The most obvious difference between the first and the second movie is the setting. The first movie was set inside a bulbeous lovecraftian castle shrouded by a terrifying storm. There was no attempt at topping this and while bigger doesn't always equal better, this time the setting of the movie ends up underwhelming. It revolves around a generic tropic archipelago. Still, while the location is unremarkable, the movie does toy with viewer's expectations by using the plot to turn this tropical paradise into a cold wasteland.
When discussing Pokemon movies, symbolism, foreshadowing and subtle set ups and payoffs don't generally come to mind. Neither does scientific accuracy nor explanations of any kind. This is because latter movies utilize magic by default, ushering in the age of "anything goes". This isn't the norm early in the series, although the first glimpses of this trend are being set in this movie, which will be discussed further on. Still, all is not bad. As plot progresses and natural disasters strike, we get a wonderful scene of Professor Oak improvising an explaination of the shifting ocean currents to journalists using a notebook and a pen. Scenes like this give the movie unique flavor and let us immerse ourselves in the world easier. I wish we got more like this in later movies. Here they let us understrand the threat and which exact things are at stake. Due to moments like this we can believe the Pokemon world is a tangible alternate reality instead of a bog-standard fantasy rollercoaster experience.
Unfortunately, we also get a flat villain with a magical castle that makes no sense and the movie is happy to just not bother explaining anything. Used as a plot necessity (that's really not neccesary), the flying castle is one of the low points of the movie. Fortunately, its design is nice to the eyes. Seeing the villain, Lawrence, quickly characterized as a member of wealthy nobility (grand European art and arhitecture included), really pulls these elements out of the gutter even if it acts as duck-tape.
The first movie featured some nice references for adults. For example, the clone production machine's shape was clearly inspired by the Fibonacci squence, implying the universal likeness of all life in its conception. I haven't noticed any lofty nods to the audience in this movie, which is a shame.
While there was some interesting subtext among character interactions, there was no payoff in the end. Any complexities characters could've had were ultimately played for laughs, while conclusions and follow ups were not bothered with. This, along with some points raised previously, grounds the movie firmly in the mindless action camp.
With the movie not bothering to make characters and locations interesting, its plot would need a miracle to end up written well. And so it wasn't. Fortunately for the movie, action was good and the high stakes were communicated successfuly. The action scenes were where real care went and it shows. Some credit should also be given to the atmosphere. The strength of nature and wilderness were successfuly communicated, pushing the bland sections into enjoyable territory with some good visual theming.
Considering this movie's budget was the same as the previous, but the movie achieved much less in pretty much every area, it can be considered a disapointment. It was eclipsed by the vastly more complex and emotionally gripping predecessor and marks a point where we can safely say that Pokemon movies decided to settle for less, never to recapture the qualities of the first one.
Still, was it a bad movie? I'll have to go with a firm no. While the complexities were done away with, the stakes, action and setting were different enough to stand out as their own adventure. "The Power of One" is watchable without many frustrations, but also devoid of ambition. Even if you're not a Pokemon fan you could have a mildly fun time with this one.
