōng)
A happy go-lucky boy who claims to be the descendant of "the Monkey King." Based on the character Son Goku of the original Dragon Ball series. Played by Charles Chen[2][3] (陳子強).
Seetoe (ㄚ頭 Y-Tóu)
A girl who nearly runs over Son Goku. Based on the character Bulma of the original Dragon Ball series. Played by Jeannie Hsieh (謝金燕).
Sparkle (孫悟飯 Sūn Wù-Fàn)
Goku's grandfather who is kidnapped by King Horn. He is based on Grandpa Son Gohan of the original Dragon Ball series. Played by Jin Tu[4] (金塗).
Piggy (小豬 Xiǎo Zhū)
An overweight shape-shifting man who accompanies Son Goku and Seetoe on their journey to gather the Dragon Pearls. He is the descendant of Zhu Bajie (The Pig Fairy in English dub). Based on Oolong of the original Dragon Ball series. Played by Pang San[5] (胖三).
La Ping/Westwood (樂平 Lè Píng)
A bandit who tries to loot Son Goku, Seetoe and Piggy, while they travel. Based on Yamcha of the original Dragon Ball series. Played by Cheng Tung-Chuen[6] (鄭同村).
Miss Knowwhat/Snowhite
A talking and wise-cracking cockatoo, she is the companion of la Ping. Based on Pu'ar of the original Dragon Ball series.
Turtle Hermit/Turtle Man (龜仙 Guī Xiān)
An old man who lives a solitary life on an island, he is said to be one of the greatest fighters in the world. Based on Kame-Sen'nin in the original Dragon Ball series. Played by Huang Zhongyu[7] (黃仲裕).
Jen Jen/Jade (珍珍 Zhēn Zhēn)
A girl whose village was destroyed by King Horn. Based on Pansy of the first Dragon Ball feature film The Legend of Shenlong (known as Curse of the Blood Rubies in the English version). Played by Li Yijuan (李宜娟).
King Horn (牛魔王 Niu Mówáng)
His sole mission in the film is to acquire the Dragon Balls for world domination. Based on King Gourmeth of the first Dragon Ball film The Legend of Shenlong, or Pilaf in the original series, but resembles Lucifer from the second film. Played by So Yu Fung (蘇阮峰), and dubbed in English by Rick Thomas.
Zebrata (斯巴達 Sībādá)
the henchman of King Horn who works as one of villains alongside Maria in the quest to collect the Dragon Balls. Based on Vongo of the first Dragon Ball film The Legend of Shenlong. Played by Kong Lung Sing[8] (江龍昇).
Maria (瑪琍亞 Mǎlíyà)
the henchman of King Horn who works as one of villains alongside Zebrata in the quest to collect the Dragon Balls. Based on Pasta of the first Dragon Ball film The Legend of Shenlong. Played by Eveline Oranje (歐蘭英).

References

External links