Mewtwo Strikes Back
| Pokémon: The First Movie | |
|---|---|
Japanese film poster
|
|
| Japanese | 劇場版ポケットモンスター ミュウツーの逆襲 |
| Hepburn | Gekijōban Poketto Monsutā: Myūtsū no Gyakushū |
| Literally | Pocket Monsters the Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back |
| Directed by | Kunihiko Yuyama |
| Produced by | Choji Yoshikawa Tomoyuki Igarashi Takemoto Mori |
| Written by | Takeshi Shudō |
| Starring | |
| Narrated by | Unshō Ishizuka |
| Music by | Shinji Miyazaki |
| Cinematography | Hisao Shirai |
| Edited by | Toshio Henmi Yutaka Itō |
|
Production
company |
|
| Distributed by | Toho |
|
Release date
|
|
|
Running time
|
75 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Budget | ¥3 billion (US $30 million) |
| Box office | $163.6 million |
Pokémon: The First Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back, commonly referred to as Pokémon: The First Movie, originally released as Pocket Monsters the Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back (劇場版ポケットモンスター ミュウツーの逆襲 Gekijōban Poketto Monsutā: Myūtsū no Gyakushū), is a 1998 Japanese anime film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series. It is the first theatrical release in the Pokémon franchise.
It was first released in Japan on July 18, 1998. On July 8, 1999, a Complete Version (完全版 kanzenban) of the film was aired in Japanese television. In addition to an added prologue, the updated version included new animation and CGI graphics.
The film primarily consists of three segments: Pikachu's Vacation, a 21-minute feature focusing on the series mascot Pikachu; Origin of Mewtwo, the 10-minute prologue added to the Complete Version of the film; and Mewtwo Strikes Back, the main 75-minute film feature. Overseas, the prologue can only be seen as a bonus short in DVD versions of Pokémon: Mewtwo Returns.
Although Pokémon was extremely popular when the film was released, the English-language version received negative reviews from film critics. Despite the reviews, it was a box office success worldwide, topping the box office charts in its opening weekend, and eventually grossing US$163.6 million worldwide.
The Pokémon of Ash Ketchum, Misty, and Brock are sent to spend a day at a theme park built for Pokémon. Pikachu, Togepi, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle cross paths with a group of bullies consisting of a Raichu, Cubone, Marill, and a Snubbull. The two groups compete against each other in sports, but it leads to Ash’s Charizard getting its head stuck in a pipe. Pikachu, his friends, and the bullies work together and successfully free Charizard and rebuild the park, spending the rest of the day playing before parting ways when their trainers return.
...
Wikipedia