Gekijô-ban poketto monsutaa: Mizu no Miyako no Mamori Gami Ratiasu to Ratiosu

At 70 minutes (as timed at a press screening), POKÉMON HEROES is the shortest Pokémon movie yet. This may be a relief to parents and Pokémon-haters everywhere, but it leaves Pokémon's target audience hungering for more. The big action climax never quite delivers and the great triumphal note the earlier films ended on never quite comes. This is especially disappointing because the film's first half offered a most exciting build-up involving two spectacular new Water Pokémon and two clever and attractive new villains. Thanks to these elements, the film is still worth seeing but you may want to wait until the DVD release, when it will be accompanied by the Pikachu short that played with it when it ran in Japanese theaters last summer.

The film does at least make its new Pokémon characters, Latios and Latias, a little more powerful and more layered than most Pokémon get the chance to be. Shaped somewhat like dinosaurs and able to both fly at high speeds and swim underwater, they're colorful, graceful creatures, a brother-and-sister team who are thoroughly devoted to each other. Aside from Ash's faithful Pikachu, they get the most screen time of any Pokémon in the film.

Annie and Oakley are the new bad girls in town and they completely blow their colleagues, Team Rocket, out of the water (well, actually, INTO the water--a running gag throughout the film). They're fashionable, if somewhat snobby, teen villainesses with eye-catching outfits and hairdos who get ample opportunity to wrap the audience (at least the older male part) around their little fingers before their ill-fated (and somewhat rushed) attempt to take over Alto Mare, an island city that hosts the annual Water Pokémon Festival (the draw for our heroes, Ash, Misty and Brock). As master thieves, Annie and Oakley seem to be a lot more efficient than Team Rocket and should be given more to do in future Pokémon entries.

The design of Alto Mare deserves note for being the most extensively detailed urban setting yet seen in the entire Pokémon series. Largely created by CGI, and modeled after Venice, Italy, it's quite visually stunning and deserves greater attention from anime fans than it's likely to get.

The big mystery surrounding this film (and the previous one, POKÉMON 4EVER) is why Miramax has chosen to distribute it in theaters without the 23-minute Pikachu short that normally accompanies each Pokémon movie (and did so for the first three Pokémon movies when they were released by Warner Bros.). Certainly, given the short running time of this one, the addition of the delightful "Pika Pika Starlight Camp" (as it was called in Japan) would have gone a long way to giving fans their money's worth.

This is one of quite a few films based on the cartoon anime Pokemon TV series.

Ash, Brock, Misty and their pokemon are in a town called Altamar for a big water race. Ash comes in the lead - but takes a wrong turn. It turns out Misty wins! The person who came second, a boy just older than Misty, takes her and her friends on a Gondola around the town.

Meanwhile, two baddies working for the same person as Team Rocket are, are looking for two rare pokemon in Altamar, Latias and Latios...

I think this Pokemon film is very good, due to the well-structured plot, the characters, the pokemon and the setting, which is based on Venice.

However, there are often distracting songs in the background of the film and Team Rocket are very silly and most of their content is slapsticky jokes.

Overall, a good film for Pokemon fans or just for people who like animated children's films. Enjoy! :-)

7 and a half out of ten.

As it should be. This movie continues along the concept of the original movies: to further the sales of the games by expanding upon their concepts. For those of you who actually play the game, this movie makes complete sense. For everyone else, I suggest you start by playing the game to get some background before delving into the Pokémon Universe (and giving this movie a one).

This, the 5th Pokemon movie, is a step down from the previous entry in the series but is still better than a 5th movie ought to be. Ash, Misty, and Brock arrive in a Venice-type town called Altomare for a water Chariot race involving their Pokemon.

The town is protected by legendary Pokemon siblings Latios and Latias, who can assume human forms. Meanwhile, Annie and Oakley, a couple of cat burglars from Team Rocket (this affiliation is only in the Western dub) attempt to steal a special jewel called the Soul Dew, which powers the city.

It takes just a little too long to get going. Jesse, James, and Meowth are featured, but they don't really have much to do. However there are still some lovely moments, a bittersweet ending, and in the end they do add up to more than the sum of their parts. The animation and architecture of Altomare echoes the look and feel of Koriko from Kiki's Delivery Service. I just wish that Miramax didn't tamper with it before releasing it to Western audiences. There is about 5 minutes missing and its inclusion might have made the film a little bit stronger.

Here we are at "Pokemon Heroes," the latest installment in the Pokemon movie series. I know the naysayers among you are thinking, "What? ANOTHER Pokemon movie? Why are they beating this 'dead' franchise?" Though it's far from the powerhouse that it once was, Pokemon still enjoys a level of popularity in the U.S. that justifies the release of a new movie every year (the cards and videogames still sell briskly to this day). Cross the ocean to Japan, and you'll see that Pokemon is STILL going strong after all this time; the 6th Pokemon movie has just been released over there, and Japanese Pokemon merchandising continues heartily.

"Pokemon Heroes" finds our protagonist, one Ash Ketchum, his ever present Pikachu, and pals Misty and Brock traveling through the Venice-like city of Alto Mare. It is said that Alto Mare is guarded by the spirits of Pokemon siblings Latios (brother) and Latias (sister), whose father, long ago, brought water to the city and saved the people from rogue Pokemon who had been terrorizing the city. Once again, Alto Mare is in danger, but the threat comes not so much from evil Pokemon, but from the ever dangerous Team Rocket. However, it is not the blundering Jessie, James and Meowth (and now also Wobbuffet) who pose the threat, but the graceful and stylish Annie and Oakley who look to rule Alto Mare (and eventually the world) and capture Latios and Latias to present to the Team Rocket boss as prizes. Latias, who has been roaming the city disguised as a local girl, takes a shine to Ash, who inevitably becomes involved in the siblings' struggle against Annie and Oakley for the fate of Alto Mare. Can Ash and his friends help Latias and Latios protect Alto Mare from the evil of Annie and Oakley? Will Jessie, James, Meowth, and Wobbuffet ever be more than just comic relief? Will Brock ever get the girl?

As with the previous 4 movies, those who are already Pokemon fans will derive the most enjoyment out of "Pokemon Heroes." Those who are not already fans may still enjoy the movie, if they let themselves. I know what it is like to not have any emotional investment in a movie, to the point of apathy or even distaste for the subject matter or the actors within, yet I have seen and actually enjoyed quite a few movies in spite of my initial impressions. Why many people, including kids who once were rabid Pokemon fans but now for whatever reason claim to now hate it, do not approach Pokemon in the same way is quite unfortunate.

What is also unfortunate is Miramax's marketing strategy for "Pokemon Heroes." As with "Pokemon 4Ever," Miramax has decided to release "Pokemon Heroes" in only a handful of theaters (196 on opening weekend) with a minimum of promotion. I am guessing that it is because they are trying to bolster sales of the future VHS/DVD release by firing up anticipation for it, and what better way to get anticipation up than by making the movie available to only a small number of theaters? Personally, I think it's a lousy way to market a popular franchise, and I hope that 4Kids Entertainment will find another distributor for the 6th Pokemon movie, because this so-called "dynamic" marketing strategy Miramax claims to have had for "Pokemon 4Ever" and "Pokemon Heroes" is a bunch of hooey.