Oh, finally! Well, I’ve seen the movie (mainly to understand what’s going on rather than reading the summary), and I will say it’s the best Pokémon movie. But here’s a distinction I’ll make. It’s not the best movie from the Pokémon franchise, but it’s the movie that best represents the world of Pokémon.
I’ll say that the opening is a bit of mess, mainly rushing through the events of the first episode without giving it time to breathe, especially egregious since they cut out the nonessential parts like Gary and Misty. It’s disappointing considering that I hailed “Pokémon - I Choose You!” to be the best episode of the Pokémon series. All it did was made me appreciate the original more. I really think they should have used the Gameboy intro just to really pump up the nostalgia. But I did like the various snippets of Ash and Pikachu’s journey and where he’s going. There’s something about it that captures what it’s like to be a regular Pokémon trainer.
I especially like how the legendary Pokémon are portrayed. Not like deities that communicate with you telepathically or be a keystone to the balance of the world as seen in most Pokémon movies. The legendary Pokémon are essentially powerful and mythical creatures that trainers want to encounter and battle. It’s much closer to how you encounter a legendary in the Gen I and II if that makes any sense. The Entei battle was simply breathtaking to watch because of how powerful Entei appears and how our young trainers try to adapt the situation.
The world without Pokémon dream sequence is surreal. So surreal it’s nightmarish. Seeing Ash in what appears to be modern Japan taking classes and looking out towards the horizon doesn’t feel right. Especially when it’s completely devoid of Pokémon. The world, despite being full of humans, is lifeless and dull. This is something that Takeshi Shudō would have written, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they took a page from him. In a way, it explains why Ash is eternally ten-years old. The Pokémon world is a childhood world, unmarred by reality. Ash does not belong in the real world and neither do the rest of the cast. And because of that, he will always remain a 10-year old child even if his physical features have aged. Of course, that’s my impression from the movie.
Speaking of Ash, this is really the story about the boy from Pallet Town. He’s excitable, dumb, brave and has a big heart. Your typical Ash. I will say he’s a lot adaptable in battles even without the Pokédex, Brock and Misty. Especially considering he has only two or three Pokémon with him and already has three badges. Pikachu is also a lot stronger here, given that he was able to flip a Snorlax with just Iron Tail when Snorlax attempts to do Body Slam. Despite their badass upgrade, both Ash and Pikachu are still recognizable and you get the feeling that they’re a representation of everyday trainers rather than an exceptional skilled trainer right off the bat like in DP, XY and SM. Which makes sense considering that they are rookies in this movie.
As for the other characters:
Verity has much personality than she lets on. She starts off acting like a rival to Ash (wanting to get Entei first and then having a Pokémon battle), and it's a rare occasion to see a female trainer act as a rival to Ash rather than a companion (sure she ends up being a companion, but at least I saw potential). We later learn that she has mother issues which is understandable if you know who that mother is supposed to be. I do kinda wish there was more to her than what was presented to film but for an OC film character, that's impressive.
Sorrel is not as interesting of a character. He's a younger version of Brock and to a lesser extent, Sammy Oak. But he does offer great lore such as Ho-Oh and the Three Beasts (on par with the Generations episode) and his Luxury's story, while a bit sudden, was rather sad and a reminder of permanent loss that goes well with the whole Pokémon-less world in Ash's dream.
Cross is truly cruel and brutal as a trainer. Not deceptive abusive as Damien, since Cross is brutally honest with Charmander and does have Pokémon he genuinely cares about. He’s a hybrid of Paul and Gary, with Paul’s cold-hearted nature and Gary’s egotism. Really, he’s the anime’s closest answer to Silver AKA Giovanni’s son and the rival from Gold and Silver. In fact, I wouldn’t mind calling the G/S rival Cross from now on.
Bonji has an interesting character, but sadly not much is used for him. It would be nice if he was a reflection of an older Ash in a hypothetical future.
Team Rocket is just there. You could cut out their scenes and nothing would have changed in the movie. And since they don't interact with Ash directly, I have no idea why this incarnation of TR is following Ash other than just because. They didn't even mention hoping to capture Pikachu. Was a bit surprised they had Wobbuffet at the end credits despite Wobbuffet not appearing in the actual movie.
For the climax, I'm still not exact sure about Marshadow's role or why it went berserk. I'm going to assume that Cross' wicked heart had too much evil for it handle.
As for the Pikachu talk moment, if you didn't catch it immediately, you'll likely think that Pikachu didn't talk at all. The English voice wasn't bad, but it makes me wish that Ikue Otani voiced Pikachu's human words in every major language. She is the voice of Pikachu and we should hear Pikachu talk in her voice, including human.
There’s a lot more to talk about, but I wanted to get some of my initial thoughts out.
Because it focuses on Ash and Pikachu’s journey to find the legendary Ho-Oh, this movie captures what Pokémon is all about and what it means to be a master (they actually explain what Ash’s definition of being a Pokémon Master is: It’s striving to be the best and to make lots of new friends along the way). While movies like Mewtwo Strikes Back, Spell of the Unown and Lucario and the Mystery of Mew have exceptionally memorable characters and even intriguing plots, they have never captured that feeling I felt when I watched this movie. If people want to know what a featured-length live action movie of Pokémon would be like in terms of plot (and not the Detective Pikachu stuff), go watch this movie. It’s not perfect; some of the plot points are a bit confusing and the pacing could use a lot of work. But it is the best movie about the Pokémon journey.
I Choose You
