Pokémon - Le premier film

I first saw this when I was probably 10 or 11 years old, and I appreciated it then as being a moving and entertaining film, as well as surprisingly philosophical. I was deeply offended when they did it in English and, through dubbing, changed the entire moral lesson into something far more cheesy, clichéd, and dumbed down.

See, even a 12 year old can appreciate quality film! (I just gained another year there......) In any case, it was the first anime I'd seen in Japanese, and I was impressed with the whole thing; the music was awesome, the dialogue was meaningful, the voices were cute, and the names were....strange and hard to remember. But thats OK. Names are not important.

I liked the way Mewtwo kept saying "Where am I? Who am I?". He said it so often, it was the first phrase I learned in Japanese. I concluded that both would come in handy should I ever find myself lost in Japan.

Later, as my Anime horizons expanded, and a anime-obsessive friend of mine taught me some basic phrases, and found I could recognise a lot of what was said. The vocabulary is fairly simple; its a good movie to practise your Japanese on.

And finally, the most impressive thing I found. Upon reading Mary Shelly's Frankenstein, I kept noticing similarities. Of course many, many things are different, but the basic themes are there: who asked to create me? I hate everything that made me."This is not an attack, nor a declaration of war, but revenge on you who made me" Except this one has a happy ending.

If You have seen the movie in English....well, what can I say, its better in Japanese. :P

I'm a bit shocked at the low ratings of this movie. It's no way near a 1 out of 10. I think its because if you were an adult when you saw this, you would give it a 1 out of 10 straight away. Like when I saw it when I was 8 or 9 years old originally at the cinema, all the kids enjoyed it, including myself, whilst the adults were just snoring away! They didn't even give it a chance! As of writing this review, at the age of 19, the movie is still OK in my opinion. The sequel was better, but I think Mewtwo was pretty cool in it, and its not that long either so don't just completely bash it just because it has the name "Pokemon" on it. Season 1 of Pokemon was awesome, and I wasn't even a huge fan of the anime! Finish it first, and sure there are some plot holes in it, but hey I still think the movie is entertaining. Overall, a 6/10 at best (as a teen/adult), but that means its passable.

Okay now, be honest. How many of you who rated this movie a '1' actually saw it? Probably none. Pokemon rule; yes, I will admit to being another 20 year old who enjoys pokemon; I went to see it with my 18 year old brother, too. It might be a little sappy with its message, but it's a lot of fun to watch, anyway. The best part of the movie is the final showdown between Mew and Mewtwo; not because of the battle, but because of the conversation: Mewtwo- "Why do you run? Are you afraid to learn who is supreme?!" Mew- "Mew"

If you've rated this movie a one just because you think it's dumb or a bad influence on kids, I've got three words for you.

"Get over yourself"

I admit that I came into the theater completely biased against Pokémon, and I still hate nearly everything about it... with the exception of this film (and the opening theme for Johto League Champions.) Admittedly, the movie was probably pumped out of the studio in order to rake in more and more cash (and it worked) but somehow, the writer managed to keep a stong, albeit thinly veiled anti-violence sentiment. There were also some acts of cheesy heroism I found downright heartwarming. Also notable is the incredible magnitude of the backgrounds. The flying palace was absolutely stunning. I liked it. But, you probably won't. Don't watch it.

Well, I liked Pokemon the first moment I saw the series... actually, after a few episodes. Anyways, after I saw the video clip "Don't Say You Love Me" (M2M), I wanted to see the movie.

Now, finally, after a few years and a DVD player later, I bought the movie, and I gotta tell ya, I regret it that I didn't see it in the cinemas... actually, I don't, because, well, I was "too old" for pokemon. That's the biggest bullpoo I ever heard. Well, sure, pokemon is mainly for young people, but I did enjoy the movie, for an 18 year old guy.

Well, back to the movie. The movie is great. I've seen the movie in Dutch first (because I'm used to the Dutch voices, and they sound better to me). The way Mewtwo's voice was used, it was as if Mewtwo was really in your head. But you'll need Dolby Surround for that experience. Also, the way the movie reffered back to the series, perfect. I mean, if you haven't seen the series, then that's okey, but don't look weird if you don't understand certain events and jokes and such.

The most unique thing is that this Pokemon movie really shows how much the Pokemon can care for their trainer. ** ENDING HINT ** You can mostly see it near the end of the movie.

Pokemon: The First Movie is probably the first movie that succeeded on following up their series successfull. It may not be a great movie, but it sure was fun to look at.