Pokemon Movie 01: Mewtwo no Gyakushuu

This was my favorite movie as a child, and it always made me sad to watch it every time, so watching it again having gone through the self-discovery of adolescence made me realize why it was so impacting.

The reason why Ash is always able to win is because he's friends with his Pokémon. The whole series is an allegory on how you're supposed to treat your fellow man, using the relationship between Pokémon and their trainers as a parallel for the relationship between human beings.

Mewtwo's hatred for mankind stems from their lack of compassion - he was basically used. He was given life, and then ... treated as less-than-life - a tool to be used for human purposes, rather than a living being with a living will and a purpose. He has no purpose of his own, he didn't know he was, so he lashed out against all of humanity, and against the Pokémon he felt were being used by their masters.

Mew is his foil, as Mew is everything that Mewtwo is, minus the hatred. Mew loves mankind because he knows that they're just another form of life on the planet. He eliminates the antipathy between humans and Pokémon by realizing that they're all the same. Pokémon and their trainers can be friends, but can also walk their own paths, just like all humans in real life.

Mewtwo makes his own purpose in life the destruction of life itself, but realizes that isn't the way things are supposed to be. The reality of friendship "slaps him in the face" as he sees all the Pokémon weeping over the petrification of a human being who only wanted to protect his friends.

Pikachu is the Pokémon embodiment of friendship. The relationship between Ash and Pikachu is the entire central theme of Pokémon: friendship prevails over selfishness. Pikachu's will is so similar to that of Ash's that he refuses to fight the other Pikachu (essentially, refuses to fight another living being to prove to the other Pikachu that the fighting is pointless - even Meowth, who's supposed to be one of the "bad guys" knows better than to fight like that), even as it continues to slap him over and over again.

The most saddening part of the movie as a child was when Pikachu just kept taking the hits without retaliating. As an adult, I understand why that was so heartbreaking: Because that's the way many people in the world are, just fighting each other to prove that their purpose means anything, instead of just banding together in friendship.

We've been so deadened as a society that we think that that is "cheesy," and "children's material." No. Fuck that - I've been through the ringer in life, and I can still come back around and see the value in a story like this. It's a parallel to life, and I believe the creators would be very sad to know that audiences are taking it with a grain of salt instead of realizing the true message behind their work (instead of just writing it off as "kiddie stuff").

I know that many adults don't want to hear it, but "kiddie stuff" is codeword for "things that are important in life, but I don't want to think about them anymore." You have to think about them. "This is life," as Nurse Joy herself puts it.

Also, the dub did dumb down some of the deeper parts of the message for American consumption, but that's America's own damned fault for thinking that our children can't handle being exposed to a little bit of truth for an hour and 15 minutes of their lives.
If you're an adult, and you find yourself calling this movie "stupid," you should try looking beyond the medium and look to the message. You could find that you're a bitter Mewtwo, and two stubborn and hurt to see it. The human condition.

Don't be a Mewtwo. Mew :3

I've watched the Japanese version of the movie and that's my main impetus for this review. Most of us watched either the 4kids version as kids or a localization based on the that version. I have a bone to pick with that. I don't want to make this into a localization hate article, but they fucked up.

The international version has cut out 15 minutes of the movie, removed part of Mewtwo's monologue simply because he mentioned 'God' and distorted the message movie was trying to give. Mewtwo also wasn't portrayed as the spawn of Satan in the original version, but a misguided villain. He was ... given motives and backstory. Mew was subjected to character change as well; in Japanese version, he doesn't want to start the fight, but certainly thinks of clones as lesser beings.

So, what does this have to do with reviewing the movie? Everything. The point is that unlike the English version, which feels like a relic from the 90s, Japanese one makes a good movie. It isn't plagued by false moral messages (fighting is wrong anyone?). Mewtwo is a being estranged from love and misunderstands the nature of life, like some kind of a confused kid. There are philosophical overtones in the dialogue.

Art and animation are great and CGI blends in perfectly. The movie is very dark in general and heavy for its target audience. For a kids cartoon, it's great. Even an adult can get a small something from it and there are certain symbols and references in its designs everywhere, which should keep adults from getting bored.

This was a movie that broke the box office records for an animated feature at the time. Of course, records have come a long way since then, but this was still a fun movie.

STORY - As a kids' movie for a kids' show, the themes in Mewtwo Strikes Back are actually quite impressive. The morality of cloning and genetic modification/enhancement is a very real debate that ripples through the scientific community now and again, and it's interesting to see that idea translated into a Pokemon movie. Thus, as far as its target audience goes, the core plot of this First Movie is definitely doing something ... uncommon. The arrangement of the story around this central theme is a little more normal as it retains many typical elements from the anime series.

CHARACTERS - Let's skip over the normal cast of the series because I'm going to assume you already know there isn't a lot going on there. Now, Mewtwo is a fun character -- his monologue presented at the beginning of the movie and the constant destruction he finds himself in is a great way to start the foundations of his character. His feelings are very logical and easy to understand while offering possibilities beyond what's obvious. His repeated question of "What is my purpose?" highlights the deepest theme of the movie well, and I find it very exciting that the rest of the movie is based around the fact that he creates a purpose for himself, since no one else is able to provide him with one. If you take a step back and go through Mewtwo's train of thought, it's really not that riveting or different from what you would expect, but when you remember again that this is a movie directed towards a younger audience, I think the philosophical and moral implications of those kinds of questions and actions is very potent, thus making for a great movie character.

Mew and Mewtwo's clones pretty much make up the rest of the movie-exclusive characters. The simplicity of Mew was a great foil to the complexity of Mewtwo, though I still wonder if they could have been more clear about Mew's intentions because certainly she had some. The rest of the clones were rather generic, bending easily to the whims of the movie's message with no real personality of their own. That's perfectly forgivable though; after all, kids' movies need morals.

ARTSTYLE & ANIMATION - Honestly, there wasn't much notably different from a normal Pokemon episode. Maybe things were animated a bit more smoothly, but other than that, just average.

MUSIC - I'm actually rather fond of most of the music in this movie. It was great that they used the full version of the normal TV introduction (whether in English or Japanese). There are some pretty epic tracks played during Mewtwo's reign of terror, and many of the movie's other background tracks are reminiscent of melodies also found in the series. Mew's innocent little theme also comes to mind as a pretty fun and memorable tune.

VOICE ACTING - I've seen this movie in English, Japanese, Cantonese, and Mandarin. I'll just talk about the first two though, lol. The English dub... well, I'm sure you already have your own opinions about Ash and the gang, but I liked Mewtwo's voice. It suited him very well. And so did Mew's! But I guess that really isn't that impressive. I liked the Japanese better mostly because I like the main cast better. Especially memorable is the opening scene with Ash and his friends, during which he's challenged to a random Pokemon battle. The Japanese version offers some brilliant Engrish that just can't be rivaled: "OH MY GODDDDDD!!!"

OVERALL - Pokemon the First Movie is my favorite Pokemon movie (keeping in mind I've only seen the first three). Sure, it's definitely a film aimed for the younger audience, but even for an older audience, as long as you can bring yourself to swallow some of the corny bits, I think it retains a lot of merits. Cloning and genetics is always an interesting subject, anyway.

Overview:

It is time I take a short reprieve from reviewing actually acclaimed anime and go back to my little niche on this site, reviewing old CRAP!

Background:

The first Pokemon movie brings to the big screen what was easily the most interesting sub-plot of the 1st generation of pokemon games, the creation of Mewtwo. The game and anime adaptation leave many hints and clues that foreshadow events in the movie and built up anticipation. In the original games on Cinnebar Island, there is a building that is filled with documents about attempts to clone Mew and create an all powerful Pokemon for Team Rocket. Throughout the game, ... you run into Team Rocket committing various crimes that only make sense when you consider that their goal was controlling Mewtwo. The reason that Team Rocket invaded Silph Co? They wanted the master ball to capture Mewtwo. The reason they invaded Lavender Town and want a pare of goggles that allow people to see ghosts? They want to capture ghost pokemon, because ghosts are effective against psychic types like Mewtwo. When you finally capture Mewtwo in gen 1, he was the most unfairly OP Pokemon in any game of the franchise! Since Psychic type was already unfairly strong in gen 1, Mewtwo was basically unstoppable with the move Psychic able to 1-shot everything in the game! The anime even shows a preview of Mewtwo by having him beat the living shit out of Gary Motherfucking Oak! This is the guy that won 10 gym badges in Kanto and at age 10 had a team of cheerleaders and a corvette! By having Gary basically job to Mewtwo, this built up his status to insane levels of hype in the eyes of young anime fans, myself included!

Story:

SPOILERS!

I must first mention that there is a huge difference between the Japanese version and the English version brought to you by our friends at 4kids! The Japanese version features a 10 minute origin for Mewtwo that not only establishes his motives much more clearly, but even sets up the seemingly random and bullshit Pokemon crying scene at the movie's end. Not only that, but from an objective and purely artistic viewpoint...it is by FAR the best part of the entire movie! How did 4kids handle the scene? The motherfuckers cut it from the movie! They even dubbed it into English and had it all ready to go, but they left it out because...I guess because it was sad? I honestly have no idea.

A scientist is working for Team Rocket's leader Geovanni and attempting to create a more powerful clone of Mew that will be strong enough to conquer the world. However, the scientist is only interested in using some of the money Team Rocket has given him to try bring his deceased daughter back to life. As an inside reference to Japanese audiences, the scientist is drawn to look exactly like the scientist Tenma from the original Astro Boy, who was also trying to resurrect his child with science. Mewtwo communicates telepathically with the comatose clone girl and she tells him that he can talk unlike other Pokemon and stands equal with humans. She herself doesn't know if she is a human or Pokemon, but dismisses this question as ultimately irrelevant because all life is precious. However, the girl's body is unstable and she begins to dissolve. This is emotionally devastating to Mewtwo, but her last words to Mewtwo are begging him not to cry and instead to cherish life while he has it. She also mentions the power within the tears of Pokemon, since they are special creatures. The girl then tragically dies along with all the other attempts at making clone Pokemon, leaving Mewtwo completely isolated and filled with a deep sadness and loneliness.

Now to begin the story where the English version actually starts. Mewtwo is born in a lab and is disgusted that humans are treating him as a mere lab rat and experiment despite his intelligence being above theirs. Mewtwo kills all of the scientists in a rage, but then meets Geovanni, who initially offers a partnership and insinuates that he will treat Mewtwo as an equal. However, after showing a training montage of Mewtwo's time at Geovanni's Gym, it becomes apparant to Mewtwo that Geovanni isn't any better than the scientists. Mewtwo decides to blow up the gym and return to the island where he was born. Once back on the island, Mewtwo develops a nefarious scheme to capture the world's strongest pokemon and create an army of clones. Then he will wipe out all human life along with any pokemon that don't bow before him as the God of all Pokemon. The movie then cuts to our favorite complete loser Ash, who wins a trainer battle by 1-hitting a Donphan with a grass move and using a thunderbolt to defeat ground types. Yet after almost 20 years he can't even make it to the finals of the League Championship, let alone win! Ash receives an invitation by Mewtwo to go to his island since Mewtwo considered Ash a strong enough trainer to want clones of his pokemon. Wait, I thought Mewtwo was supposed to be intelligent! Without any hesitation and despite an ominous storm brewing, our idiot hero sets out to the island with Team Rocket, whom OF COURSE he somehow fails to recognize! Mewtwo makes clones of all the pokemanz and these clones battle against their natural born counterparts. Ash of course fails to stop Mewtwo, but after getting killed trying to stop Mewtwo from fighting Mew, the pokemon start crying and this brings Ash back to life. Mewtwo then realizes the folly of his ways and buggers off! Of course, Mewtwo decided to erase everyone's memories so that Ash will stay ignorant and never learn anything...EVER! The End

Art:

Although anime movies always look much better than series and especially longrunning series, I have to give the Pokemon Movie some credit. For 1998, this actually looked really good and even today this movie looks awesome compared to many anime airing in 2016. The entire movie looks WAY better than any episode of Dragonball Super!

Music:

Once again, there is a big difference between the Japanese OST and the 4kids version. Honestly, neither are amazing, but not bad either. The music definitely takes a backseat to the animation in this movie.

Overall:

Considering this was a children's movie based on a videogame and a rather mediocre anime, it actually wasn't too bad! The animation is excellent relative to other anime of its time, the battles are the most brutally intense of anything Pokemon has ever done, and the original Japanese version featured heart touching scene was actually sort of....good! The story borrows heavily from Frankenstein and although any level of profundity is blatantly stolen from there, that still isn't too bad considering this is Pokemon we are dealing with! I wish Digimon had the brains to borrow from classic Victorian Gothic literature instead of just being shit! If you are Pokemon fan, but perhaps grew up with Gen 4 and aren't old enough to remember this movie, I would actually recommend checking it out. You could certainly do worse.

[Intro]
If you thought the series was ok, you will love this movie. I did watch the entire first series of Pokemon, but the movie was far better with a much better story line.

[Animation]
The animation in this was nothing special, kind of average ish, nothign special at all, but easily watchable, same as the pokemon series really, simple.

[Sound]
The sound in Pokemon: The First Movie was better than the series, alot of thought seems to have gone into where music would sound best and the type of music played to fit the scenes.

[Characters]
The characters in this movie are pretty much the same as the series but you ... don't get as much of the annoying Team Rocket every 5 minutes, thank the lord for originality.

[Enjoyment]
I enjoyed this movie alot more than the series, it doesnt drag on as much and go all long winded on your sorry ass. It's to the point and a great story.

I used to be a Pokemon fanatic, as many youngsters did, but unlike everyone else I probably saw this movie for the first time in 2001 because I jumped the bandwagon later than everyone else. I remember very little about watching it, but I do remember that, in contrast to the series, it was exceptionally dark and very sad.

Let's put some perspective here: the movie, in the English dub, opens up with Mewtwo coming out of some cloned form of hibernation (which is strange for a children's movie) and it's assumed that he's absolutely pissed off that he's been cloned and what-not. So he proceeds ... to kill everyone in the laboratory.

You read that right... the movie STARTS with Mewtwo killing a bunch of scientists contracted by evildoer Giovanni to 'create' the strongest Pokemon of all time. That's not Mewtwo knocking people all over the place, but Mewtwo actually murdering people. As in, they're dead after that scene. How do I know? Explosions and shit. Epic ones. That's the only spoiler you get, I promise.

I decided to rewatch it earlier today while I had about an hour to spare but was around people and suddenly realized that it had been seven years and I was going to be emotional about it for whatever reason. Whether it's the fact that it's seven years gone and so much has change or the fact that it's genuinely sad movie I almost cried several times throughout.

At the climax of the movie shit starts happening and when shit starts happening shit goes down. Let's just say that I'm a fairly strong guy (that's right, guy) and I pride myself on never getting sad. I've seen people die in horrible ways, I've watched close relatives become nothing in hospital beds over a matter of weeks and then die. This hit me more. I realize how strange that sounds.

But as I said, the climax of the movie is really the point where they try to get you, even as an adult, to cry. And they almost did it. It's very very very heartwrenching and again I dunno whether it's that I hadn't watched it in seven years, whether I'm a pussy, or whether it's actually that sad. Leaning towards the first two though.

If you've never watched this movie you're horribly behind, but other than that it's still fresh. It's been ten years since it hit theaters in the US (I'm pretty sure, but I wasn't a fan back then) and it feels as good now as it did on my first time watching it. I'm sure others have duly noted that the comedy found throughout the series (to this point) is pretty much stripped and this movie is all about seriousness, sadness, and... moral issues. Not to say that's a bad thing, it's definitely still a good movie.

If you're going back, expect this one to be a shocker. The closest I've gotten to a Pokemon movie being this shocking is the one about those two Lugia-like Pokemon from generation III which I never paid any attention to. Now let me say at least one more time that you will probably be shocked if you haven't seen it before, but probably in a good way.

Story is an 8/10 because it just puts you in a lab (since the dub apparently cut off 15 minutes of things that would be "shocking" to western viewers) and boom the movie is going, art is 10/10 because it's basically a more glossed and shiny version of the normal series, the sound is a 10/10 because the soundtrack matches the moods throughout the film, including the climactic moments, the character is 5/10 because the characters have no development and often fail to act like themselves, and the enjoyment factor is an 8/10 because it's enjoyable but serious and sad. Overall score is an 8/10, definitely worth watching if you can deal with the kiddie themes, since this movie was for younger western audiences... which is pretty gay if you ask me.

Hello there! Welcome to the world of adaptations! My name is Naru! This world is inhabited by creatures called pokemon, who live in harmony with the humans who capture and train them! For some people, pokemon are pets. Others use them for fights. For others, pokemon are used for scientific testing, stored in suspended animation in large glass tubes while individuals far less ethically inclined than myself attempt to use them to perfect the art of cloning. This may not include you, an innocent and unassuming ten year old of indeterminate gender... Seriously, what are you, a boy or a girl? ... Anyway, one particular scientist wanted nothing more than to use cloning to bring back his deceased daughter... Because it worked so well for Shou Tucker... So they went on an expedition, found a fossil of the ancient pokemon Mew, and while the artificial soul they created for little Amber may have faded away, after several failed experiments(which now exist in the wild as Dittos), they eventually succeeded in combining Mew’s DNA with that of a human’s to create a new pokemon, the creatively named Mewtwo.

But the ability to think elaborately and ponder one’s own existence apparently does not bode well for the young lab subject, who doesn’t take his imprisonment and subjugation lying down. He blows the place up, kills everyone, and after some ill-advised soul searching with the leader of Team Rocket, he decides to strike out on his own and prove to the world that cloned pokemon are not only superior to real pokemon, but that they’re completely independent of their human captors! He does this by taking over an island close to a popular port, building a base, and perfecting the cloning technology that was used to create three friends he can no longer remember the existence of. He employs a Dragonite that he met... somehow... to send out fliers advertising an event for only the best and brightest pokemon trainers in the immediate area to attend! He creates a massive storm to separate the real challengers from the... Well, let’s not beat around the bush, corpses... But by mistake, he also winds up bringing in Ash Ketchum, a trainer from Pallet Town, and his friends along for the ride! Will their main-characterness get in the way of his perfect evil plan, or will Mewtwo become the real reason Ash never turns 11?

If you’ve ever seen the original pokemon series, it would be fair to say that it was a low quality affair at best, and animation was one of the many things that you couldn’t really call it’s strong suit. It was passable enough during battle scenes and the few repeated animations, such as Ash’s trademarked hat turn, but for the most part, the production company Team Ota kept costs low, relying on the lacking standards of child viewers to keep the project simple and inexpensive... Or, that’s what I’m assuming they did, but they didn’t have that the rights to that excuse when they made Berserk. Yup, the Pokemon people animated Berserk. At it’s worst, the series was embarrassing to look at, particularly in the early years. Most of the budget clearly went to visual effects, like the lighting effects of pokemon being captured, pokemon evolving, and certain intense battle scenes. It wasn’t badly directed or anything, as it was more than serviceable enough for young viewers, speedlines and other tricks are used more or less effectively, and the motion that occurred on screen was never wasted. There were a few too many dialogue-heavy staticky scenes, and I can tell you from a recent rewatch that the animators did get noticeably lazy in the middle of the Kanto arc, but it was fine for what it was.

Having said that, this movie was exactly what the anime analogue of a long-running anime should be... A giant step up in budget and quality control. The movie goes to a lot of really dark places, so appropriately enough, there’s a darker palette at play, and a far more frequent use of shadows than even the spookiest of episodes. There are a few moments that look to have had as low a budget as the series, particularly with one of the earlier scenes of Ash, Misty and Brock stopping for a lunch break, but when it’s called for, the animation can get surprisingly fluid at times. There’s also quite a few shots incorporating CG, and yeah, they stick out like a sore thumb, but since the movie came out in 1999, we can give it a pass on that. It exercises a much better balance between the two styles than many of the newer movies, which use CG to such lavish degree that the standard animation has to suffer to compensate. It’s so effective over-all that with help from the soundtrack, certain scenes can feel unbelievably harrowing or at some points even creepy. For example, in the scene where Ash and his friends first arrive on New Island(yeah, they call it that), and are greeted by Mewtwo’s assistant, the atmosphere is so warying that you don’t know WHAT’s about to happen.

And speaking of the music... Well, it’s a bit bipolar. There are two sides to it, the soundtrack and the score, and they clash even more than the fighting Pokemon do. The score, for what it is, is great. It’s not your typical collection of Pokemon background instrumentals, albeit scaled up to better portray the higher stakes and more epic nature of the story. Even when listened to out of context, these tunes convey very clear emotion, so I don’t think I should have to tell you how effective it all is in context, whether you’re hearing it in the movie in real time or on it’s own terms on the extremely rare Score CD, and you have the actual events of the movie to pair it to. Quite a few of the tunes have an almost Danny Elfman-like quality to them, and I don’t mean in the bouncy Springfield-like kind of way... It’s more like what you’d hear from him in a Tim Burton project, with that sense of mystery and wonder guiding you through an otherwise bland and formulaic story. Some of my personal favorite tunes involve Birth of Mewtwo, which I believe only plays during the often-excluded origin story of the title character, the exciting track Freeing Charizard, and the bell-chorus/greek choir combo in Three on Three.

The Soundtrack, on the other hand... Woof. I’m going to start by saying that it’s not QUITE as dated as the soundtrack to the Digimon movie, but that’s mostly because the songs that actually got crowbarred into the movie are all from no-name artists who might as well have died in the nineties, for all the world would ever care. Seriously, I’ve met modern day Hanson followers who have no idea who M2M ever was. Well, maybe that’s not entirely true, I mean, Christina Aguilera and one of the Spice girls made it into the closing credits, which had four different songs jammed so tightly together that they actually kinda wound up bleeding into each other. I’ll admit that I’m a sizeable fan of the Billy Crawford version of the first Pokemon theme song, so sue me it sounds awesome, and it was a fitting choice for the first real pokemon battle Ash has in the movie, but it goes downhill from there. Artists like Brittney Spears and N8SYNC were lucky to get away with their dignity intact, somehow escaping with their least known songs being listed as “Inspired by” on the CD(Yeah, right, Soda Pop was based on the Dept. Store health drink, gimme a break), but perhaps nobody comes out as badly as Blessid Union of Souls, who’s track “Brother my Brother” has become synonymous with the film’s absolute worst moment.

And yes, it’s the American Pokemon release, done by 4Kids, so what are you really expecting me to say about the dub? I mean, I’ll give it this, as bad as it was, it’s considered The Glory Days now, especially when compared to the newer dubbing efforts. It’s bad, but then again, it was always bad, and there’s no real difference between this dub and the TV series dub. There’s still lame jokes and obvious rewrites, there’s still lines of dialogue that misidentify various pokemon, such as calling Pidgeot Pidgeotto and Scyther Alakazam... No, I’m not making that up... But for a show that always ignored it’s own logic, these screw-ups are hardly anything new. The original cast is still present, with voice acting legends Veronica Taylor, Rachel Lillis and Eric Stuart voicing at least half a dozen roles together, and of course Ikue Ohtani’s still voicing Pikachu. Phillip Bartlett does an awesome job as Mewtwo, having also played the character in Pokemon Live, although he doesn’t appear to have any other anime roles to his name. So yeah, the writing and translating ios your typical pokemon fair(save for a dumb Viking joke that not even the series would stoop to), and the acting’s also predictably decent. It’s difficult to find the original sub track, but trust me, it’s worth the hunt.

When I was younger, the fact that there was a Pokemon movie coming out was a huge deal. The series and games had been huge for years, the card game was so lucrative that it drew accusations of basically being a form of childhood gambling, it was an even bigger trend than Pokemon Go is now, and I can personally attest that it was a major part of my childhood. Fuck childhood, it bled into my teen years, and I was straight up obsessed. It took over my life to such an extreme degree, and yet I never saw the first movie in theaters. Nope. I waited for it to come out on DVD, at which point I didn’t even buy it, I rented it. Why was this the case? How could such a forgiving, loyal pokefreak like myself give up the chance to see his favorite cartoon, western , eastern or otherwise on the big screen, and then not even bother securing a cpy for himself? I don’t know. I seriously don’t know. I have no recollection whatsoever about what it was that made me turn my nose up at the idea of seeing this movie in theaters. Did my parents refuse to pay theater costs to see something we could see for free on TV? No, because we saw the second movie in theaters.

Also, both movies gave out promo cards, and I distinctly remember having very low standards, so... What the Psyduck? I can only imagine that it was one of two things... Either I thought the trailers looked lame, which is entirely possible when you consider how I’ve spent most of my life taking trailers way too seriously, so I could have just looked at 4Kids’ advertisement campaign and said ‘no thank you.’ More likely, or perhaps even in conjunction with that issue, I might have gotten pissed off about how the title was a blatant rip-off of Empire Strikes Back. Like, ‘if this movie’s as lazy as it’s title, I don’t want any part of it.’ Either way, I eventually did watch it on DVD, rental of course, and to my great shock, yeah, I had no urge whatsoever to purchase it. I know it has a lot of nostalgic value to a lot of people, but there’s a good damn reason that it’s tied with 4Ever for lowest critical score on Rottentomatoes. honestly, I think the first time I ever purchased a physical copy of it might have been the one I bought this week for reviewing purposes. Keep in mind, this came out around the time that I thought Tim Burton created the superior Planet of the Apes movie.

First of all, out of all the reviewers who’ve torn this movie to shreds(and there’ve been quite a few), I don’t think I’ve seen anybody call attention to just how badly executed the story is. Right off the bat, we’re told everything there is to know about the titular character and primary antagonist, Mewtwo. We’re told about his creation, his life with Giovanni, and depending what version you’re watching, we’re even shown a part of his past that he doesn’t remember. This was a terrible idea, because not only does it ruin the possible mystery of his character, it takes focus and screen time away from the actual main characters, who are introduced in what can only be described as the third(or fourth) intro portion of the first act. Had Mewtwo’s past been kept shrouded in mystery for the first half of the movie, and fed to us in snippets as each fact became relevant(IE, his history with Giovanni could have been glimpsed when Team Rocket heard their bosses name on a computer), it would have improved the film tenfold. Of course, going back to that example, his history with Giovanni was entirely pointless, aside from the connection it made to the series.

And speaking of the first act, I’d also like to call attention to the fact that this movie doesn’t even bother trying to follow the basic three-act structure. Any movie, regardless of audience, is supposed to have a distinctive beginning, middle, and end, with occasional artistic diversions made for the sake of deliberately changing the norm and challenging the viewer. There are directors who specialize in this, such as Quentin Tarrantino and Christopher Nolan, but even when it comes to their non-linear story-telling styles, the final product can still be broken down into three distinct acts. This is one of the major reasons you can’t approach screenwriting with the mindset of”This happens, then this happens, then this happens, then this happens,” and that’s what about seventy percent of this movie amounts to. The first thirty percent, which I GUESS you could call the first act, is just a long string of introductions to various elements of the story, only the fourth of which has anything to do with the actual protagonist. Not only is the villain’s backstory AND motus operandi revealed first, giving it a feel of heavier important, but Ash and Friends also take a back seat to an entire sequence who’s only purpose, as I mentioned before, is to connect the film to the series. Who are we supposed to be rooting for, again?

The second and third acts, if you can even call them that, bleed together into one long scene that takes place more or less in real time. I guess you could kind of separate the storm sequence and the introduction of the three other trainers who were able to make it to the island as a second act, but it’s a brief one that doesn’t leave much of an impression until Mewtwo once again hijacks the movie for the extended third act. Honestly, though, the single biggest flaw in the movie is just how hypocritical and non-sensical Mewtwo’s plans really are, and if the film had been paced and structured better, we wouldn’t have had so much time in between his appearances to THINK about how little sense it all makes. Smarter execution could have amplified the emotional weight of his story, especially if the two major tear-jerking moments of the film had been juxtaposed against each other, with one happening in real time and the other happening afterwards as a flashback, making the conclusion of Mewtwo’s character arc... Because trust me, he’s the only character in this stupid movie who HAS an arc... More effective on a more emotional level. Instead, the tragedy that ends this conflict just feels like a ridiculous ass-pull.

And yeah, I hear what you’re saying... It’s the first pokemon movie, obviously there were going to be some flaws. The writers likely weren’t used to translating the pacing and structure of a TV episode into the higher demand of a full length movie, and I’ll admit, that does play a huge factor in why this movie just doesn’t feel right. Their approach would improve greatly with future movies, even if said projects went downhill in many other areas, but this first movie is structured like an episode of the show... You do a brief introduction of where everyone is, usually with the assistance of a narrator, and then the plot is revealed, which takes up the rest of the episode. Or, in this case, the movie. This isn’t an entirely negative change, as the extended run time allows certain scenes to run way longer than the limits of TV would normally allow, making several action set pieces feel more harrowing, like Ash and friends struggling to survive the storm and reach new island, or an entire room full of pokemon trying to either fight or flee from a hoard of Mewtwo’s flying pokeballs, which can somehow capture other pokeballs.

So yes, the idea of this movie being an extended episode of the series can be sort of a double edged sword, at least in these respects. But even having said that, the argument falls flat when you look at just how stupid this movie is, and how many obvious mistakes it makes. Sure, the series was never what I’d call well-written, but most of it’s dumbest aspects come from the characters themselves being fucking idiots, from Team Rocket’s frequent failures to our heroes not being able to recognize them, to Ash’s constant failures to capture almost any pokemon he had the opportunity to catch. Oh, you don’t wanna trade your Tauros? You have fucking thirty of them! And go back to pick up Pidgeot! Sorry, irrelevant, but I’ve been sitting on those rants for a while. Anywho, the mistakes made in the movie are a lot more obvious and in some cases just impossible to explain. Some of them are even more inexplicable than the questions of how Mewtwo, a freaking pokemon, was able to build or acquire a massively technologically advanced base without anyone noticing, how he has the ability to brainwash people and why doesn’t he just use this power to tell all the people in the world to stop being dicks, and so on and so forth. Seriously, imagine him mind-controlling Giovanni like that.

Back in the late nineties, the only thing more exciting to pokemon fans than the upcoming movie was the soon-to-be released second generation of Pocket monsters. The movie, brilliantly enough, decided to capitalize on this by teasing us with three new critters, not including Togepi. The first two appeared in Pikachu’s vacation, an OVA that aired before the movie, but the one that was reserved for the movie was Donphan, which you would think means he would be a big deal... But no, he gets beaten faster than CM Punk in UFC. Great representation, there. After this, we go to the docks, where trainers want to brave the storm Mewtwo created to answer their invitations, and we get this strange, unnamed woman saying that the storm is some prophecy called The Winds of Water. This is of course not connected to anything, or ever referenced again. The main cast take a freaking canoe to cross the ocean in a storm that a giant ferry isn’t fit for, which is probably the only mistake that feels like it would happen in the show, and then the ending has the balls to tell us that fighting is wrong, and that pokemon aren’t meant to fight each other, in a movie based on a franchise that’s based entirely around the art of strategic combat. This is the textbook definition of having your cake and eating it too, and yeah, there’s a reason this is literally EVERYBODY’S biggest complaint about the film. In my opinion, though, it’s not even it’s worst problem, or it's biggest mistake.

Pokemon: The first movie is available stateside in a few different formats, and I’m not sure if there’s any way to buy a region 1 version of the original Japanese release, or even if there’s a version with the original Birth of Mewtwo scene attached to it. The old DVD releases have slightly more features than the better looking recent releases, and they can be found for much cheaper on Ebay than on amazon. It can also be found in a few different three-pack formats, included with the second and third movies, for an okay price. There are a ton of other entries in the franchise, including way too many seasons of the show, and over a dozen other movies, which I may or may not visit in the future. A short OVA episode called Pikachu's Vacation may or may not be packaged with the movie, but it's all but ruined by it's pop song usage. There are two CDs, the soundtrack and the score, the latter of which I highly recommend tracking down and picking up a copy of, because it's pretty awesome. The soundtrack can fuck off.

When I bring up my issues with this movie in the company of other people, the most common defenses it gets aren’t the ones I mentioned earlier. The first one is the nostalgia argument, which... Okay, yeah, I kinda get that one. I liked Space Jam as much as the next child. you grew up with it, it’s important to you, so you’re forgiving of it. This actually leads into the other defense, that it’s a movie for kids. One day, little viewers who watch it now are going to have the same nostalgic reaction to it. Well, if all you’re looking for is something bright and colorful to keep your kids quiet for an hour and a half, this movie is fine. It’s innocent and inoffensive, and the fact that it’s moral is confused and hypocritical shouldn’t damage them seriously. But if that’s all you’re looking for, you wouldn’t be reading a review right now. The fact of the matter is that there ARE really good movies out there for children, movies that teach and enlighten while they entertain, and that don’t deserve to be lumped together with movies like this one just because they both reach the low standard of “It exists, and nothing offensive happens.” This movie may check those two boxes, but it’s also a soulless, lazy cash-grab that does nothing important for the franchise other than set up the far superior Mewtwo Returns, and even THAT’s just my opinion. Aside from that, it really doesn’t do anything to justify it’s own existence or continued relevance. I give Pokemon: The First movie a 3/10.

Ill say flat out, THIS IS THE BEST POKEMON MOVIE EVER!!!

Yah that might not be saying much to some of you people out there, but.... there was a time in mine, and almost ever person my ages elementary school, when Pokemon is what made you cool, or made you the person with nothing to talk about.

This movie introduces you to Mew and MewTwo which were like special pokemon back when Pokemon seemed limited to 150-152.

The plot is Ash and the gang get invited to this Island by a mysterious person. When they get there they get thrown into an event that tests the bond they ... have made with there pokemon, and the bond people have to pokemon. You get to see the evolved forms of many of the favorite Pokemon in this movie.

I dont want to ruin the plot too much but the story is pretty darn great. Iv watched a few of the later movies after this one, and Ill tell you they just dont live up to the original. Iv seen this movie at least 6 times, and though im passed the never ending story of the pokemon show, ill still watch this movie anytime it gets put on Cartoon Network, just cuz it was good.

If you like my review post on my profile or add me as a friend : )

When I originally saw this movie, I was around..7 years old I believe. One day, I was sitting in my living room playing my copy of Pokemon Red, when suddenly I heard "Calling all trainers!" As I watched, probably the most epic 60 seconds of my life flashed before my eyes with the final words saying "THE FIRST POKEMON MOVIE EVER! CATCH IT, NOVEMBER 12TH!" Now..I was 7..and Pokemon was God. This was the greatest moment ever to me. November 12th came along and I arrived with my dad and a bunch of other kids at a HUGE FREAKING LINEUP. When I bought my ticket, ... I was handed a Dragonite Promo trading card and I squealed..I squealed like a Twilight fan girl. This movie is one of the first films I remember seeing in theaters and it left a huge impression on me. How else could I remember all these little memories? Even the title sequence where the pokeball opens up and MEWTWO STRIKES BACK flies into screen made me speechless. Today, I still love this movie and I saw it 10 years ago, that has to say something. The animation is still great by today's standards and even though Pokemon isn't nearly as popular as it once was, we will ALWAYS remember this film as the definitive pokemon film. Anybody who grew up with Pokemon who hasn't seen this movie..like maybe 3 of you, needs to get the dvd RIGHT NOW!

time for another review ^.^ this time it's the first pokemon movie which, despite being a huge pokemon fan, i didn't watch until many years after it came out. (i was only four when it came out and i didn't start watching pokemon till later on) none the less, here i am fresh after watching it again :D without further ado, onto the review!

we start start out with what appears to be a beautiful scene with the rarest of all pokemon, mew, right in front of our face. everything seems peaceful enough until it turns much darker and serious which is where we meet mewtwo ... who would become the antagonist of the movie. we are exposed the rage felt by mewtwo at the humans who had created him. this also sends a message to us in how corrupt and terrible intentions can become. this is the vibe throughout the whole movie and drives mewtwo in his quest to "cleanse" the world of corrupt humans and their pokemon "slaves." of course, there is also the traditional pokemon battle in the beginning as well to bring in a sense of nostalgia as a fan. fighting through the odds, our hero group of ash, misty, brock, and pikachu reach the point where they meet mewtwo and find out his dark plans. they and three other trainers all defy him, believing that pokemon and they are one as friends. when all else fails, ash is the one who ends up going after the pokemon in order to save them. all this goes on while one of the largest scale pokemon vs pokemon battles are being fought. love and determination always overcomes the odds and this was no exception. it all has the message that fighting is wrong and in the grand plan that it isn't where you come from that dictates who you are, but what you do with your life. overall, it has a very dark serious message at first but then all is brought into light with an ending satisfying for pokemon. the art, well not much can be said about that other than it is traditional pokemon styled. nothing fancy or different, it's just pokemon and it's great for this movie. as far as voice acting and music, i watched the english dubbed version just like i did when i watched the show so i was satisfied when all the voices of my favorite characters were there. the music too was traditional pokemon that i enjoyed with a few of its own songs put in that seemed to fit the scenes and mood of what was happening at that time. characters of course were all the original heros with a few new ones such as mewtwo and mew. the trainers there along side ash also were traditional pokemon and fit well with the story. not much can be said on that since they all are so old school pokemon which makes it amazing. overall, i really enjoyed it in multiple ways. i loved the ending and epic points of this movie. it was such old school pokemon that i enjoyed from my days in watching the show. i would suggest this movie to any pokemon fan out there to check it out :D

Pokemon: The First Movie is the best of all the Pokemon movies that have come out in the years after it. It is the one with the most heart and feel for the characters. I confess, though, I think the only people who would want to see this are Pokemon fans.

PROS

If you're a Pokemon fan, this movie follows from the TV show pretty well. All the characters from the anime show are in this film, as well as a few new faces. This, for me, was a huge plus since I am a die-hard Pokemon fan. Do not be scared of this film being different ... from the info you know or have known about Pokemon. It stays in the same path as everything previous to it.

Artistically, this film is above other anime films that came out before it. The Pokemon look rich and alive with color, while the humans see realistic enough to touch. It's all done very well.

CONS

When I say this movie is only for Pokemon fans, I mean it. People who are not familiar with Pokemon will be completely lost in what is going on if they choose to watch this. Sadly, the film doesn't give too much background about Pokemon and what they do or how they work. Therefore, the only people who could possibly understand what is going on are the Pokemon fans. I don't know why someone would watch this without seeing the series first anyways, but this should be forewarned.

OVERALL

I didn't have much to say about Pokemon: The First Movie. It's a film made for the fans. Plain and simple. If you've seen the other Pokemon films, but not this one, it is a must have. There's no reason to not see this film if you're a Pokemon fan. If you know little to nothing about Pokemon, then do not see this film. No matter how many people tell you it's great, you will only be disappointed by such.

I recall seeing this in the theaters, back in the day. I liked it then. I still like it now.

The animation is more detailed than what we've seen in the cartoon on TV, but that's to be expected. The story is more detailed and meaningful as well. During the late episodes of the first season of Pokémon, we saw glimpses of a powerful Pokémon used by Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket.

That Pokémon was Mewtwo. Cloned from a mysterious, ancient Mew, it was made, supposedly, more powerful than the original. Through lies and deceit, it was made to serve human purpose.

All good things come to ... an end, though: Mewtwo escapes, betrayed and hurt, and plans to make a new world in his own image. As the most powerful Pokémon in the world, there is nothing to stop him. To clone his own army of stronger, better Pokémon, he summons trainers he deems fit for this purpose - although the trainers are not of great importance, obviously.

The story is touching, although near the end it feels a bit to drawn out; Pokémon battling their copies, same images shown over and over again. It made me wonder whether I missed something near the end, like some great piece of wisdom, but I think they went with a child-like turn of events eventually; the villain realizes his mistake and peace is once again restored.

Either way, this is a good movie, and for the fans of Pokémon it is a true treasure. Also, who can resist the awesome cuteness of Mew?

I saw the dub of this show and later the original Japanese version. I got quite shocked when I found out they've removed 15 whole minutes of the movie (In the Dub) at the beginning, because it was "Too dramatic for children" Well, well, on with the review.

This movie was enjoyable overall. Starts up with a dramatic Meowtwo scene, which made me curious: Is this really a kids movie!? It was one big change for the Pokemon series, because people actually got killed, unlike the TV-epsiodes...

Later, Ash is battling with a American dude, while the Pokemon theme plays in the background. And then it goes ... on and on, until they arrive at a special tourment, which the master Meowtwo have made himself. It may sound all great, but it isn't...

What I really missed where the classic humor which the TV show had. Weird faces, ironic comments and maybe even a bit slapstick comedy. It felt like that this movie was just build up by seriousness, which made me a little dissapointed. Also, I felt a lack of story later. About 30 minutes later in the movie, all the action occurs on one single place, "Meowtwo's Pokemon Arena". I mean, come on! I used 20 minutes, before I finally felt confirtable with it, as the story got better.

Anyway, I won't bother to write more because lack of time. Overall a good movie, where the Japanese version were the best one. The first 15 minutes were important for the movie. It told us why Meowtwo got into the science lab, why the proffesors bothered to make clones and a lot more historical stuff. All that got cut, just because of 10 minutes where the "Main proffesor" tried to bring her dead daughter back alive, the wife said it wasn't possible, and ended up killing his daughters soul. I agree, it is very dramatic, but it was also a important part of the movie. Grade: 7

If you’re part of my generation, or younger, chances are Pokemon was part of your childhood. I’ve reviewed one anime based off of it, the relatively short Pokemon the Origin but there have been a bunch of series for it, many of them going well over a hundred episodes. Today, we’re looking at Pokemon: Mewtwo no Gyakushuu, a film based off of the main anime line. Now, the general consensus among older fans of the Pokemon franchise is that the games are still fun and various improvements like reusable TMs, more trainer customization & the elimination of HMs in favour of ride Pokemon are touted ... as proof that they’re getting better. The opposite is true for the main anime. Most older fans say it was fine when they were kids but totally doesn’t hold up, often citing the overly repetitive formula & Satoshi being a toolbox. But let’s look at the film and make our own judgements.

Story:

We open with a group of scientists entering the jungle to investigate reports of Mew sightings. I remember when Mew was supposedly around that bloody truck but that was all lies and the hours we spent trying to make her appear were all in vain. In any case, they don’t find Mew but they do find one of her fossilised eyelashes. Which is weird because good luck seeing any eyelashes on Mew. But whatever, they take the eyelash back to their laboratory and decide to use it to clone a stronger version of Mew. Unlike the rest of their clones, they manage to make him stable but they have to sedate him due to the trauma he experiences after mind melding with the other clones. He wakes up and loses control, killing everybody and destroying the lab. He’s picked up by Sakaki who puts him to work, but makes the mistake of telling Mewtwo that he will serve humans. At which point Mewtwo tells him to suck a shiny lime green fart and destroys his headquarters. He returns to the island and swears revenge on humanity for trying to use him and thus begins our story proper and we get to see our main protagonists after a good twenty minutes of set up.

The biggest narrative issue is one that’s pretty common to kid’s films. It has one of those situations where something terrible happens to one of the main characters and, just when it looks to be over for them, the power of love and friendship comes to their rescue. It doesn’t really make sense for Mewtwo to grab Blastoise, Charizard and Venusaur when he already has clones of them. The ending twist with the lesson being lost for most is a bit bullshit too. It also is a pretty predictable film in a lot of ways but it is a kid’s film and they aren’t as good at recognising the usual media patterns so, it’s fair enough.

One interesting thing is that there is some pretty dark stuff. Mewtwo kills a lot of people, one of the researchers wants to clone his dead daughter, there’s a Fearow trainer who tries to fly to Mewtwo’s island through the great storm and is never seen again. Guess that guy doesn’t get a happy ending. On the plus side, the trainer who fishes up his corpse while looking to catch a Staryu will get some free Pokemon from his bag. She’ll have to release the Jynx with the racist nickname, though. Since you can’t rename Pokemon you get from other trainers.

That being said, I do like the set up stuff at the start. It actually explains quite a few things, like why Mewtwo has deep-rooted issues with the humans and why Charizard Blastoise & Venusaur look strangely contrasted to their originals compared to the other clones. It also sets up the main moral of the story which is all about the circumstances of our birth being irrelevant because “we’re all living beings.” It has some funny moments too. Mew trolling the rockets is pretty good. I also kind of like Meowth not fighting with his clone because the claws look like they hurt. And the Pokemon brawling without restraint or even using their special attacks because they aren’t under any kind of control is kind of a nice touch to illustrate just how worked up they all are. And I do appreciate that the film puts some effort into explaining away some regular shounen tropes. Why does Charizard fare better in the initial fight against the clones than the other starters? It’s not that he’s the protagonist’s Pokemon, it’s because the opposing Charizard uses Seismic Toss, which is a fixed damage move.

Characters:

This is undoubtedly one of the big areas where the main anime doesn’t hold up. The characters are just very bog standard and dull. The only character who kind of veers away from that a bit is Mewtwo and even he’s ultimately a pretty standard misunderstood antagonist. He just wants to find a place for himself in the world.

Art:

The artwork looks pretty good. They put in quite a bit of detail. I rather like the chibi Mewtwo we see at the beginning. The action is pretty good and there are some nice background details. About the worst I can say is that some of the slower scenes also involve some stilted, slow animation.

Sound:

The actors do a fine job. There are some really good ones including Hayashibara Megumi as Musashi & Ichimura Masachika as Mewtwo. You won’t find anyone’s greatest performance here, but they’re capable enough. The soundtrack is made up of “that song.” You know the one, “that sad song,” “that rising action song,” “that intense song.” It’s largely standard, is what I’m saying.

Ho-yay:

Really isn’t any romance just in general. Ho-yay or otherwise.

Final Thoughts:

Mewtwo no Gyakushu is a decent film. It has its strong moments and some solid action but, in general, it’s just too predictable and generic to be of particular interest for adults. If there’s a child in your life who you want to watch a film with, this one would make a pretty good choice, provided the kid likes Pokemon. Since it won’t make you want to shoot down a Fearow trainer or anything. My rating for it is going to be a 6/10. Next week, Elf wo Karu Mono-tachi. Because I’ve been too positive as of late.

Talking about a freaking CHILDHOOD anime movie from the intense populair pokemon t.v serie´s and pokecards , back then i was around 12,13 years old, and i NEVER FORGET this movie in the cinema it was such a total blast, and children´s dream came true, the 1st pokemon movie! Storywise i was soo into it, much darker background unlike the serie`s and more revealing about the true purpose of team rocket, wich was interestign as well. Animation was soo well done, mostly handdrawn BEFORE DIGITAL .ANIMATION CAME TO PASS, and all the pokemon`s in their entire glory as for the main chara. had ... a way cooler role. Pikachu became the forefront and pokemon`s face that cuddly yellow rat. Everyone i knew enjoyed it majorly in the cinema!

I have watched both versions of this movie, so this is going to be a review based on what I know from the Japanese version and the 4Kids dub.

English Dub: I know every Pokémon fan have seen it in the movie when it first came out. We have high expectations from it. We may have grown out it, but we've learned that critics put their hate on the films that came out. At first we thought is was just for no reason. And finally I've learned that besides Pokémon being a cash grab, I now get the dubbing is awful, the acting and dialogue is ... bland, Mewtwo is a hypocrite, the music is scored poorly like filling in the silences as well that out of place Brother My Brother song in the Original vs. Clone fight, clichés, and there is that particular moral that ruins the whole point in the series is that "fighting is wrong". There are a ton of reviews who talked about this. You know that Pokémon is a series that is similar to cock fighting, and 4Kids just had to use that message on film to support this? 4Kids dubbed the other Pokémon films and suffered a similar fate. So stay away from any 4Kids dub works and go for the Japanese version.

Japanese version: I took a look this and I finally watched the original Japanese version. And it's far better than what 4Kids did to the franchise. Mewtwo is pretty awesome in the version, Masachika Ichimura does a really great job voicing him. He made Mewtwo sound purposely intimidating, even if Mewtwo was originally just a confused Pokémon who is brought to the world as a Copy. Mewtwo is this version is more light than the English Mewtwo who is just a ruthless villain. The Japanese Mewtwo wonders if who is it, is it alive, who is Mew, are Copies stronger than originals. His plan is still to get revenge on humanity, but he doesn't care about world destruction. The silences are kept for necessary scenes, and the score is fitting like battle-like them from the show used in the Originals vs. Copies fights. And the scene with Satoshi turning to stone is different from the English version. It's not based on the Winds of Water legend from the 4Kids dub where when someone dies, the Pokémon tears are used revive them. Thankfully, it doesn't exist in the original. Satoshi was just paralyzed in a petrified state, and that the tears just purifies, and softens him. It's also a shame that any re-release of the Japanese version of the film is always the Kanzenban version, the Star Wars Special Edition of the movie. The hand drawn animation of the storm clouds to where the CGI is later used is really cool.

Although it's not my favorite Pokémon movie, but it is nice to get a chance to see the original version. I highly recommend you watching Japanese version while you can.

With how incredibly successful Pokemon was when it first appeared in the world, conquering Japan, America, Europe and the rest of the world, each new release of merchandise - video games, trading cards, the anime, and its merchandise - it was likely only a matter of time before a movie was made. But the bigwigs behind it must have got cocky by calling it Pokemon the FIRST movie. I mean, do they have a medium in Nintendo that can predict the future. So far, there have been 12 released films with a 13th on the way, but the first movie and perhaps Pokemon 2000 will ... always been the most memorable.

The story itself is relatively simple but it is bogged down in poor dialogue and at times the film seems to run out the clock. A scene with Ash, Misty and Brock swimming in the ocean lasts what feels like ten minutes. Most of the dialogue is poor, and there are even some mistakes in identifying Pokemon, although the dubbers claim this was done as a bit of fun. This comes from the same people who butchered Episode 38 of Sonic X. The fact that this film is aimed at fans and people who are aware of the cartoon's continuity, may alienate the newcomers and casual audience members, as an overview of what Pokemon are was not added in until the fourth Pokemon movie. The film has some rather dark tones and some sad moments which I'm definetly sure made me cry when I saw it in the cinema when I was eight. However, the film's themes are greatly focused on, to the point where it feels like the writers are trying to shove them down your throat. I'll look on them later.

The animation of the film is very well done, and doesn't try to give the viewers a seizure (here's looking at you Porygon). I particularly the scenes featuring Mewtwo and Giovanni standing in flames. However, likely because the filmmakers knew that the film would be released worldwide, the Japanese aspects seen in the show were seemingly removed to make the environment look more western based, but it was the Japanese aspects that helped make the show fun. I enjoy the short film starring Pikachu that comes with the film, it's charming and funny.

The music used is a combination of the movie's own soundtrack and songs done by professional musicians. Not much to say about it, but most of it is pleasant to listen too.

The characters in the film are disappointing. The established characters are given very little to do, and the newcomers have the personalities of cardboard. Mewtwo starts off as an interesting villain wondering his purpose, but this dissolves into the typical "conquer the world" routine with Mewtwo somehow planning to destroy mankind with a thunderstorm. If he's meant to be the strongest Pokemon created, couldn't he just blast of mankind's heads apart like Lucy does in Elfen Lied? No of course not, this is a kid's film...sort of.

As said earlier the film has some rather dark themes when compared to the cartoon's funny and upbeat themes. There are themes of racism, cloning and violence. The violence in the movie is quite brutal and all physical, when the cartoons usually deal with Pokemon launching energy blasts and stuff like that. Seeing the Pokemon getting physically wounded via all kinds of manner, particularly Pikachu getting slapped by another and the latter eventually crying as it does it is quite brutal to watch.

My problem with the film is its themes. As the violent battles occur, all of the characters with speaking roles talk about how violence and fighting are wrong. I have some problems with this - This franchise, the games, the card game, the show, this movie - are all successful because of the fighting and violence in their content. Pokemon was created for RPG-like battling between other people, and saying that violence and fighting is wrong in a film about fighting is just madness. They could've at least been subtle about this message but the characters literally do say "Fighting is wrong".

The second main theme is about a person's identity and slight racism themes. At the end of the film, Mewtwo leaves with a very strong theme which I will let off for not being subtle - It isn't how you were born that defines you, it is what you do with life that does that. Well said.

The only problem that as soon as the anti-fighting and identity theme are established, that the writers shoot themselves in the foot and make all of the characters forget about the experience and the morales - so are the writers saying "Forget that, go be violent and fight!" What a dumb idea.

Overall, the film is fun to watch whether or not you are a Pokemon fan, and I think its dark themes and atmosphere resulted in the rest of the Pokemon films being made more child friendly.

Pokemon is extremely nostalgic for me, and, this was a really good Pokemon movie. I've attempted to watch some of the newer Pokemon movies, and, while they were okay, they just weren't as good as the old Pokemon. If you enjoy the more nostalgic days of Pokemon, I strongly recommend this movie. It's got a good plot, fun, and is strongly entertaining, even though it's made for kind of a younger kid age group. But, with that, if you have young relatives you want to introduce anime to but don't want to show them the less child friendly ones, this is also a good ... start. Pokemon did a really good job with it's first movie. I hope that you enjoy watching the first Pokemon movie, and that you enjoyed this review or got something from it, at least. Thank you for reading!

I watched the Japanses version of this movie and I have to say I absolutely loved it, if you watched the original series when you were a child (like I had) then this will bring so much nostalgia it hurts. Don't worry its the good kind of hurt, though.

The plot for this story is surprisingly very good, it's directed for kids/young teenagers, but I think it will be engaging for an older audience as well. There are some serious themes which run through the movie, however, also having watched the English version I must say these themes are cut out of the English dialogue.

The real ... reason I gave this film a score of 8 was the ending, the relationship between Ash and Pikachu was beautiful to watch and even made me cry. I won't say anymore, only that I would definitely recommend this if you were a fan of Pokemon at some point in your life.

STORY: 8
ART: 6
SOUND: 8
CHARACTER : 7
ENJOYMENT: 9

OVERALL : 38/50 : 76% : (very good - 8)

Pokemon the First Movie is about Ash and Co. going to an island they were invited to. While on there, they encounter a Pokemon by the name of Mewtwo, a Pokemon genetically altered to become a clone of the legendary, elusive Pokemon, Mew.

Art:
Every character looks like their game models, including the Pokemon. These are all accurate to what they look like, and I can't say more.

Sound:
Most people weren't fans of the English VA's, but I loved them. In speaking of the English Dub, the opening is as awesome as ever, and the soundtrack is still excellent.

Character:
The characters don't change much ... from their anime counterparts. It's still the same, Ash is still eager to always battle, etc. Mewtwo wants revenge on Mankind for creating him genetically, along with other Pokemon. All Mew really says "Mew," so there isn't much character there.

Enjoyment:
The one thing I'll admit is that this movie made me cry. There's a certain scene where something happens. I'm not going into detail, but if you love the anime, you're going to cry. You'll probably get a kick out of the story if you like the anime. Key phrase is "if you like the anime." If you're new to Pokemon, you're not going to enjoy it as much.

Overall:
This movie from my childhood is phenomenal. It still makes me teary-eyed to this day, it's nostalgic, great to look at for the time, and so on. I recommend it if you like the anime or if you like the games. If you're new to the anime or the games, you'll most likely not like it as much. But it's still worth a watch if you at least find decency in the anime. 9/10, it's a great first movie.