Hoopa & The Clash of Ages (18)

[CyberBlaziken]

I watched it the day before. It was alright, enjoyed it actually. Didn't want to shut it off like I did with all of the BW movies.
The plot was a bit weak, and rushed but it was manageable. I did find it pretty awesome how Ash naturally commanded the Lati's and Rayquaza.
But I was waiting on Hoopa to bring out more Legendaries besides the Hoenn Dragon trio. It's either that or divide whatever ones featured.

 

[Pokegirl0102]

this sucks, so that mean we will never hear a full version of be a hero, this the second time in Pokemon Movie history they have done this, the first was with the Jirachi movie and no full pokemon advanced theme

 

[Pikachu52]

It's awesome but it's basically just one long legendary Pokémon fight scene. Pretty amazing, especially Pikachu riding that Latias, but can't say more than that.

Only thing I didn't like was the evil Ash part. From the description I thought Ash's possession by the prison battle was an important part of the film. But Ash was only possessed for about five minutes at the very end and he didn't do anything evil or destructive. What was the point? And it was wrong that Hoopa should be the one to calm him down. That role should have been performed Pikachu as Pikachu's the only one who can connect to Ash's heart. Worse than that Pikachu was rather absent from the scene. He's right behind Ash but for most of the time Ash's is possessed he's out of camera shot and we don't here his voice. That's a shame given previous movies have given both depressing and heartwarming Pikashippy scenes where either Ash or Pikachu is forced to grieve the loss of the other then enjoy being reunited. Frankly the scene was less impressive than Ash being possessed by the king of Pokélantis in AG. I don't see why it was even included.

A few other little things bugged me:

1.Dahara city is supposed to be Dubai yet it's well known for producing Doughnuts, which are American in origin. That makes sense??? In fact none of the food they eat in this film looks like anything that I would expect to find in the UAE
2. Why is Ash shirtless for the first 10 minutes of the film. Fan service much. Well it works for me.
3. Movie kind of confirms the fan theory that Arceus is god the creator of the Pokémon and is worshipped as such - That's good because I like that theory (so much fan fiction potential).
4. Is it just me or is Hoopa's voice really annoying.
5. All those Pikachu were really cute but it was a poor showcasing of Cosplay Pikachu - let's hope Lights Camera Pika does better.
6. "Ali Hoopa ring" is an even more annoying catchphrase than "the future is now thanks to science." "Were you surprised" isn't much better.
7. Kyogre can't fly
8. How did Latios and Latias mega evolve without mega stones or mega rings.
9. Is there anything Wobbufett's counter can't do. I mean he sent Giratina's attack back at it.

Overall it's a great film and one of the best Pokémon movies so far in my opinion. Only drawback is by being so action packed it's not as emotional or moving as other Pokémon movies have been. There are no parts that made me want to cry, or feel particularly joyful and I find I've got more to write about it's bad elements than it's strong points despite the fact I really enjoyed it. To discuss it's good points all you would be doing is saying how cool the battle scenes were.

 

[Mr. Reloaded]

It was exactly what you should expect from a short movie that relies heavily on pseudo gods and telepathic Pokemon, a rushed, over glorified legendary brawl feast with extremely bad dialogue and little build up. And no the original version isn't much better. Although I couldn't help but smile at the Lugia bits. Also glad they got rid of that last voice actress (or have her use an entirely different voice because that voice used in the trailer was terrible).

It's awesome but it's basically just one long legendary Pokémon fight scene. Pretty amazing, especially Pikachu riding that Latias, but can't say more than that.

Only thing I didn't like was the evil Ash part. From the description I thought Ash's possession by the prison battle was an important part of the film. But Ash was only possessed for about five minutes at the very end and he didn't do anything evil or destructive. What was the point? And it was wrong that Hoopa should be the one to calm him down. That role should have been performed Pikachu as Pikachu's the only one who can connect to Ash's heart. Worse than that Pikachu was rather absent from the scene. He's right behind Ash but for most of the time Ash's is possessed he's out of camera shot and we don't here his voice. That's a shame given previous movies have given both depressing and heartwarming Pikashippy scenes where either Ash or Pikachu is forced to grieve the loss of the other then enjoy being reunited. Frankly the scene was less impressive than Ash being possessed by the king of Pokélantis in AG. I don't see why it was even included.

A few other little things bugged me:

1.Dahara city is supposed to be Dubai yet it's well known for producing Doughnuts, which are American in origin. That makes sense??? In fact none of the food they eat in this film looks like anything that I would expect to find in the UAE
2. Why is Ash shirtless for the first 10 minutes of the film. Fan service much. Well it works for me.
3. Movie kind of confirms the fan theory that Arceus is god the creator of the Pokémon and is worshipped as such - That's good because I like that theory (so much fan fiction potential).
4. Is it just me or is Hoopa's voice really annoying.
5. All those Pikachu were really cute but it was a poor showcasing of Cosplay Pikachu - let's hope Lights Camera Pika does better.
6. "Ali Hoopa ring" is an even more annoying catchphrase than "the future is now thanks to science." "Were you surprised" isn't much better.
7. Kyogre can't fly
8. How did Latios and Latias mega evolve without mega stones or mega rings.
9. Is there anything Wobbufett's counter can't do. I mean he sent Giratina's attack back at it.

Overall it's a great film and one of the best Pokémon movies so far in my opinion. Only drawback is by being so action packed it's not as emotional or moving as other Pokémon movies have been. There are no parts that made me want to cry, or feel particularly joyful and I find I've got more to write about it's bad elements than it's strong points despite the fact I really enjoyed it. To discuss it's good points all you would be doing is saying how cool the battle scenes were.

4. Still better than what it was in the trailer.
8. Mewtwo got away with it no problem.

 

[Rapiido]

You know what I miss about movies 6 and 8?
Actual character development and interaction with the other main characters whose names aren't Ash.

 

[Bguy7]

Is there any word on a release in the US? I assumed it was airing tomorrow because of the Pikachu Movie special, but I just found out that isn't the case. I Googled it, but couldn't find a date anywhere. That's silly that it's already released in English in other countries, but they haven't even announced a date for the US yet.

 

[Hero of Truth]

So I watched the movie yesterday, and I found out why most of you didn't like the movie much. In all seriousness, the famed clash begins in the second half of the film, while the clash itself was poorly written. And in the end, Arceus only appears just to take the legends away from the city? Really? Where's the all-mighty clash between Hoopa and Arceus that everyone expected? And Hoopa was like ''are you surprised?'' almost 90% of the time. Are you kidding me?!

This certainly wasn't what I expected. I hoped I would like the movie despite its early criticisms, and now I've found out I just can't, because of its many problems. It didn't give emotion either. Just a battle between some legendaries. I believe that, if the conflict was made between Arceus and Hoopa, each with its own team of legends, the movie would be better than this. Arceus' power was established as a much important point throughout the film (it is needed to restore the Prison Bottle), and its creator only appears for a mere-five seconds in the end? Then why the heck did they go all the way into the trouble of promoting a Pokémon with a such short cameo appearance? Also, the clash was short, it should have started from the midpoint of the movie's first half at least. And the most tragic of all? No Amourshipping between Ash and Serena. That's just great. (get it?) Aside the ''Hoopa can't enter the rings because''. That was, in my opinion, plainly stupid. Why can't Hoopa go between its own rings? Doesn't make sense to me.

All things considered, if the producers really want the Pokémon movies to become popular again, they should just hire writers from overseas or give them more creative freedom. Cause this movie feels from miles away a promotion movie, and unfortunately, it's not well-written. It sucks, but sadly, it's the cold truth.

4.5/10 (It's normally 3.5, but I give it an extra point because it made me like Hoopa as a Pokémon really much. It's one of my favorite's now.)

 

[Pikachu52]

So I watched the movie yesterday, and I found out why most of you didn't like the movie much. In all seriousness, the famed clash begins in the second half of the film, while the clash itself was poorly written. And in the end, Arceus only appears just to take the legends away from the city? Really? Where's the all-mighty clash between Hoopa and Arceus that everyone expected? And Hoopa was like ''are you surprised?'' almost 90% of the time. Are you kidding me?!

Arceus already had a moive devoted to it. It's already been showcased whereas Hoopa, Primal Groudon and Kyogre haven't. And since it's stated in the film that Arceus is the one that created everything in the first place and it's power was used to create the prison bottle a battle between it and Hoopa wouldn't really make sense. The result would be a foregone conclusion. Arceus would win.

And the most tragic of all? No Amourshipping between Ash and Serena. That's just great. (get it?)

Amourshipping between Ash and Serena seems to have all but died. Hints in the later part of the second YX series Kalos quest are becoming less and less and Serena's character is improving because of it. She's finally developed a personality beyond her crush to the point of no longer being defined by it and has finally gain more competence as a trainer. I don't see why it was needed to be honest. The focus of the film was Ash and Hoopa and given that most of the screen time is devoted to either the battle or setting the scene for the battle it's hard to see how anything romantic could have been worked in. Most of the Pokémon movies focus on Ash as opposed to other characters.

It didn't have any Pikashipping between Ash and Pikachu either, despite having such an obvious opening for one when Ash gets possessed by prison bottle (which was the poorest done scene of the film).

All things considered, if the producers really want the Pokémon movies to become popular again, they should just hire writers from overseas or give them more creative freedom. Cause this movie feels from miles away a promotion movie, and unfortunately, it's not well-written. It sucks, but sadly, it's the cold truth.

Was it really that bad. I don't see how it was anything more or less than it was set up to be. We were promised a mega battle between legendary Pokémon and that's what we got. Granted it's less emotional than some films have been in the past but there are worse examples of writting in anime storylines. I'd say its as well written as anything else in the XY series and pretty much on par with the last movie.

Is there any word on a release in the US? I assumed it was airing tomorrow because of the Pikachu Movie special, but I just found out that isn't the case. I Googled it, but couldn't find a date anywhere. That's silly that it's already released in English in other countries, but they haven't even announced a date for the US yet.

You can watch it here.

 

[Bguy7]

You can watch it here.

Thanks, but I'd rather watch its official release on TV than an unsanctioned upload.

 

[U.N. Owen]

From what I've seen, I honestly think the hype was just to try to win the crowd, but all we got was a generic pokemon movie. I felt there was nothing special about the movie. The third movie brought us it's personal nature that a real person can empathize with. The eight and fifteenth brough us the bigger focus on the pokemon rather than the trainer. There was nothing special about this one.

 

[Xeogran]

Cam I add my two cents?

I want to say that the true star of this movie was noone else than Lugia! Have you seen it's rampage? Hoopa Unbound on it's strongest form could do nothing but get owned from every side. It got so mad, that it had to rage quit the fight by warping Lugia somewhere underwater.

 

[Zoruagible]

Okay, this movie has taken the title of my second favorite movie(Sorry, nothing tops Lucario and the Mystery of Mew). It was just great, Hoopa has a loveable personality and I loved his pranks especially the one he pulled on Chespin. That was just hilarious.
And I loved seeing almost every legendary. It had a great plot and loveable movie characters. I even thought one of Hoopa's friends weren't going to make it out in time.
And Hoopa's names for Ash and Pikachu were awesome.
I hope they meet Hoopa again someday even though it's probably not likely. To think I hated the concept of Hoopa before watching this

 

[Kutie Pie]

Cam I add my two cents?

I want to say that the true star of this movie was noone else than Lugia! Have you seen it's rampage? Hoopa Unbound on it's strongest form could do nothing but get owned from every side. It got so mad, that it had to rage quit the fight by warping Lugia somewhere underwater.

Holy crap, you're right, and I'm not sure if that's hilarious or insulting (that Lugia was taken out of commission like that). Rayquaza had nothing on Lugia there, not help by the fact Rayquaza decided to start firing at the other Legendaries instead. Latias and Latios were at least reasonable enough to do more against Hoopa Unbound than the others combined.

 

[Dragalge]

Kyurem and Hoopa Unbound saved this movie for me since the plot felt so rushed and how it ended with Arceus gallantly prancing in the sky while telling everyone to go home was a weird way to end the movie. A Judgment against Hoopa Unbound wouldn't have hurt hehe.

As for Dahara City(?), while I love what it's based off of, I think I preferred New Tork City from M16 more but that's probably because I personally didn't think this movie's animation was anything like M16's.

Also c'mon Ash, Hoopa could give you the Kalos League win and you go "nah dude, I work for my stuff but thanks for the offer m8te!!".

Overall I'll give it a 5/10. I would rate it higher if Reshiram and Zekrom had more screentime. What? I love the Tao Trio.

 

[Pikachu52]

Kyurem and Hoopa Unbound saved this movie for me since the plot felt so rushed and how it ended with Arceus gallantly prancing in the sky while telling everyone to go home was a weird way to end the movie. A Judgment against Hoopa Unbound wouldn't have hurt hehe.

I think the Arceus Movie already confirmed Arceus is an unbeatable Pokémon. Especially given it's move judgement can literally end the world.

 

[Bguy7]

Oh thank you, they finally announced the movie's US release date (sort of). I cannot get over how bizarre it is that it's airing so much later in the US than other English speaking countries.

 

[Weavy]

I remember the time when it was announced that this movie was going to feature a ton of legendary Pokémon and that it would suffer as a result. Unfortunately, I was right.

It puts way too much focus on the battle, so as a result, everything else suffers. It's a real shame too, since I felt the Shadow Hoopa had a lot of potential to be a really good villain, but he was underutilised; however, I felt he (or should I say Hoopa U in general, I don't know) was probably the best part of movie, ironically. Hoopa C was cute and mischievous and was alright in this movie, but he came of as annoying at times. I don't know about anyone else, but Hoopa speaking in the third person didn't really help me take him seriously.

Something that bothered me in M15 happened in this movie as well, Kyurem being able change its forms whenever it pleases. Latias and Latios being able to Mega evolve out of nowhere too (and before anyone says anything, yes it annoyed me a bit how Mewtwo was able to Mega evolve out of nowhere in M16) also didn't really help much. Rayquaza is sort of justified since all he needs is the move Dragon Ascent, and I'm pretty sure it used it in this movie, though someone correct me if I'm wrong.

Despite all that I said, I don't think this is the worst movie as it has its moments here and there, so I'd say it's an average movie. But I'm glad I didn't get my hopes up about this movie because it is disappointing just like I predicted, which is a huge shame since I really like Hoopa as a Pokémon (Not sure if I prefer this or M17 at the moment, may have to watch it again in the far future).

 

[Illusio]

I honestly was pretty underwhelmed by this movie, I didn't have a lot of expectations for it, but it honestly didn't even meet those. The true focus of the movie (Hoopa) was fine and I did like the idea behind his development and Hoopa Unbound was really cool, but the plot behind trying to show it fell flat since it's poorly paced. Additionally, the personal element was not there at all since the two movie characters were barely notable since they weren't focused on all that much, which robbed a good amount of the development that Hoopa could've used to make his inner conflict more meaningful.

As for the supposed "clash of the legendaries", it was pretty weak and I didn't find it that exciting. Despite being heavily advertised, it was shoved into the second half of the movie, didn't last that long in general, and was mostly just beam spam with Lati@s and Rayquaza doing their best to keep it off of Ash and Hoopa. The only moments I really liked out of it were the friendly fire scenes between Primal Groudon and Kyurem, which made me chuckle a bit, and Lugia giving Unbound a lot of trouble since he had the right idea in dealing with the crisis (shame he was dispatched so early).

So all in all, not that good a movie, it felt more like it was trying to attract the crowd by promising them cool epic battles rather then making it stand on its own two feet. Hopefully the next movie goes back to a smaller cast since I feel there were just too many Pokémon to work with, keeping it smaller would allow for a much more focused plot then what we got.

 

[Hero of Truth]

I honestly was pretty underwhelmed by this movie, I didn't have a lot of expectations for it, but it honestly didn't even meet those. The true focus of the movie (Hoopa) was fine and I did like the idea behind his development and Hoopa Unbound was really cool, but the plot behind trying to show it fell flat since it's poorly paced. Additionally, the personal element was not there at all since the two movie characters were barely notable since they weren't focused on all that much, which robbed a good amount of the development that Hoopa could've used to make his inner conflict more meaningful.

As for the supposed "clash of the legendaries", it was pretty weak and I didn't find it that exciting. Despite being heavily advertised, it was shoved into the second half of the movie, didn't last that long in general, and was mostly just beam spam with Lati@s and Rayquaza doing their best to keep it off of Ash and Hoopa. The only moments I really liked out of it were the friendly fire scenes between Primal Groudon and Kyurem, which made me chuckle a bit, and Lugia giving Unbound a lot of trouble since he had the right idea in dealing with the crisis (shame he was dispatched so early).

So all in all, not that good a movie, it felt more like it was trying to attract the crowd by promising them cool epic battles rather then making it stand on its own two feet. Hopefully the next movie goes back to a smaller cast since I feel there were just too many Pokémon to work with, keeping it smaller would allow for a much more focused plot then what we got.

Yeah, the big, or maybe, BIGGEST problem was the big number of legends gathered here.

I wish they would stick with just the Weather Trio, instead of a whole bunch of legends. Or just make it a Hoopa VS. Arceus movie. It would be better than the movie we got.

 

[kmyeakel]

so many Pikachus in the start of the movie. They brought back the cosplay Pikachus back, too. Ash was evil again in the later part of the movie. I give it an 10 for the whole Pikachu sequence. All I have to wait for is "Pikachu and the Pokemon Musicians / Band (English name coming soon) to come on DVD