Pokemon - The Movie 2000 Reviews

• Five Pikas for An Improvement Over the First Movie!!!!!

  
  By A3HFRPVOJCMN23 on 2000-11-16
  Pokémon 2000 The Movie: The Power of One

  This movie starts with a little short called "Pikachu's Rescue Adventure." Unlike the short which accompanied Pokémon The First Movie, Pikachu's Rescue Adventure contains substance as well as cuteness. It focuses, as the name suggests, on Pikachu's adventure rescuing--Togepi! The short treats the viewer to Pikachu's intelligence, bravery, and of course, cuteness. Like the first short, it goes out of its way to show a wide variety of Pokémon, including four new ones, which I understand are named Hoothoot, Ladyba, Bellossom and Elekid. Elekid, a new electric Pokémon, plays a major role after becoming friends with Pikachu through an exchange of electricity. (Hoothoot and Bellossom now have played important roles in episodes of Pokémon: The Johto Journeys on television as well.) You'll even finally get to see a Snorlax do something other than eat and sleep!

  The Power of One itself seems substantially less dark than its precursor, yet manages to outdo the First Movie's tale of MewTwo versus Mew. The Power of One Introduces us to a new Pokémon, a powerful Guardian of the Water named Lugia which is nearly as large as the three legendary birds--Moltres, Zapdos and Articuno--combined. It's also nearly as powerful as the three combined. I say "nearly" because, according to an ancient prophecy, without the help of the Chosen One all of its efforts to stop the three from fighting will come to nothing, "making the world turn to ash." And who should be the Chosen One? Well, as Misty realizes, the prophecy DOES say that the world will "turn to Ash."

  As an added little bonus, the movie finally provides first names for Professors Oak and Ivy, and for Mrs. Ketchum, Ash's mom. It also gives two uproarious, albeit non-speaking cameo appearances by the original companion of Ash and Misty--Brock the Rock. Fans of Brock, myself included, may find his limited role disappointing. Fans of Tracey, Brock's replacement, may also be disappointed at his limited role in The Power of One. Moltres fans might be disappointed that he isn't a good-guy like he was in his one appearance in the TV series, and at the way he's been drawn for the movie. Misty fans, however, will revel in her pivotal role.

  Team Rocket fans, perpetually hoping to find their heroes playing a role other than that of the inept butt of jokes, will find their hopes finally realized. Team Rocket too plays a pivotal role in The Power of One, believe it or not, deliberately and through the creativity of Jesse, James and Meowth! Ah Team Rocket, we always knew your tendency to "think outside the box" would pay off one day.

  In addition to Lugia and Team Rocket's effectiveness, the movie offers something else new: a new Pokémon called Slowking. Slowking, the final evolved form of Slowpoke and Slowbro, resembles a Slowbro, but with the spiral Shellder on its head rather than on its tail. Best of all, the Slowking can speak. When you hear what he has to say, you'll be glad he can. Lugia's no slouch at communication either--like MewTwo, he just psychically speaks in Ash's head. Neat, huh?

  The Power of One offers an amazing spectacle of color and animation. The movie produces vibrant images, color and sound. I found the music good too, although I must warn you that as with the first movie, most of the songs on the soundtrack appear only over the closing credits and have little to do with the movie itself. At least more of the songs from the this soundtrack seem at least generally related to Pokémon. You will definitely want to watch the closing credits, however, both to hear "Weird" Al Yankovic's "Polkamon" song and to see the second, hysterically-funny, cameo appearance by Brock. If you like Pokémon you will like this movie; your little Pokémaniac (either the one you tuck into bed at night or the one hiding inside you) will love it.
  
  

• Lugia!

  
  By on 2000-10-04
  An ancient legend comes true when Pokemon Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres are disturbed after centuries of harmony. As the very forces of nature come unbalanced, life on Earth depends on the unlikely teaming of the mythical Pokemon Lugia and a mysterious "choosen one" foretold in the legend. Can Ash Ketchum summon the courage to save the day? See how one person can make all the difference. Plus-catch the bonus mini-movie "Pikachu's Rescue Adventure!"
  
  

• Much better than the First Movie

  
  By A6UGTB17P5BX8 on 2001-04-22
  Many people criticized "Mewtwo Strikes Back" when the first Pokemon movie was released in the US, because in comparison with the excellent Japanese version it was a mess, missing out important things that explained about the characters (such as The Birth Of Mewtwo), and it had sloppy characterization.

  However, I'm pleased to say that this film is generally much better than the first Pokemon movie. The plot involves a Pokemon collector called Laurence III who wants to capture the three Legendary birds Articuno. Zapdos and Moltres - or the Gods of Ice, Lightning and Fire as they're called here. Unfortunately, this creates a huge problem with Earth's weather patterns, causing violent storms and snow, and it is left up to Ash to get them back, and return things to normal.

  There are some little hints to the possibility of an Ash/Misty romance in this film - when Ash arrives on the island at the beginning of the movie, a girl called Melody kisses Ash on the cheek which makes Misty really jealous, as well as some other cute moments.

  Sadly, in spite of an improved plot I believe that, as before, the choice of music stands out as the film`s downfall and the producers haven`t learnt from the mistakes they made in the first film. Apart from a few exceptions ("The Legend Comes To Life" is a wonderful track), this movie replicates the same pop-styled rubbish used in the First Movie. The remix of the TV theme song ("Pokemon World" performed by Youngstown & Nobody's Angel) is absolutely horrible, with a scratchy beat and synthesized vocals. The campaign to ban vocoders starts here...

  Next time round, I would like to see a better choice of music which is less pop-orientated, but I`m not holding my breath...

  Overall though, in spite of the terrible soundtrack, this is a major improvement on the First Movie which I think any Pokemon fan should add to their collection.
  
  

• An outstanding entry in the Pokemon Series

  
  By A38AXXL7DMVFMQ on 2003-07-21
  While the first Pokemon movie was weak and sadly overly cutsey at times, Pokemon 2000 holds an excellent plot, awsome action, beautiful animation, and overall quality entertainment.

  The plot behind Pokemon 2000 is that an insane trainer has created a way to capture the Legendary Birds, Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres. By doing so he plans to lure Lugia out of hiding so he cna capture it as well. Ash and the gang stumble upon this madman and they try to stop him. Unfortunatly when they free the legendary Birds they go ballistic and so it is up to Ash and Lugia to stop them.

  This works because it keeps both parents and kids entertained. While it does lack the moral dilema that the First movie held, it does hold the attention much beter than the first. IT's strong point is definetly action but it does hold a strong enough plot that it keeps everyone entertained.
  
  

• Around five times better than the first movie...

  
  By A23LJOODGN2NAZ on 2000-08-04
  After reading several reviews about the original Japanese version, I learned that this movie was a LOT better than Mewtwo Strikes Back. I agree with them. This had more of a plot to it and it seemed much more adventure-some. Again, 4Kids re-composed the music for the English version, and after listening to some of the Japanese soundtrack, I'll have to say that I like the English score better than the Japanese one.

  Although they didn't state the collector's name in the movie (which is Lawrence III), he is the typical villain. Out to get what he wants, using any needs neccesary, not caring what happens to anybody else.

  This is a VERY good movie. Even those who aren't fans of Pokémon should really enjoy this movie!
  
  

• Pokémon The Movie 2000 - The Producer's Reprise!
  By AQGCART9DSM8B on 2001-01-27
  I watched the original Japanese version of this film in March 2000, and was so impressed with how the writers had turned this movie around. It's no secret that Mewtwo Strikes Back was not well received, but to all those who criticised the first movie, this is the producer's way of getting their own back!

  P2K is a superb film. It has the three basic elements that make a great film: it's interesting for its entire length, it actually as a plot (something that MSB lacked) and it has characters in it that can be related to. The dub, as in MSB, is excellent, and my thanks go out to Michael Haigney and all of the US production team, because they did a really great job with P2K, despite the odd bit such as the now infamous Slowking's "I could use pants" line.

  The plot line from the original movie was maintained in the US edition, which I was pleased to see. There were no parts omitted this time (RE: The Birth of Mewtwo which was dropped from the US version of MSB, which explained so much about Mewtwo's background), and the characters retained the bulk of their dialog. My only gripe on the character side is the name of the villain - Laurence. When did you last come across a bad guy called Laurence?!

  On the audio front, an excellent substitute for the original Japanese movie, although I was still not that happy about the choice of music in the movie (despite being much better than the music for MSB). I'd like to see less pop junk next time around. As for the score (BGM), as with MSB, I was really pleased with it. The hauntingly beautiful theme of Lugia and the atmospheric "The Legend Comes To Life" track near the end of the movie are my favourites.

  So, a successful comeback after MSB. I just hope that the third movie, due for release in the US in the spring of 2001, will be just as good. P2K is certainly a movie to add to your DVD or VHS collection, and I also recommend the original Revelation Lugia movie from Japan. It'll show you how much better the music really is in the original!
  
  

• Best of the lot!
  By A2E563W1BRCEJL on 2003-04-21
  Although probably not met with as much praise by the critics as with the Pokefans, it was significantly better than the first film, Mewtwo Strikes Back. This may be a biased opinion, however, as Lugia is my favorite Pokemon, but Mewtwo is one of them as well.

  Anyway, in this film, a Pokemon collector wants to capture the legendary bird Pokemon, Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres to flush out the big prize, Lugia. Unfortunetly, this tips the balance of power, and disrupts the weather around the world. Meanwhile, Ash, Misty and Tracey journey to a small island near to the island homes of the legendary birds and keeps up its old traditions with a yearly festival. The young girl who leads the tradition this year is Melody, who chooses Ash as the festival's "Chosen One." He is to travel to the islands to collect three elemental spheres and bring them back to the first island.

  How this movie is better than the first (and the ones that follow, too, I might add) I will explain in numerous points:

  First of all, the movie is less dark, and has a bit of a lighter mood. This can be good or bad, depending on how you like your Pokemon movies, but people who watch the anime series tend to like the lighter mood more.
  Secondly, this movie explores more the possibility of Pokeshipping, which is the more-than-platonic relationship between Ash and Misty. The movie has many cute moments, like Misty geeting jealous over Melody kissing Ash, and Melody telling Misty how she will marry Ash eventually. There's even a Rocketshippy moment! (Jessie and James)
  Third, the score to the movie goes way beyond what is possible in the anime series. I personally love the score, especially "The Legend Comes to Life." Yes, the movie's soundtrack still carries the pop songs, but keep in mind that the English version of Pokemon is geared mostly towards younger children.
  Fourth, the movie explores more about how Pokemon interact and influence the enviornment and the people around them. Not like the first movie, which was mostly about how Mewtwo's injust treatment by Team Rocket caused it to "go bad." This movie proved that Pokemon control and keep nature in balance, and carries the underlying message of how destructive human beings can be to the enviornment with selfish ideas.
  Fifth, the movie is just more engaging and exciting. The fate of the world rests in Ash's hands (and his competence as a hero). Team Rocket have a bigger and better part in the film, becuase they become temporarly changed and help Ash save the world. The battles between Lugia and the three birds and the Pokemon collector are more exciting. And also, there is more of what I deem as the most important aspect: character development. All of the characters change a bit (with the exception of Tracey), even if it is for just within the time of the movie.

  All in all, Pokemon 2000 is my favorite of the 4 Pokemon movies, and continues to be a popular film among the Pokemon fans.
  
  

• A Better Dub Than The First!
  By A1W661TC1P6VQI on 2000-07-21
  I just say after I saw the original version of this movie, I thought this was going to be chopped down to American standerd's. But it wasn't! In fact this was more accurate than the first dub was! There was only 2 (Very small) sceans that were cut, a lot of added computer animated footage, and the dig deeper into Ash & Mistey's relationship! I highly recomend this movie! The reason I gave this only 4 stars and not 5 is because they changed the music so it was all kooky insted of hip and actioness. >_<
  
  
• GOTTA CATCH 'EM ALL!
  By A2IN0BE2VXMXJ9 on 2000-07-22
  Wow, this movie ruled. To me it was even better than the first movie. It had alot of very funny stuff, and showed alot of my favorite pokemon: Psyduck. I think poke-maniacs will love this movie, my mom did so even some adults will like it! So go see it, and if you see it during the first week you'll get an official Ancient Mew game card! Cool, huh?
  
  
• Pokemon The Movie 2000
  By A5OGXU7TRZF07 on 2000-11-15
  This movie is really improved over the first one released last year (1999). It has more cool special effects and even the 15 minute short was much nicer then the first one.

  Overall, any die-hard pokémon fan should get this movie.
  
  

• This Movies Wicked!
  By A7KWYZ2ZYQRA6 on 2004-01-11
  I love this Movie!
  It wasn't quite as good as the first but I still thought it was wicked. The storyline is great. It says if you try hard and believe in youself there is nothing you can't do. I think pokemon has encouraged people of all ages from around the world that they are special and have the power to make change in the world. Get this movie you won't regret it!
  
  
• The movie is bigger and better.....but what's with the DVD?
  By on 2000-09-30
  First of all, I know we don't need an echo on this page, but this one is MUCH better than the first one, even you liked the first one. The danger is more real (and realistic), and there are better characters, better visual effects, better dubbing, and the ending's more touching than mushy, since the ending to the first one, which you can't deny, was MUSHY! So let me ask Warner Home Video a question: What's with the DVD! I know at the point I wrote this review the features listed on this page may need to be updated and verified before the DVD is out, but by the looks of the features displayed now, I'm disgusted! All we get is some "Soundtrack Live" performances and a sneak preview of Pokemon 3? HELLO! The first one was worse than this, and when the first one was on DVD, it was PACKED! (Despite the fullscreen presentation) This one is better, and it's SHRIMPY! I don't get it! And if they're not going to load this thing with features, they might as well at LEAST include a widescreen presentation, because unlike the first one, this one actually deserves to be shown in widescreen! When I saw this movie in the drive-in (in it's 1:85:1 glory), I knew from the minute the movie started I would be after it on DVD the minute it hit shelves. But if the DVD's really as sparce as it's described here, I won't bother, and who can blame me? I can think of a bazillion extras to put on this disc that will please DVD fans and Pokemon fans alike.

  To summarize; GREAT movie, so the DVD deserves to be great also. So why isn't it?
  
  

• Excellent Movie!! Disregard the biased
  By on 2001-03-18
  Pokemon 2000 was a vast improvement over the horribly translated First Movie. The voices were above average; not the same re-used voices from the TV show, though I dislike what a brat they made out of Misty, who was very cute and charming in the Japanese version. The dub music, though, indeed rivals the original Japanese score and creates a more exciting atmosphere, unlike the Batmanish music of the First Movie, which was not appropriate (or good) at all. The 3-D effects combined with regular hand drawings, are quite neat, especially the villain's airship. Finally, I'm glad that they didn't change the dialogue too much; most of it was very closely translated and there weren't stupid Team Rocket Puns. Young Anime fans will enjoy this movie, and Pokemon fans should pick this one up. Although I'm extremely disappointed that there isn't a Subtitled Japanese Audio Track on the DVD which is what, might I add, that prevented us from hearing the wonderful original Japanese voices and music from Mewtwo Strikes Back.

  On another note, I'd please ask you to ignore the unfair, biased review of a previous review of the day. Reviews should be as unbiased as possible, but when you use phrases such as "movie is a waste of valuable film reel" or "Some-Other-Irrelevantly-Named-Badly-Drawn-Japanese-Cartoon-Character" I think you're going too far.
  
  

• Second not as good as the first
  By AIX5U6987QITP on 2001-08-23
  I didn't actually see this movie until the video release, and in retrospect, I wish I had seen it on the big screen. The animation was quite excellent, and the introduction of the 3 legendary birds from the original Pokemon games, along with the introduction of Lugia and several other Pokemon from the gold and silver games were a welcome sight on the big screen. The storyline, however, lacked the bite of the first movie. The underlying plot seemed basically the same (it's up to Ash to save the world again), but minus any kind of menacing villain. This movie's bad guy, a Pokemon "collector", intent on capturing all of the legenadary birds, is hardly intimidating, and there is no final resolution with him, as there was with Mewtwo - seemingly, no lessons learned. Another point I had against this movie was new character Tracey who replaced Brock in the cartoon for a while. I am NOT a Tracey fan, and even stopped watching the show while he was in it. But, it was still a pretty good movie, and I would recommend it to Pokemon fans.

  "Pikachu's Rescue Adventure", the short before the movie, was also pretty cute, like "Pikachu's Vacation", and it introduced us to several new Pokemon. (And Vulpix was in it, which gives it high points in my book!) But again, if you don't follow Pokemon, it might be hard to understand what's going on, since once again, the dialogue is in "Pokemon-ese"!

  Once again, the DVD was in the standard format, just like "Pokemon: The First Movie". I can't understand why they do this, since most DVDs feature both standard and widescreen version, but who's to say.
  
  

• Not nearly as good as the first.
  By A1Q4ZU2Y929N0A on 2003-05-15
  In the second theatrical release of the Pokemon series, we are given nothing but an environmental disaster for Ash and friends to solve - and this makes it quite a bit less great than the first movie. This would have been much better as a multi-part episode of the TV series.

  If you're unfamiliar with the basics, Pokemon (short for "POcKEt MONsters") are creatures a little like those from this world, but with strange and unusual powers and abilities that they use for their masters - masters that can be either good or evil. Ash and his friends train their Pokemon to fight battles with their enemies. They travel all over the planet to collect new and unusual types of Pokemon. They trap Pokemon in "Poke Balls" - a small device that hangs from a belt. When Ash's enemies release their Pokemon to do their work, Ash and his friends release their Pokemon, and they have a big battle.

  The environmental message in this story is just about shouted out loud and clear. This heavy handedness in story and plot makes it less enjoyable to begin with. Then, to make matters worse, there's a section near the beginning of the movie that almost comes right out and tells you the plot for the rest of the movie. If I had know that this was the case, I could have turned it off right then.

  Ash and his friends must save the three legendary bird Pokemon Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres from the clutches of an evil Pokemon collector. But the "evil" of the collector is only superficial at best - we are given no reasons for his obsession with "Gotta Catch Em All" other than the collector's card that he both begins and ends the movie with. He doesn't seem nearly as threatening as the menace of MewTwo. And there's almost no resolution to his story - he is left with exactly what he stared with and does not seem to regret his evil ways, nor does he seem to care that he was ultimately responsible for the environmental disasters that faced Earth.

  Meanwhile, Lugia must help Ash replace the three orbs on the island where they belong while flying through the fight between the three legendary birds and the environmental damage that they have created. Ash's life is in jeopardy again, and after the first movie, you would think that the Powers That Be would come up with a more original plot. What's worse is that the message is presented in such a way that it Cannot Be Ignored, which is always a plot device that I have hated. There's not any story for parents to love in this one unless they're members of Greenpeace.

  My favorite part of this movie was the few scenes where the original Team Rocket, Jessie and James, have a change of heart and must side with their former enemies Ash and friends. I sometimes wonder why those two have never learned the error of their ways. This was the only saving grace of this movie.

  There's also another Pikachu cartoon in this one that fans of the TV show will enjoy, but parents will find a herd time making any sense of the Pokemon "talk".

  Not nearly as highly rated as the first movie - in fact I only recommended it for Pokemon fans.
  
  

• The Power of One
  By A20JS9ESUZWU9Y on 2005-08-25
  The second Pokemon movie is really good. In the plotline, an evil dastardly guy named Gelardan/Lawrence III (he was called "Gelardan" in the closed captioning, but someone said his name was Lawrence III, so I'm not entirely sure what his name actually is) decides to add the legendary birds Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres to his collection of rare items. He thinks this way he can also collect another legendary Pokemon, Lugia, as well. Of course, when he succeeds in capturing Moltres, he inadvertantly throws everything horribly out of balance. (Whether or not he did it on purpose isn't entirely clear...)
  Around this time, weather patterns are thrown out of whack and Pokemon everywhere are disturbed, so they are travelling to the source of the problem--Shamuti Island in the Orange Archipelago, which is, coincidentally, where Ash, Misty and Tracey currently are located.
  Eventually, the group meets a girl named Melody and partakes in an annual festival of sorts. Part of the festival involves an ancient ritual, and Ash is picked to play "the chosen one" in said ritual. Little does he know he really IS the "chosen one", according to an ancient text, and he's supposed to save the world from Gelardan/Lawrence III. Coincidentally, Lawrence III also read the text and misinterpreted it, which is part of why he's attempting to collect the Legendary Birds. You'll understand once you see it.
  
  This movie is really nicely done. The special effects and facial expressions are of course great, and the voice acting is also nice. I also especially like the part towards the end where Melody plays Lugia's song in its full glory--they really did a nice job with that.
  Best of all, you get to see Team Rocket help out the good guys.
  So in conclusion, this movie is really nice and is definitely worth purchasing, maybe even if you're not a Pokemon fan.
  This movie is only missing one thing, unfortunately: Mewtwo. :)
  
  There is also a rather interesting mini-movie, "Pikachu's Rescue Adventure", wherein Pikachu and company go to rescue Togepi, with the help of an Elekid, and they find a lot of interesting things along the way. Like with "Pikachu's Vacation", the only language spoken is Pokemon-speak (aside from Meowth).
  I won't give away very much about it, except to say that I really like the dancing Bellossom. ^_^
  
  
• I loved this movie!
  By on 2006-10-15
  I remember seeing this movie in theatres when I was around 7, and I really loved it!! Needless to say, this was my favorite movie out of the pokemon saga, especially since we see some my favorite character, Articuno. I was watching this yesterday, and let me tell you, when youre older, the movie has a whole new depth, I was crying at the ending. This movie is more entertaining then the first one (not to say the first one was bad, I loved it) I highly reccomend it!
  
  
• A 13 Year Old Who Saw Pokemon2000
  By AQ5NP91ES1KW on 2000-07-31
  I loved it! This movie was way better than the first. and I loved getting Ancient Mew. I especially liked the part where Misty gives all those signs that she likes Ash. When Ash, Misty, Jessie, James, and Meowth were talking about ' Oppisite Sex' It was funny. Jessie:*to Misty* ...whatever you do, don't trust the opposite sex. * I gasped at this* James:That's one aspect I've managed to keep away from... Meowth:Well, you two may not trust the opposite sex but, hey, ya have each other. Jess/James:What do you mean?! * I started laughing. Another quote I liked: Jessie:For once we're good guys. James:That's good. Meowth:What if the boss finds out? James:That's bad. Jessie:Then we'll start our own team of good guys! James:That's good! Meowth:But we have no cash. James:That's bad. Jessie:We can steal some. James: That's good...or is that bad? If you haven't seen it yet, see it know!
  
  
• The powers of ice, fire and lightning collide!
  By on 2000-10-23
  In Pokemon the Movie 2000, a pokemon collector sets out to find the rarest flying pokemon there is. Legend has it, if you bring together the gods of ice, fire and lightning you'll awaiken the god of the sea and the earth will head for destruction. The collector hopes to capture the beast from the sea no matter what the costs. This movie had great special effects and lots of laughs, so if you haven't already seen it buy it on video!!!
  
  
• Lugia, we love ya baby!
  By A3SP7PNGK4X0NL on 2000-11-29
  This is soooooo much better then 'Mewtwo Strikes Back'. Slowking has got the best (and most inappropriate at the time!) line, "I should get pants".

  And best of all ( to me anyway!) This movie has got Tracey in it! Ash is really cute in this film, and I'd recommend it to ANYONE! This is an actually GOOD dub, compared to some episodes and the First Movie, which have been butchered beyond recognition, but, 4KIDS did a really good job with this one!

  10/10!
  
  

• EXCEPTIONAL!!!
  By on 2001-02-09
  Well! For once Team Rocket helps to save the day . . . . And what Meowth said about Jessie and James was cool. I didn't expect it. After "Pokemon Shipwreck" I suspected more than friendship between Jessie and James. After "Holy Matrimony!" I thought it was definite. And now . . . well, they certainly DO have each other!! Apart from that, it was fun to clench my fists every time that insane, cruel, greedy, arrogant, stupid pig of a Lawrence III did something infuriating ("Poor Moltres . . . you look miserable . . . but as they say, 'Misery loves company'," in a cruel way). Also, I think that the plot was original. And it involved folklore, and prophetic fate . . . and cool stuff like that. The new Pokemon are also pretty cool. 'The Legend Comes to Life' is a beautiful piece of music that I love. It is the best musical composition of the year 2000. What more can I say? Ah, yes, don't EVER say MSB stinks, because it was 'butchered'. The Japanese version of MSB was beautiful. Both movies are extremely spectacular!!! Brock didn't make much of an appearance in P2K. I don't mind that too much, 'cos I find Tracey much more . . . intriguing. I like to puzzle over Tracey. He's weird . . . in a COOL way!!! Just listen to him saying to Misty and Melody, "You talking about me?" ^_^ What more can I say? Only one thing: this is a wonderful movie with great voice casting (because, in my opinion, Rachael Lillis is the best actress in the world).
  
  
• THE BEST DARN FILM YOU WILL EVER SEE!
  By on 2001-02-25
  I absolutly LOVE this movie!!!First of all, there's the soundtrack. The tune used in "The Power Of One" and "The Legend Comes To Life" (Melody's flute song/Lugia's call) is stunning, such a calming song. All the songs are great, like the nice "The Extra Mile" and "Flying Without Wings", the pop style "Pokemon World(Remake)" and "Wonderland", to the odd-yet cool "Polkamon" and "Dance Of The Bellossom". Then, there's "Pikachu's Rescue Adventure". Sure, it's cutesy and childish, but the animation style is awesome. I really like the tunnel scene(when Pikachu and pals were lead to the Bellossom lair by Elekid)because of the "coming closer" style. Best of all, there's "The Power Of One", which is amazing. Lawrence III is a devilish character, like Giovanni, the kind of villain that all films need. His airship is complex, showing his classy rich personality. Melody, my favorite character, is what the Pokemon series needs, someone

  who actually pointed out Misty's crush on Ash!!! Sure, Team Rocket noticed it, but they never teased her about it much. The great thing about it is that you can laugh about it as much as you want, because she's not a real person!!!! I LOVE this film so much, I saw it the first day it was out (July 21), got the soundtrack the first day it was out (the Tuesday before), and got the video the first day it was out (November 12 or 14, can't remember).
  
  

• The best example of why Pokemon is bad for you
  By A20NMHONN5SRDI on 2001-03-05
  Watching some of this movie with my 2 year old cousin, I came away with only on realization : Pokemon could only appeal to a 2 year old. Actually, it insults the intelligence of a two year old. No plot, no story, no realistic characterizations, just a filler.

  The Digimon Movie was definitely better than this.
  
  

• This movie is a waste of valuable film reel.
  By A1DG864DFRS9B2 on 2001-03-13
  What a pathetic edition to the pantheons of the world's movies. Sure, we have a "movie" cashing in on the unquestionable success of the Pokemon cartoon series, but I wonder just how many people actually stopped to realise the movie was simply an inflated episode of the cartoon? or perhaps even just three episodes strung together? This film... so badly that I'm not even going to give an account of the plot (if I did it would simply be a rambling along the lines of "Charmander casts his fire spell on Some-Other-Irrelevantly-Named-Badly-Drawn-Japanese-Cartoon-Character" and a simple repetition of this kind of thing).

  The characters are unaddictive (there are way too many of them for starters), the plot trails off in about a thousand direction, the effects are every bit as bad as the cartoon and the language is so simplistic it is hardly going to accelerate children's learning processes (surely something like this designed for children should help them cope with comlpex language skills?).

  Such a bad addition to the world of movies is this that it is one of the VERY few movies I haven't seen all the way through - I left after 40 mins to watch a real movie (I think it was Jaws). Okay, so its designed for kids. Big wow - so is the very successful, and far more impressive, Toy Story 2, and A Bug's Life, which appeal to all ages without the non-essential obsession with literally scribbled pictures of pointless magical creatures.

  Avoid this movie at all costs. It is a waste of time, money, effort, attention and everything else, and there is ALWAYS going to be a better kids movie out there. Pixar looks pretty good, and you can never miss with Disney.

  Oh, and I haven't just slated this movie because I don't like Pokemon, I did it because I genuinely believe it deserves it. The original Pokemon movie is marginally better than this and if you must see Baulbosaur and co. in battle on the big screen go and see Pokemon The First Movie. Alternatively, watch an episode of the cartoon, which is infinitely better and (because it is much shorter) far more tolerable.
  
  

• Awesome from start to finish!
  By A2LMU0A47NJXP7 on 2001-10-30
  The Power of One in my opinion is the best pokemon movie. The voice of Lugia was well cast and the plotline was well developed. I liked the musical score, especially "Lugia's Song," the song that the legendary bird Lugia sings and is very key in the plot. I liked the legend and the way it played out. Team Rocket's role in the plotline was good as well. All in all I think the makers did a very good job of using all of the main characters in one movie without it seeming too coincidental. If you're a pokemon fan at all I'd say that this is definitely worth getting.
  
  
• Slightly better than the first-but that's not saying much
  By A2C6GLQL1JXSX7 on 2002-01-17
  Okay, I've seen this one too, thanks to my brother. It shares many of the weaknesses of the first movie. It's based on a lousy TV show which is based (VERY loosely)on a mediocre video game. The second time around, they decide to introduce a bunch of new pokemon which confuses things even more. How do you keep track of over 200 little critters? The annoying Ash returns and I found it hard to believe that this rookie trainer somehow saves the world. Here is where the movies and TV shows differ from the video games. A player trying to use a pokemon team identical to Ash's will without a doubt face defeat time and again. To win the game you need to pick a team thats a bit stronger than Ash's collection of weaklings (believe it or not, pikachu is not a very strong pokemon in the game). Yet, despite his inherent weaknesses, Ash still manages to save the world. How he does it is a total mystery to me.
  
  
• Wow...
  By A1FBILIN0U3VFP on 2003-06-10
  GOOD HEAVENS!!! For some strange reason, I get this strange feeling that this will be my favorite movie of the bunch until I see "Pokemon Heroes". Mind you, I have seen only this and "Mewtwo Strikes Back", so that's only a prediction. Now let's get started.

  First, I will review the traditional 20-minute short "Pikachu's Rescue Adventure"

  This can be reviewed with on sentance: ""Pikachu's Vacation" was better". Skip it entirely. The only interesting scene is the "Bellossom concert".

  Now for the good stuff: "Pokemon: The Movie 2000"

  WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW, OH WOW.

  This is honestly one of the best movies I have ever seen.

  The story? Oh man, it's great. It starts with the explanation of an ancient legend. The Titans of Fire, Ice and Lightning, are the bird Pokemon Moltres (Fire), Zapdos (Lightning) and Articuno (Ice). The Collector (voiced by Neil Stuart) is an evil man who collects Pokemon and Pokemon-related items (like his Mew card (similar to trading-card game)). The legend reads that if Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno are brought together, they will flush out the real prize of all this collecting: The Beast of the Sea, Lugia. Sadly, taking these Pokemon from their respective islands (Fire, Ice and Lightning Island) will throw the entire balance of nature out of whack.

  While this is going on, good-ol' Ash (Veronica Taylor) with his old time pal Misty (Rachael Lillis) and new friend Tracey (Ted Lewis) are traveling the Orange Islands (home of those huge bird-like freaks) with another friend, Erin (Tara Jayne). While traveling, they get caught in a strange storm and blown to one of the Orange Islands, Shimouti Island. There, they are greeted by the island folk who are celebrating the Sea Festival. One of these folk is a friend of Erin's, Carol, who then introduces them to this year's Festival Maiden, Melody (Amy Birnbuam). Since Ash is a Pokemon trainer, they then decide that he is "The Chosen One" (guess they need one in a hurry) and explain to him that he needs to get 3 crystal balls from Fire, Ice and Lightning Island and bring them back to a shrine. Ash, Misty, Tracey, Melody and Erin set off to do so but are soon captured by The Collector in addition with Moltres and Zapdos. After finding out about his "diabolical" scheme, they team up with Team Rocket's Jessie (Lillis), James (Eric Stuart) and Meowth (Addie Blaustine) (they're out for Pikachu again) in order to "save the world".

  The story may sound generic, but it ain't. Takeshi Shudo's scrpit and Michael Haigney's and Norman J. Grossfeld's adaption is much better than their work with "Mewtwo Strikes Back". The dialogue is well written and Team Rocket is actually funny! Even their puns are funny!! AND I HATE PUNS!!!

  The animation is much, MUCH better than the first one's. The effects and CGI look great, and the graphics are lush and colorful. A delightful piece of eye-candy (more for me because I have a sweet tooth for lush graphics).

  Also, it makes me feel good to know that there is some sort of romance going on between Ash and Misty (I always thought that they would make a cute couple ^_^). While there was a small and not so obvious seed planted that Misty has a secret crush on Ash when he died in the first Pokemon movie, here it becomes quite obvious with Melody constantly teasing Misty about it (but Misty keeps denying it so Ash still doesn't know). Shogakukan Video (the company that makes the movies), please make it happen when you start work on the 7th movie if it hasn't already happened in the 6th (it's just come out in Japan). I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who wants to see her, if not hugging, kissing, or holding hands with him, at least confessing her true feelings to Ash.

  My only complaint is the use of some of the characters in the movie. Melody was a great character who was not given a big enough role, and The Collector and Tracey have absolutley no personality at all.

  All in all: This is a great movie with a sharp script, wonderfull animation and the G rating that the first one didn't.

  Ta-ta!
  
  

• Good movie but a bit of an embarrasment
  By on 2004-02-15
  This movie is great and it has my favorite Pokemon: Lugia. But the creators of this movie made Lugia an embarrasment. Anything happens to it and it falls into the sea. And I wish Lugia could actully beat up all three birds at once. But introducing Lugia`s Aeroblast to destroy Lawrance`s ship was hot. This movie also shows another of my favorite Pokemon: Articuno. This was a great movie but the Pokemon were an embarrasment
  
  
• Save the World...again?
  By on 2004-10-05
  This is probably my favorite of all the Pokemon movies (I watch them about once a year) because it has Lugia and the Legendary Birds. Just that, Lugia gets beat up SO many times, and then magically comes back when an instrument is played. I wish ASH could mind his own business for once and not save the world...for the umpteenth time. Let's see; first Pokemon: Ash stops the fighting. Second; He manages to bring peace to the birds because he's the "chosen one" (wow, I would've never guessed) Third; he gets Molly to stop the Unknown. Mewtwo Returns; he saves Mewtwo. Etc. Occasionally I wonder if these horrible movies and shows hadn't ever been made, if there would be more Pokemon TCG around. The characters just destroyed it, plain and simple.
  
  
• A Real Pokemon Adventure
  By on 2004-10-27
  I think it is the best pokemon movie. It is funny and it shows some really cool pokemon like Lugia and Slowking. I also think it has a very good storyline the way it includes Zaptos, Articuno and Moltres.
  
  

• Pokemon the First Movie - Mewtwo vs. Mew
• Pokemon 3 - The Movie
• Pokemon 4Ever: Movie
• Pokemon Heroes: The Movie
• Pokemon Movie - Lucario and The Mystery of Mew