Pokémon : Lucario et le Mystère de Mew

I was genuinely and pleasantly surprised, there was a good Pokemon movie made. The last Pokemon film I saw was Pokemon 3, which was the definition of "mediocre." Since the next four Pokemon films aren't being distributed anywhere anymore, I couldn't see them, so I have picked it up on what's effectively Pokemon 8. This is a huge step up. Better animation, better score, better voice acting (though still far from perfect), and a genuinely good story. I was actually pretty interested the whole way through on what was going to happen. Something I could not say at all for the first three films. It's actually good. So, yeah, I can actually recommend a Pokemon movie finally.

Fans of Pokémon have long since been aware of the film entries after every season finishes. With season 8 also known as "Advanced Battle" completing itself, the next film was on its way. To expect anything above the quality that's been output before is a bit of a stretch, but there's nothing wrong with wanting that. The films of the franchise have more or less been equal to each other with the occasional outlier mainly at the beginning. What's surprising though is just how much attention this particular entry gets mainly because of one of the characters in the title. For some reason, Lucario took off in popularity. Or at least so it seems. However, when it comes to the experience, the execution to this movie doesn't step itself up by a lot. There's still issues but this time in different places and same can be said for the good parts.

The plot is about a telepathic Pokémon named Lucario (Sean Schemmel) who lived during a more medieval time along with his partner Sir Aaron (Jason Griffith) when factions were at war. Unfortunately, when everyone needed him most, Sir Aaron disappeared leaving Lucario locked in a scepter. That is until Ash and company happen to free him in the current time. Now, Lucario wants to understand his place. Meanwhile, a world record holder Kidd Summers (Rebecca Soler) crosses paths with the group as well hoping to find Mew and its connection to the land Lucario once lived on. Again, from the Japanese end is the Yuyama and Sonoda duo. Doing the domestic adaption was Darren Dunstan directing, Kathy Pilon and John Touhey writing respectively. For the story itself it is clear that things are taking a slightly altered approach...initially. Yes, the film begins with the season 8 title music with a Pokémon battle, but there's more.

In a way like Pokémon 4Ever: Celebi - Voice of the Forest (2001), viewers get to see a little more of what the world was like in the past and the style of the era. Adding to that, is the lore surrounding Sir Aaron as an important figure and how Ash is able to free Lucario. While it's never been displayed before in the show, new things are learned that better explain why certain characters can do certain things. It is by far a better way of giving the audience a reason why someone could be called "the chosen one" as oppose to how it was executed in Pokémon the Movie 2000 (1999). Sadly, this is where the positives end. When it comes to story, the remaining part of it continues to be what's been shown before. Elements containing dramatic moments that don't lead to much of a payoff with the main characters, has been shown before.

So to suspect any of the protagonists are in any real peril is hardly a thought. Characters of the day like Kidd Summers who just join for their own reasons is just another usual thing these entries have. It would be nice to not have one every now and then. Then there's the lack of continuity, since Ash, Brock and Pikachu have all encountered Mew back in the first movie. No reference to ever remembering their past adventure.

Not even Team Rocket who are more involved in this story seem to remember. Again, this doesn't take away from the performances as all voice actors do well. Jason Griffith has voiced Sonic the Hedgehog and Sean Schemmel is of course known for being the voice of adult Goku in the Dragonball franchise. Kind of strange that Lucario produces blue energy blasts in a similar fashion to the Kamehameha. Wonder if that was intentional.

Perhaps one of the more interesting things to hear are the three Regi- Pokémon (Ice, Steel and Rock). They have some of the strangest cries...sounding like computer viruses. With respect to sight, the animation is decent with Kazuaki Mouri as executive animation director. Much of movements between characters are very fluid, which adds a whole new dimension. Shockingly there's no credit at all to directory of photography on IMDb, despite the film crediting Takaya Mizutani as such. The same could also be said for Shinji Miyazaki who composed the film score listed in the film, but IMDb lists Go Ichinose. Even with those mistakes the music is good despite having no domestic album release. That's definitely not a surprise. The sound though is a mix between more orchestral sounding pieces with occasional synths in the background.

Really the viewing experience to this entry won't be too different from others. The plot expands and expounds certain things about the world of Pokémon a little more than before, to point where it begins to makes some sense. Even though the direction goes into predictable territory as time progresses. Still the voice acting, music and animation all make it entertaining enough.

This is easily my favorite Pokemon film in the franchise. Everything from the characters, animation, and effects blend in together amazingly

This is a review of the latest in the long lasting line of feature films that have spawned off the widely recognized Pokemon franchise. How does it stack up, against its Pokemon-movie brethren, and against other movies in general? Let's find out, shall we? When we start up the movie, we are introduced to the kingdom of Orudoran, some centuries previous to main character Ash's time. A cataclysmic war has broken out across the barren landscape, one that threatens to destroy the kingdom. We are also introduced to Sir Aaron and his Pokemon apprentice, Lucario.

The main premise of the film builds off of the events that take place in its first few minutes; that is, Sir Aaron tells Lucario that he is forever abandoning the kingdom, never to return, and imprisons the confused Pokemon inside of his crystal staff.

After the opening title, we jump ahead a few hundred years, where Ash and his sidekick pals are attending a festival at Orudoran palace, held every year in honor of the legendary guardian, Sir Aaron. Wait, what? Yeah, you see, the legend held at this point in time suggests that Sir Aaron was able to find some way to stop the war that would have otherwise destroyed the place. Our young hero Ash accidentally provokes the sealed Lucario enough for it to emerge from the preserved crystal staff altogether, and as you may expect, it is very confused to have awakened so many years later. The body of the film consists of Ash's journey to a fossilized wonder called the Tree of Beginning, where Pikachu had been taken by the ever popular Mew.

The story itself is fresh and welcome to the series on all accounts. There are some well choreographed twists and a convincingly apocalyptic scene that builds up to the movie's sincerely touching conclusion. If you can stomach another painfully lengthened "Pokemon remorse" scene, similar but (thankfully) about a quarter as long as the one found near the end of the first movie, this is a magnificent story befitting the world of Pokemon quite well.

A large part of appeal an anime gets is determined by how it presents itself graphically. "Lucario" is a monumental upgrade in terms of... well, everything in terms of animation, really, for the series, including previous feature films. The graphical presentation is astounding with detailed, smooth character animation, fantastic background images, and some neat effects. By far the biggest update to the scene is the broader use of 3D rendering, which is used widely from moving 3D models of people to rendering full 3D environments. Near the beginning we are treated to a scene where a Tailow (a small bird Pokemon) is flying around a fully 3D rendered Orudoran castle. The blending of 2D hand-drawn anime and 3D rendering effects is crisp and clean, and it works very well with the show. With as much as is used, it never feels like overkill.

The movie's soundtrack is equally intriguingly above-par. A full orchestra provides a stunning array of background music and makes this seem like an authentic, medieval adventure. Good composition and orchestration all around, and it really adds to the experience to hear it loud. You'll want to turn your volume up for this one. Sound effects are also very well choreographed, with animation-matching foot steps and the like. There are, as well, some novelties in the sound department, the obvious of which are the vocations of "Regirock", "Regice", and "Registeel". These will send shivers down your pants, and get my vote for producing the first truly "out of this world" sound from a Pokemon I've ever heard. I'm going to reiterate about the soundtrack: I liked it so much, I imported the CD from Japan. It's that good.

The acting is... well, Pokemon. These are all the old voice actors, so you know pretty much what to expect. I will say, to newcomers of Pokemon, that these actors are truly excellent. Especially in this feature, it seems as though they gave an extra little something, and the screenplay seems to have been thought of to a greater extent than previous feature attempts, as well. Ikue Ootani pulls off an extremely believable "crying Pikachu" here, which must have been hard to do, and from all fronts, you'll receive top notch performances by Taylor, Lillis, Stuart, and Blaustein (Meowth). A very enjoyable English dub.

This film establishes itself as a children's adventure, but there are some sincerely touching moments and some real laughs along the way. I know I'm not the only one who lowers my head and shakes it when Brock goes hopelessly head over heels for the series's next pretty girl, and at one point near the end I broke out in laughter when Ash catches long separated Pikachu in his arms. A euphoric cry of delight turns slowly into a pleading yell of despair as he realizes that he is falling down a chasm of indiscernible height. Things like that make this an already good package even better.

Overall, "Lucario and the Mystery of Mew" is an excellent endeavor by Pikachu Project. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I sure as hell wasn't expecting this, and that's what made it even more special. It may be a little on the childish side, granted, but don't let that keep you from watching this film. You see that "8/10" score up at the top of the page? That's not comparing this movie to other Pokemon films. That's comparing it to the world. And you know what? It deserves that. It deserves that all the way. This is a great children's film to begin with, sure, but after adding a thought out story, a memorable soundtrack, and a wonderful cast performing their roles with perfection, you have a masterpiece in animation. I give "Pokemon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew" a well deserved 9 out of 10 (A).

This was a fantastic movie. The subplots were fantastic, the music was inspirational and phenomenal, and the song 'Advanced Battle' was also not half bad. There were a couple of things changed in the dub that I did not like, but it was still pretty good. The worst thing about this movie though, is Lucario's VA. In the original, they made Lucario sound like a noble,medieval, sensitive, ninja (which he is), but in the dub, they made him sound like a constantly angry monster. Lucario is no monster! He has feelings too! Anyways, if you've ever liked anything about Pokémon, or are willing to give it a try, then I highly suggest you watch this movie.

But alas, even though it is fantastic, it is still relatively immature, and is nowhere near as deep as some other movies.