This movie is a classic to me, recreated faithfully. I first watched the original in theaters as a child, watching it again and again as an adult. There was a period of time in which Twitch played the original animated movie and together with other internet fans I watched the movie over and over again. Mewtwo Strikes back is the first Pokémon film brought to theaters and it is my favorite of the Pokémon films. There’s a good chance my nostalgia glasses have overtaken me and I need to give the other films a better shot.
Transforming beloved characters from 2D representations to 3D ones is a precarious one, one that must be executed well. Over the many iterations of 3D Pokémon representations, this one seems to be on the more passable side, keeping the animations playful, charming, and without compromise. There are cases in which animators attempt to make the world look too real, which draws us out of the magical realism.
Outside of the animation, the only difference I can detect in this film from the original is the voice acting, which has also been recreated faithfully. Just as close as the 3D animation can get to its original counterpart, I feel similarly to the voice acting. Sure, it’s not the exact same audio from years ago, but the acting and voices feel familiar. I can’t tell if the music is the same or not, it feels fitting either way.
The familiar story, scenes, and narrative make this movie such a heartfelt pleasure to watch. It’s one of the few animated movies that gets a tear from me each time. I highly recommend this movie to any animated film or Pokémon lovers. It hits all the right notes with nostalgia, the hero’s journey, and tales of friendship.
Leadership, Design, Writing 