|
Koffing looks just as happy on the big screen |
Summoned by the siren call of the words Pokemon and Movie used in the same sentence, I made the pilgrimage to the movie theatre and joined my fellow contributors to this strange little website in watching the movie we'd been waiting practically minutes for (you know, sitting in the movie theatre and waiting for it to start? ba-dum-boom-boom!).
Surrounded by small children and suspicious parents who wanted to know where our kids were, we sat in expectant silence as The 4-Kids Logo appeared, followed by Nintendo and then.....
A GIANT PIKACHU!
It seemed almost surreal as the pre-movie movie - Pikachu's Summer Vacation - started, filmed entirely in Poke-Vision (from about the eye level of Pikachu). Ash, Brock & Misty never seen beyond shoes or the side of a face.
The trippy linking sequences with different Pokemon doing some VERY strange things is disorientating but slide-splittingly funny, I almost thought I was having an acid flashback to the sixties until I recalled that I wasn't alive in the sixties.
Phew, close call.
Both movies are excellent, both with hilarious moments in them and also some quite sad scenes, as well as scenes that are funny and sad at the same time (Charizard beginning to cry as he thinks he may be trapped in a tunnel playset forever!)
There are some brilliantly funny moments with everybody's favourite Dastardly Duo - Jesse & James - as they try to first steal Pikachu - leading to the two dressing in furs and pretending to be Vikings (I didn't think James would be caught dead in something as gauche as fur!) complete with Meowth in maidens dress as a figurehead!
They even attempt to say their motto in the middle of the storm until a giant wave engulfs them and the others - and then trying to sneak into Mewtwo's castle, where they think a giant party is going on (Trendsetters like our beloved Jesse & James just have to be 'seen' at all the major social events) before finally just trying to get the hell out of there as Mewtwo starts kicking everybody's ass.
Which leads to the battles.
They're awesome, some of the most powerful Pokemon brought together simply to showcase how powerful Mewtwo is as he beats every one of them in seconds.
Mewtwo is a truly frightening villain worthy of a James Bond movie, he had everything!
The massive castle out on an island that he owns, a beautiful assistant with a heart of gold (a kidnapped Nurse Joy) cool technology (he is capable of cloning Pokemon and making them stronger within seconds), an evil plan (he's going to clone the best Pokemon from the best trainers in the world and wipe out the rest of all life on the planet with his psychic powers) and a heartless demeanour (he captures all the trainer's Pokemon with freaky new Pokeballs) and he even has a good twin brother of sorts! (Mew, who is damn cute and seems oblivious to the bigger picture of events going on around him).
The close relationship between Ash and Pikachu is developed even more when all the other Pokemon are captured and Pikachu makes a heroic effort to escape the freaky Mewtwo Pokeballs that are chasing him, it makes for some great animation and exciting viewing as Ash chases Pikachu, trying to help the cute little critter.
Things get soppy towards the end as the producers lapse into soppy sentiment, which is only to be expected as it is, after all, a kids movie. The translation at this point is either misinterpreted or just plain made up as the characters contradict each other, saying some nice sounding but inconsistent things that just don't mesh properly with the overall feel of the movie and the series itself.
The message is obvious, fighting for fighting’s sake is not only wrong but also unnecessary.
If only they could say it that simply, as they say things like,"Pokemon aren't meant to fight... well, not like this, anyway," and other inconsistent phrases that sound good at first but don't stand up to closer examination.... but again it is a kids movie, it doesn't really need to stand up.
Jesse and James get in on this as well, but at least they do it with style as they cringe and cry in fear, hugging each other for a comfort and security they never had from anybody else... if James wasn't gay, they'd probably be made for each other, nah, they're too good as friends.
We hit the typical happy ending, but this time Team Rocket get to share it as they find themselves alone on Mewtwo's now beautiful island and the move closes with a great variation on the good old,"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!"
My final review of this movie? I was going to give it a 4.9 out of 5 until things got soppy towards the end and Mewtwo suffers a huge shift in character, and so then I was going to give it a 3.5 out of 5 until I remembered some of the great one liners and sight gags, like when Jesse offers to cook lunch for James and Meowth or when Meowth is walking through a sewer, positive someone is behind him but also just missing them as he twists around (It's Mew - who's awoken due to Mewtwo playing with the elements - and is curious as to what Jesse, James and Meowth are doing in the sewer) so I upped things to a 4 out of 5.
And then of course, I remembered the 'Pre-Movie Movie' had a number of different Pokemon hanging around, and that one of these Pokemon was.... KOFFING!!!!!
Final Rating - 4.5 out of 5.
| BEST QUOTES |
|
|