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Poster for Pokémon: The First Movie

Pokémon: The First Movie

Seen it?

1998 | 96 min | Animation, Family, Adventure, Fantasy, Action

Weeknight Watch

Why it’s a Weeknight Watch

It made about 6 times its budget, but just 16% on Rotten Tomatoes held it back. Fine if it's on; don't plan your night around it.

Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.

Is it for you?

Who'll love it
Made for fantasy fans, action fans and families. Audiences love it more than critics do: a crowd-pleaser first.
The mood
Feel-good.
The pace
Fast-moving, at 1 hr 36 min.
What might put you off
  • Rated G, but scary moments.
  • It's in Japanese, so expect subtitles (or a dub).
  • Critics were cooler on it than audiences.

Determined to prove its superiority, a bio-engineered Pokémon called Mewtwo lures Ash, Pikachu and others into a Pokémon match like none before.

How it earned its rating

  • CriticsWeak

    16% on Rotten Tomatoes, 35 on Metacritic

  • AudiencesSolid

    7.0 out of 10

  • AwardsBelow par

    2 wins and 0 nominations from smaller awards and festivals

  • Box office & staying powerStrong

    $173 million worldwide on a $30 million budget; still draws a steady audience long after release

  • Buzz & cultural impactStrong

    About 284K people sought it out in the past year

Trailer

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Cast & crew

Directed by Kunihiko Yuyama

  • Rica MatsumotoSatoshi (voice)
  • Ikue OtaniPikachu (voice)
  • Mayumi IzukaKasumi (voice)
  • Yuji UedaTakeshi (voice)
  • Satomi KorogiTogepi (voice)
  • Megumi HayashibaraMusashi (voice)
  • Shin-ichiro MikiKojiro (voice)
  • Inuko InuyamaNyarth (voice)
  • Ayako ShiraishiJohi (voice)
  • Chinami NishimuraJunsar (voice)