It’s Detective Pikachu as an old-timey noir, y'see?

While we’re sure Detective Pikachu is chock-full of heartwarming moments and big-eyed cuteness, we doubt it’s the gritty, heart-pounding noir that the title “detective” would suggest. That’s unfortunate because, as much as we like seeing our yellow furry friend pal around in a city populated by Squirtles and Lickitungs, we’d also like to see him square off against a big heavy, romance a dame or two, and uncover a dark conspiracy that goes all the way to the top! Thankfully, J.S. Lewis, a loyal reader of Birth.Movies.Death., recently cut together a new trailer that reimagines Detective Pikachu the way it was meant to be seen.

Using audio from classic Humphrey Bogart films like The Big Sleep and In A Lonely Place, as well as some vintage Warner Brothers title cards and editing techniques, this trailer convincingly places a goddamn Pokemon at the center of a hardboiled detective story from the Golden Age of Hollywood. The only thing missing is a shot of Pikachu standing in the rain on a darkened street corner with his trench coat collar up around his ears and a Chesterfield cigarette dangling from his lip. Maybe we’ll get that shot in the sequel.

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