POKEMON: THE MOVIE 2000: THE POWER OF ONE A film review by Steve Rhodes Copyright 2000 Steve Rhodes RATING (0 TO ****): **
The fate of the world is in his hands -- Ash Ketchum, Pokemon trainer.
With the help of Pokemon all over the earth ("Pokemon are acutely attuned to the balance of nature," we are told), Ash fights an evil Pokemon collector. Underwater rivers are snaking their way around the planet, thus disturbing the global environment.
In POKEMON: THE MOVIE 2000: THE POWER OF ONE, this is about all of the almost impenetrable plot that it is possible to ascertain. Perhaps those who watch the show faithfully will be able to crack more of the code. Of course, if the studios had spent a small fraction of the fortune they will reap from the movie's profits, they could have come up with a decent script, one with real character development and more than a paper-thin plot. Our kids deserve better.
The only saving grace for this sleep-inducing tale is its lush animation. It is drawn as flat as a pancake but colorfully happy and inviting. With the intense palette of a Salvador Dali painting, the richly painted frames come to life as much by the panning of the camera as by the tiny movements of the characters. Japanese anime can be so much better with none surpassing PRINCESS MONONOKE, which was close to the top of my best films list last year.
As last time, the film is preceded by a 21-minute short. Last time, it was called PIKACHU'S VACATION, which made the top of my worst of the year list. This time Pikachu (whose entire vocabulary consists of the two words "Pika" and "Pikachu") is back with a short called PIKACHU'S RESCUE ADVENTURE. Thankfully, this short is almost exactly the same quality as the main feature, which is to say colorfully watchable.
With the possible exception of those well-versed in the television series and the trading cards, viewers will find both the movie and the introductory short visually pretty but narratively inert.
POKEMON: THE MOVIE 2000: THE POWER OF ONE runs 1:20 (1:41 including PIKACHU'S RESCUE ADVENTURE). It is rated G and has nothing to offend anyone of any age.
My son Jeffrey, age 11, gave the film ***, saying that he liked this one better than the first one. He said that his favorite parts were the music and the new bird.
Email: Steve.Rhodes@InternetReviews.com
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