Recap: Pokémon The First Movie

This pacifist spirit of brotherhood echoes the heroics in Princess Mononoke and other anime titles, but the artistic gap between the Miyazaki masterpiece and this project is huge.-Robert Koehler, Variety

Adults may cringe at the preachy heavy-handedness and the extremely limited motion animation that sets the art form back a couple of generations.-Michael Rechstaffen, Hollywood Reporter

It's just a sound-and-light show, linked to the marketing push for Pokemon in general.-Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times; **/4

A shameless plug for Pokemon merchandise? You betcha.-Mark Caro, Chicago Tribune

For the record, it isn't terrible. It's far from a milestone in Japanese animation, and not an especially memorable entertainment. Yet it doesn't try to be either of those things.-Peter Stack, San Francisco Chronicle; **/4

Know this, Pokemoniacs: your world is alien and barren to me.-Richard Corliss, Time Magazine

Audiences other than children will find little to entertain them.-Rotten Tomatoes, 14%

These are just a small sample of the quotes from the negative reviews of Pokémon: The First Movie. That last one, in hindsight, often has me think, “14%? Seriously? Worse than Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen? Much as I like that, I’ll take Mewtwo over Devastator taint any day.”

Even so, this is a solid encapsulation of what adults in November 1999 were thinking when folk like my 7-year-old self were dragging them to theaters to see this film. I cannot possibly overstate that since that time, I have been an absolute Pokémon NUT. The episodes have been in heavy rotation; my collection of cards and merchandise is the largest of my social circle; and I recently set a new personal record by over-clocking my copy of Pokémon Y past its max time.

As you can imagine; the movie was going to take this to new heights. It was quite possibly the biggest movie of that time apart from Star Wars: Episode I-The Phantom Menace. With that on the table, it was inherently clear that Mewtwo and Pikachu had become every bit as iconic for me as Darth Vader and Chewbacca.

Yet; is the movie deserving of the scorn critics lambasted it with? Is it and its numerous sequels worthy of being lumped in with every other petty excuse for a video game movie? I say, it’s time to use this blog for its purpose: to find out if it stood the test of time or if the nostalgia filter has once again used its distorting effects on me. So, let’s open up “Pokémon The First Movie.”

Please let it be noted that even though I am basing my recap off the dub; I have watched the Japanese version for a frame of reference. Another thing I found in my research was apparently, the original movie website from 1999 had been dug up. It certainly looks as if it were waiting to be viewed on a connection that took an hour just to get hooked up. So; this is a sample of the process that the movie’s translation went through:

Originally animated in Japan, Pokémon: The First Movie" had to be virtually reimagined for American audiences. Nintendo, which owns all rights to Pokémon in America, brought 4Kids Entertainment on board to handle all the creative aspects of essentially "Americanizing" the movie.

4Kids Entertainment's Norman Grossfeld, along with Michael Haigney and John Touhey, dramatically rewrote the script, incorporating all-new story elements. Grossfeld explains, "Our first challenge was to rewrite the film and dub the new script over the footage. We also rescored the entire movie with all new music that would better reflect what American kids would respond to."

So, looks like we’ve got a case of things being lost in translation. You know what that means: it’s time for another installment of “Shit CEOs say!”

“The market for uncut just isn’t as big as the one for the cut version.”-Alfred R. Kahn

To think the company went bankrupt a few years back! 

In its defense; the new score actually doesn’t sound that bad; with one notable exception, and we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. I also note that I haven’t actually gotten to covering the film itself yet; but I felt it necessary to set this up. The soundtrack also featured artists such as N-Sync, Christina Aguilera; and Britney Spears. I am specifically naming those artists as they are the ones that still have some semblance of a career as I type this today (especially in the case of the individual members of N-Sync).

We open on Mewtwo awakening from the cloning process; much to his confusion and the scientists’ excitement. I know what you’re going to ask me; but I also plan at looking at the Mewtwo Returns TV special in the near future. With this, Mewtwo unleashes his power; killing the scientists in the process.

Commander, tear this ship apart until you've found those plans; and bring  me the passengers! I WANT THEM ALIVE!

Giovanni catches wind of this; and decides to help Mewtwo focus his powers with a special kind of armor. Throughout several fights; Mewtwo questions why he has to take orders from humans. As a result; he rebels against Giovanni and decides to form his own path.

It is here we get our first glimpse of our heroes on the big screen; just as lunch is being prepared by Brock while Ash and Misty wait.

Then, a pirate-like trainer challenges Ash to a battle, which he’s all to eager to accept. 

Going somewhere, Solo?

As the battle goes on; we hear a remix of the Pokémon theme more suited for a movie. I’m posting a link of it for you to hear. 

Ash wins the battle with one final burst from Pikachu.

Even I get boarded sometimes. You think I had a choice?

Team Rocket looks on in the distance, waiting to strike.

Someone was in the pod. The tracks go off in this direction.

Then, everyone gets a message inviting them to New Island from the world’s strongest Pokémon master.

Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope.

That night, the wharf shore headed for New Island is hit by a massive storm.

You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious.

The wharf shore is, of course, filled with all sorts of colorful trainers and Pokémon. 

Undeterred by Officer Jenny’s decision to cancel the ferry; three trainers (who are, according to the novelization by Tracey West; named Corey, Neesha, and Fergus) decide to brave the storm on their own to get to New Island.

Team Rocket is all too happy to help, this time disguised as Vikings! Then, we get Ash’s quip about how “they mostly live in Minnesota!”

Watch your mouth, kid, or you're gonna find yourself floating home!

Yet, the boat is overturned by rough seas; and everyone is forced to mount water Pokémon to continue their journey to New Island.

Traveling through hyperspace ain't like dusting crops, boy!

Through the eye of the storm; everyone reaches New Island.

That's no moon. It's a space station.

Team Rocket it not far behind; puffing up on Weezing.

What an incredible smell you've discovered!

As everyone enters the great hall; we get the first of at least a couple goofs on 4Kids’ part. Corey’s Pidgeot is incorrectly referred to as a Pidgeotto; despite the fact there is a clear difference in size and color of the plumage on its head. Even when I was 7, I knew they done goofed.

"Fast ship?" You've never heard of the Millennium Falcon?

Mewtwo enters the space; and declares that he is both the world’s strongest Pokémon AND Pokémon master.

This shall be a day long remembered. It has seen the end of Kenobi, it shall soon see the end of the rebellion.

When Fergus objects to this; Mewtwo reaches out and throws him into a fountain with his powers.

I find your lack of faith disturbing.

Even the Hyper Beam of his Gyarados is useless against him!

Don't be too proud of this technological terror you've constructed.

Back with Team Rocket, they enter through the sewers and begin poking around. 

Who's more foolish? The fool, or the fool who follows him?

They happen upon a laboratory of sorts; which contains the dormant clones of Venusaur, Charizard, and Blastoise. 

Then, Jessie switches on a machine that details the cloning process; culminating in their creation of Mewtwo.

The machine then plucks three hairs from Meowth’s tail and clones a new Meowth from them.

With this, the machine dictates the final moments of the scientists and their folly.

Back in the great hall; Mewtwo reveals his contempt for humanity and Pokémon, saying they have failed the planet. Pikachu objects to this; saying that they work in unison with one another. Mewtwo scoffs at the idea; and flings him so hard he knocks Ash backward in a shot that has adorned my desktop many times.

Where am I? I must have taken a bad step.

Mewtwo fires back that humans and Pokémon can never work in unison; and Corey tries to capture him. He has his Rhyhorn charge at him; only for Mewtwo to chuck him around like a cheap toy.

Mewtwo declares his power further; and Ash challenges him to a proper battle. I still have my Master Ball in Yellow saved for him; meaning that I could die happy with him clipped to my belt.

I digress. At this challenge, the gauntlet is thrown; so to speak, and Mewtwo awakens his cloned Pokémon.

Commencing primary ignition.

First to emerge is Blastoise, brandishing his cannons.

Hokey religions and ancient weapons are nothing compared to a good blaster at your side.

Charizard emerges next in a manner that would be the envy of Hideki Anno. 

The ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of the Force.

Last but not least is Venusaur; who is a far better kaiju then any of the generic designs that dragged Pacific Rim down for me.

Then, a door opens to reveal a massive stadium to do battle in.

Corey calls upon his own Venusaur, Brute Root. 

Neesha summons her own Blastoise, Shellshocker (which always wreaks havoc with nickname character limits. I named mine in Y Raphael when I finally got one).

Despite not nicknaming it; Ash says he can rely on his Charizard. An easy one is Char; not only for the meaning, but also because my version of the character likes Gundam. 

Red Five, standing by.

Depending on which version you watch; Mewtwo’s scorn for Charizard is worded differently. The Japanese version says it has poor manners; while the dub says it’s poorly trained.

The trainers face Mewtwo in combat. This scene essentially proves how the movies tend to take a different route from the show in terms of scope and production value. The stakes tend to be higher; the animation tends to be showier: they sure make use of the expanded budget at their disposal.

Brute Root faces off against the cloned Venusaur; but is quickly outmatched.

Shellshocker fares little better against the cloned Blastoise.

Ash goes up last; Charizard to Charizard. He encourages him to favor speed over power. 

This is Red Five, I'm going in.

Yet, despite lasting longer in battle; Ash’s Charizard is still no match for the clone.

Despite his best efforts; Charizard is taken down.

I have you now.

Then, Mewtwo sets his sights on the Pokémon on his guests.

He declares that he will make copies; and that he cannot be stopped. As for the dub’s statement of this “storm destroying the planet”; I shall make a similar insinuation that Edward Blake made toward Ozymandias in Watchmen: that such a precedent would simply leave him the “smartest ‘mon on the cinder.”

No star system will dare oppose the emperor now.

When Ash objects; Mewtwo throws him around with a mere thought; and declares it’s his world now.

One by one, the Pokémon are captured by Mewtwo for his own ends. Once again, such ends differ depending on which version you watch. The Japanese version is much more ambiguous; a concept that 4Kids took issue with all throughout their tenure as a dubbing company. It was even something the Japanese writers of the film were less than pleased with when it was first being localized. Even in western media; there is a dominant belief that children cannot handle ambiguity; and must have things clear-cut for them. Thus; Mewtwo was made an outright villain bent on conquest and destruction in the dub.

Even an attempt to call them back into their Poké Balls by Ash is fruitless; as Mewtwo simply captures the Poké Balls! That part always amused me, and still does; for all the wrong reasons.

Mewtwo then looks on in contentment at his grand design.

What?! How?!

Not even Psyduck and Vulpix are safe from Mewtwo’s counterattack!

Another pattern the movies have is a darker tone than the TV series proper. While the series, even in its darkest; is quite idealistic, the movies tend to have plots that touch on issues that the target audience tends not to think about as much as the parents and older viewers do. Good comparisons would be how the 1986 Transformers movie had key members of the cast gunned down in lieu of robotic adventures; or how the first two TMNT movies used more elements from the comics, most notably a fight in the 1990 film which ended in April’s apartment being burned down.

Pikachu lasts the longest, darting and weaving to avoid the Poké Balls as he runs up a sort of spiral staircase to get away from them.

Ash even tries to follow his friend, but the path gets steeper and steeper as it goes.

Pikachu is eventually overpowered by the Poké Balls; and is knocked off the staircase!

Ash dives after Pikachu, but he’s caught as he falls into the pool!

After retrieving his hat like Indiana Jones; he slides down a chute after Pikachu!

The second error from 4Kids comes as Team Rocket mistakenly refers to a Scyther as an Alakazam. They try to explain this away in the DVD commentary as Team Rocket being Team Rocket; but that still doesn’t explain the error with the Pidgeot! Do I even need to go over my voodoo shark talk again?

Meowth makes another mistake; as he refers to a cloned Sandslash as its pre-evolution of Sandshrew.

Ash, saying he doesn’t “have time for their dumb motto today;” dives into the machine after Pikachu!

Use the Force, Luke!

Undeterred by the mass of mechanical arms (which also inspired some rather unsavory fan art on Deviant Art and Danbooru); he thrashes about, biting and kicking till he rescues his friend!

Blast it, will ya?! My gun's jammed! "Where?!" ANYWHERE!

The machine starts sparking and bursting into flames as Ash forces his way out!

Pikachu and the other Pokémon are saved; and Ash vows to take on Mewtwo in response to this counterattack.

Back in the hall, Mewtwo even extends an offer for everyone to leave; in spite of the storm outside.

Rebel base is in range. You may fire when ready.

Ash reemerges with the other Pokémon; and begins his defiant walk towards Mewtwo.

You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.

He even tries to punch Mewtwo in an element I admire about his character; and any character I like: he’ll keep on fighting even when he knows it’s pointless.

SHORYUKEN!

Then, as he’s flung back, he’s rescued by a bubble blown by Mew.

How'd we get past those troops? I thought we were dead!

Mewtwo is all too eager to test his power at his original.

I've been waiting for you , Obi-Wan. We meet again, at last.

Despite Mew’s whimsy; Mewtwo strongly desires to face his senior in battle.

The circle is now complete. When I left you, I was but the learner, now I am the master. "Only a master of evil, Darth."

He even manages to use Shadow Ball well before it was introduced in the games. Isn’t that something?

Your powers are weak, old man!

After some clashing in some fairly good animation for its time; Mew and Mewtwo decide to settle this between all the Pokémon: face to face, eye to eye.

As for this whole “the clones are inferior and must die” thing in the Japanese version: it’s not true. As promised, I watched it for a frame of reference; and this screen cap shows merely that the originals won’t lose to the copies. Just as the “Butterfree dies after it mates” theory was debunked a long time ago, so was this.

Glad I could help clear this up.

Now; comes the much critically-reviled “fighting is wrong” climax. I shall offer my take as such: Joy does explicitly say “Pokémon aren’t meant to fight, not like this;” implying that the traditional sensibilities of the Pokémon battle are abandoned in favor of what’s essentially the quintessential pre-Origins example of what it would be if it were a blood sport. So what they’re saying is true, from a certain point of view. Unfortunately, this is the music playing if you’re watching the dub on your college nostalgia trip.

This is the fatal flaw in the music I pointed out earlier as the exception that proves the rule. It highly undermines the point of the scene. On top of that, the sound is akin to playing Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time” over the battle. 

For contrast, the music playing in the Japanese version is the appropriately-titled “Who is Stronger? Epic Battle” cue; which often played in the show proper during scenes like this. Have a listen to see which would fit better. 

So, if this is the rationale that claimed this is music that kids would respond to; then here’s a piece which would probably connect with them and get the point of the scene across without much trouble.

It soon becomes inherently clear that the fighting will not stop until one or all of them are down; with Mew and Mewtwo leading the charge. 

Ash then makes the decision to remove himself from the equation; and runs into the blasts! Although Takeshi Shudo denies it; I believe him being turned to stone is essentially a form of death.

Regarding this; I can say that viewing this scene years later, I feel more emotionally attached to him than I do Alan in The Strongest Mega Evolution (Note: I have seen Act III; and will most likely be recapping it and Act IV when they are dubbed).

Pikachu even tries to revive him; to no avail. Ash is gone.

At this, Pikachu cries for his friend; their fallen hero.

I can't believe he's gone...

Then, one by one; originals and clones alike cry for him.

Even the battle-hardened Charizard are heartbroken at this!

With the goodwill of all the Pokémon, Ash is revived; and embraces Pikachu!

Remember, the Force will be with you, always.

Mewtwo then realizes the error of his ways; in a quote I want engraved on my tombstone: “The circumstances of one’s birth are irrelevant; it’s what you do with that life that matters.”

He then decides to take his Pokémon to life a more peaceful life; and takes everyone back to the wharf shore and removes their memory of what happened.

As the weather improves; Ash, Brock, Misty and Pikachu then reflect on their journey. 

As the credits roll; four songs from the soundtrack play as the journey continues. Even by Hollywood 1999 standards, that’s a bit excessive. I had to be dragged out of the theater by my family by the third track. Just as well, I think I should wrap this up.

So, that’s the first of many Pokémon movies. I hope 4Kids liked its work, can’t have any ambiguity in there at all! Those American children! We mustn’t make them think, they just want to be entertained!

Regarding my associate in Illinois’ quip that “Disney movies don’t bring people back by crying;” I must note that Disney’s biggest hit in recent years, “Frozen” had Elsa bring back Anna under the exact same circumstances. So, pardon me using a certain overused tune. 

With all this on the table, is the movie as bad as its reputation suggests? I would think not. It’s no masterpiece; by any means, and it certainly isn’t a Miyazaki film. Yet, it still manages to be a solid expansion of its premise and a worthy first film entry in the Pokémon franchise.

To be frank; the live-action Super Mario Bros. movie is at least a thousand times worse as a Nintendo movie. It’s also the most successful anime film ever in the US; with over $85 million made on the name alone. While I do acknowledge the Japanese film as the superior film; I consider the dub to be something of a cult classic, as with its numerous sequels (the latest of which is slated for this summer in Japan).

I plan to look at more of the movies in the near future; as part of yet more projects in the pipeline. See you, space cowboy.