Revisiting Pokemon: The First Movie and why it didn’t capture critics, but blasted off with fans

Growing up, several films stuck in my memory, helping develop my love for the medium and encouraging me to study film at a university level. Pokemon: The First Movie, I’m not ashamed to say, is certainly one of them. The hype surrounding it, the whole experience with the free cards, themed decorations, and the excitement of a trip to the cinema all helped secure it as a well-loved memory of the film.

However, while writing an article on the worst video game movie adaptations, I found that critics of the time hated it. This was a surprise for me, as I knew full well most of my friends at the time, and even now, as we look back on it, remember it being really rather brilliant.

Why did critics hate Pokemon: The First Movie so much?

I took a journey through history and dug up a bunch of critics’ reviews from all the way back in 1998, when the internet was just really beginning to open up. From my investigations, one thing became abundantly clear: reviewers of the late ’90s were wholly unimpressed by this Japanese export that was taking the younger generation by storm.

From what I could gather, most reviewers simply weren’t familiar with the source material. Even Roger Ebert, one of the finest film reviewers, struggled to grasp the concept of Pokemon, quoted as saying that “The story is idiotic” and that “The individual Pokemon have personalities that make the Teenage Ninja Mutant Turtles look like Billy Crystal.” Overall, the Pokemon phenomenon and craze seemed to have missed most reviewers, with this film being their first real exposure to the show, characters, and game that came along with it.

I think it is clearly a case of Pokemon: The First Movie being misunderstood by critics. Words like idiotic and humorless are thrown around, with the New York Times proclaiming that “the magic doesn’t bridge the generation gap” when watching as an adult.

Reviewers were also unimpressed with the level of animation. Tim Brayton, writing for Alternate Ending, points out that “for the film that remains, 20 years later, the highest-grossing anime film in North American history, one would long for there to be at least any artistry.” Numerous reviewers mirrored this sentiment.

A fast fan favorite

I vaguely remember the hype surrounding the film before it came out and the excitement of seeing it in the cinema. I received my free special edition Pokemon card, which was the much-sought-after Pikachu. With popcorn and a drink in hand, my mother led me to the screen.

As a child, I was an avid collector and trader of cards and had watched enough of the TV show to be intimately familiar with the characters. I knew what I wanted to see and was pumped for a story about Mewtwo, the most powerful Pokemon of all. Basically, I was a 9-year-old in the late ’90s; Pokemon was pretty much my life at that point. This is, I think, the core of what fans love so much about the film.

Pokemon: The First Movie is complete fan service. There isn’t a complete story in its almost 90-minute run time. We get little in the way of introduction to the characters, Pokemon, or universe because we are expected to know it all already. As TheUnknown871-3 on IMDB points out, “It really just feels like an extended version of a TV episode rather than a feature film.”

This is perfect for the fans. We went to the cinema or watched the DVD with all the background knowledge we needed. This extra-long episode of Pokemon was essentially just a special dedicated to the most powerful Pokemon of all. This is why we loved it, I think. It was made for the Pokemon trainers among us, not for people who couldn’t tell a Weedle from a Wigglytuff.

What the fans wanted from the movie, the fans got. It was a delve deeper into the world of Pokemon for the fans, and even now, the reviews are full of love for the franchise and nostalgia. TheMovieDiorama raves that “As a hardcore Pokemon fan, I can say that young Luke was damn happy with this, and old Luke still is!”. This is where the film shone.

Why Pokemon: The First Movie divided critics and fans

If you were out of the Pokemon loop, the film was kind of dumb, and the highs and lows were lost due to unfamiliarity with the characters and backstory. Watching the warring Pokemon cry together over Ash Ketchum’s petrified corpse wouldn’t have too much gravitas if you weren’t familiar with the epic battles he had waged in previous episodes.

Pokemon: The First Movie is a film for the Pokemon-loving audience. The high audience review score is due to how satisfying the movie is for folks invested in the franchise. Coming into the film as an outsider with little knowledge of it previously would definitely be disappointing. It can hardly stand up to the masterfully made Princess Mononoke, which came out only one year earlier.

Looking back at Pokemon: The First Movie, it’s clear how much context plays a part in how well both critics and fans receive a film. As noted by both, the movie was just a continuation of the show. Clearly, without the context, this film doesn’t stand up on its own. It is a film that needs some understanding of the lore and its characters to be genuinely appreciated.

We can see the same thing happening now with video game adaptations. Taking Uncharted, released in 2022, as an example, we again have a resounding flop from reviewers, but fans of the franchise are quick to jump to its defense. It seems that sub-par films can ride on the love and familiarity of the fans. However, reviewers aren’t quite as quick to don the nostalgia-tinted spectacles.

At least Pokemon managed to serve the fans well. Now, all we have to scratch that video game itch are films like Borderlands; which makes Pokemon: The First Movie look Oscar-worthy.