Pokemon 4Ever Review

Before watching the movie: Alright, you little piece of shit - I know alright what you did to me... back when I loved Pokémon, movie 3 might have made me less interested in the fandom - but you, the fourth movie? You killed it, and you know it! And both critics and fans overall hated you, so it's about time I tear you a new one! Bring it on, motherfucker - come on!
Watching the movie: Oh my god, they explain to us how it all started? Oh man, I remember this... wait, what's going on? Oh my god, it's Ash and Brock and Misty! Q~Q Oh my god, I love you guys! Oh Ash, you and your unintentionally rude and dumb self, with your pathetic nature yet determined mind of going on no matter what, and how you always tend to be awkwardly intimate whenever you like someone. Oh Brock, with your perverted nature and always hitting on hot girls in the most desperate yet polite manner, how you keep managing to have dignity and respect towards people and always being a good friend, and how oddly charming the fact that you keep your eyes closed is. Oh Misty......... I hate you, but I digress.
God damnit... not only do I feel nostalgic watching this - but... the movie is such a fun ride? Well, that's a big surprise. I remember hating this movie... yet, I really love it this time. It's very odd... especially since I still dislike movie 1-3. Or well, I loved movie 1 as a kid, but dislike it now. But yeah... the movie I liked the least as a kid, I like the most now? Hmm... that's weird.

I can not describe in words how positively surprised I am by this. And I am SO glad now I bought Pokémon 4Ever before it was all sold out, the swedish edition on DVD. And yes, I did watch it with swedish dubbing. It's very important to me, since it's a childhood memory - not to mention, the voice actors are doing their jobs very well. Granted, the swedish voice actor for Ash pronnounces some pokémon oddly... like Gyarados is supposed to be pronnounced as "Garados", but he says "Gyrrados"... but still, sounds less silly than the girl who does his english voice.
So what does this movie do so well? Well, first of all... it explains everything to newcomers. Unlike the first movie especially, this movie makes sure we're not confused about things. It explains how Ash, Brock and Misty all started out - it explains how pokémon works and what they use them for and stuff. I could actually recommend the movie to people who haven't seen anything pokémon-related before, because this movie makes sure you're not extremely confused. Granted though, it might be a bit to melt with everything we see in the movie, but... I think anyone could handle that.

Alright, let's get into the main story.
So we see some crazy dude through CGI woods chasing a Celebi. By the way, if you want to know what I think about Celebi... he/she CAN be cute, but sometimes gets a bit annoyingly cute... especially when he/she eats those berries. >_<; I personally will always think Pikachu is the cutest bastard out of all pokémon, period. Not because he is the most popular one or because of my nostalgia - I just think he's adorable. Oh, and as for the CGI forest... it bothered me in the past, but not now. I actually think it looks good - like a moving matte painting. That being said though... you can tell this movie was made in the early 2000's, since that was the time period when everyone with a high budget overused CGI in their movies. And that IS the case for this movie, which arguably can get distracting.
Anyway, the crazy dude along with his 2 pokémon Scyther and Houndoom with their hilarious voice actors doing their voices for them (makes me think about how odd it must be for them to record those voices ) almost catches Celebi but doesn't - and we then move to outside the woods where a boy arrives and is about to go through a... rock arch or something? As a green-haired chick arrives and tells him to be careful... very casually, with a calm smile, as she says you might risk to time travel if you go in there. And then she offers him a loaf of bread. Kay. Hey, be careful with time travelling and stuff in there, it might be mildly annoying for you if it happens - here, have some bread. Uhm, yeah... people in the pokémon universe are fucking weird.
So, the boy goes in there, helps Celebi to escape the evil pokémon catcher (isn't it funny how it's evil in SOME cases to catch a pokémon against their will when it's about selling them to others - but if you catch them for yourself, you're a good guy?), and Celebi time travels to make sure the catcher won't get him. Uhm, I guess that's a solid way to make sure you won't get captured? But here's the thing - Celebi travels 40 YEARS into the future! Holy hell... why not just a day, or a week, or something? You know, a period of time that could be somewhat more adaptable for you?
Also, doesn't pokémon tend to have abilities you can use for the games that could be practical during battles? Would be pretty damn odd if Celebi actually could time travel in the games, now wouldn't it?

So, 40 years into the future now, we see the crazy guy trying to catch Celebi being an old fart now, and we get introduced to our main villain who interrogates him about Celebi. He is referred to in the movie as " the Iron-Masked Marauder" - but I looked up his real name... it's Vicious. No, I'm dead serious - this guy is so evil, his birthname is Vicious. Almost as ironic as with my character Deathbringer, dangit.
And man, I love this villain. He is perfectly simplistic and badass. Unlike the pretentious villains of the 3 first movies I don't really care about and who are filled with dumb logic and shit - there's no bullshit with this guy. He just wants to take over the world. And man, he is just SO evil - arguably the perfect Pokémon villain. He's so evil, he has his own supervillain costume black and red and with a helmet hiding his identity.
He's so evil, he has developed his own pokéballs called "Dark Balls". They are always catching the pokémon they hit, and they make the pokémon fully powered with it's full potential, and turns it evil and obeying Vicious fully. Why, how...? Because he's evil!
He's so evil, he pollutes water with EVIL when he falls into it, as he does in the end of the movie. No, I'm serious. He is THAT evil. I just love this guy. Oh, and he has three pokémon - Scizor, Sneasel, and also stealing a Tyranitar from the crazy guy. And he burns the place down and laughs like an evil maniac - I love it.

After this prologue - we see Brock and Misty getting ready to travel to the next gym through a boat, but Ash is gone. Brock tosses out his Crobat to find Ash, and... what else? Ash is dueling another trainer. And Ash uses of course his trademark adorable bastard Pikachu, and the other trainer uses a Croconaw. Uhm... so you use a water-type pokémon against a electric-type pokémon? You don't have to be a pokémon nut to realize why that is a really dumb move.
So they fight to a badass remix of the Pokémon main theme (seriously, I can not help but to at the very least twitch around my head listening to this beat - it's awesome), and Ash obviously wins... pretty quick, as a matter of fact. And then Ash realizes he is late and runs like hell, and almost misses the boat. He jumps out to catch it. Come on, Ash - you can do it! No, Brock - reach out further! He is going to fall! Oh, another dude grabbed his shirt... phew. Hmm? What, why are you guys looking at me like that? o3o; He... he could have missed it, and... and... <.<... >.>... shut up!

So they travel on, and... oh my god; Jesse, James and Meowth from Team Rocket? QwQ I love those guys! They are so pathetic and tries so hard to capture Ash's Pikachu (who can blame them when his Pikachu is the most overpowered Pikachu ever? ), and always fails... and yet, they are always so easy to love, and you don't want them to die or get seriously harmed. You just want them to get what's coming for them, but also at the same time have a good life else. ^^ But yeah, they follow them in a small pedal-zeppelin (do those exists in real life?), and Jesse gets cramps, and... the wind takes them away, and they move into the distance with a "bling" like usual. LOL
They arrive to a small town where they have treehouses next, and... uhm, wait, I thought they where going to the next gym? The narrator told us this? Why did they decide to travel to this place? And... they go through the same opening as the kid did in the opening 40 years earlier?? Why are people just doing that - randomly deciding to go through there? It makes no sense, dangit. Oh well... guess the plot is too tempting. But before they go in, a grumpy old green-haired lady warns them to, and we also see her grand-daughter who's a clone copy of the one in the beginning. Guess we should assume the old fart is the one from the beginning who has aged... even though her eyes are smaller, and she is literally half as short now. And of course, Brock hits on her grand-daughter, and... that oddly enough makes me feel nostalgic. What the heck is wrong with me? XP
They go in there, and they see the boy arrive with Celebi, and Celebi hides right before the trio arrives, because...... he wants to. So, Ash and Brock and Misty takes this boy back to the village, and shows him to the old fart, and she recognizes him and then talks to him up in the treehouse. She shows him his drawing book as she has been saving it for him, and... uhm, yeah. They then just go back into the woods to look for the flying green onion-head and protector of the woods Celebi.

They find him, and Celebi gets bothered, and defends himself with dangerous CGI vines! Uhm... AAAAAH!!!(?) Yeah, the protector of the woods, everyone... defends himself with small vines. Also, Brock makes a hilarious comment about how he thinks Ash just turned into a monkey. As said, I just love Brock. Especially since he says it so casually.
And right as they manage to get their hands on Celebi... Team Rocket again? Oh my god, they are doing their introduction?! Oh my god, oh my god!!! Oh, and even Wobbuffet ruins it all for them at the end of the introduction? Okay, that's it - I am now hopelessly in love with this movie. Seriously though, that was always one of the things I loved with the show - their introductions never went boring. And with Wobbuffet on top of it... he's just so hilariously annoying.
Of course, as they fail and fall down, the gang just keeps on going like nothing happened. And right after, Vicious appears with his awesomely badass walker-machine he travels in the woods with, and stops the gang from going any further. Quick, Celebi! Use your vines! In fact, it's a bit ironic how he used his time travel ability to get away from danger... but last time, he was just chased by a regular pokémon snatcher - this time, he's chased by the most evil motherfucker of ANY of the pokémon movies so far. Say, Celebi... you're not so smart, are you?
Team Rocket recognizes Vicious, and... Meowth (at least in the swedish dub) asks if he wasn't in The Gladiators, which made me laugh my ass off so much I had to pause. And they realize he is a part of Team Rocket too, and they tell they are as well as he can see... and Meowth says he is too, but he is allowed to wander around naked because he's a pokémon. Damnit, Meowth... already laughed my ass off once - don't make me do so twice! XP But yeah, they join him, and Vicious sends out two of his pokémon to chase after the gang.

Scisor and Sneasel catches up with them, and they have to fight. So, Ash takes out his Bayleef, the guy from the past (named Sam, by the way), uses his Charmeleon through his... very old and ugly pokéball. It's not rusty and doesn't look the way I remember it, but... man, that design just sucks. Sam even has to turn a knob twice before opening it up... seriously, not even a button like the newer ones? I'm sorry, but I just have a hard time believing the pokéballs where THAT shitty 40 years earlier - yet they are so high-tech their present time they can get small and big with the simple press of a button. Even worse - Ash is surprised by it? Not only are the three main characters always being completely oblivious to new types of pokémon - they don't even know their own world's history? Well... guess that DOES make sense since they rather travel around to make pokémon fight each other than going to school.
So after a pretty cool but sort of brief pokémon battle, the gang moves on and ties up Scisor and Sneasel with rope, as... hey, wait a minute - where did they get the rope?! Seriously, we don't see them travel around with it. Was it in their backpacks? Why the hell would you travel around with two really long ropes in your backpack anyway?? Ugh... I digress. Vicious doesn't get mad at this - he is just amused about the fact that the kids aren't as much of wimps as he thought they where. I would myself have reacted a bit stronger to the kids defeating 2 of my only 3 pokémon, but... okay.
The gang is in a hurry to get Celebi to a place where he can get healed, but then it gets foggy. But as that happens, several pokémon appears to help them through where they must go to find what turns out to be a lake. They put Celebi down there, and he gets cured... which makes Brock ponder, then snaps his finger and states that the water healed him. No shit, Sherlock. Oh, and on top of everything, Ash gasps at Brock's statement. Yeah, because we couldn't tell that ourselves. At least not if we are as stupid as Ash is, in which case... uhm, yeah.
Ash and Sam then follows Celebi as they swim in the water, and there's a bunch of pokémon down there, and... oh my god, a Gyarados! Get out of there quickly, before-... oh, it's not going to attack them? Uhm... okay... thought a Gyarados was a vicious dangerous beast, but... guess not. Either way, Celebi then controls both of them to fly up in the air for some time. Oh, and Celebi cures Misty's leg so she can walk again. Wait, Misty couldn't walk? Seen the movie twice already, but I don't remember any part where she did hurt her leg. So, then we get to the berry scene, where Celebi eats some berries and acts... awfully annoying in a forcefully cute way. -_-' Thought Jigglypuff was forcefully "cute"? Trust me, Celebi can get even worse.

Back to vicious, his walking machine of pure badassery, and the three lovable Team Rocket dorks. They complain about being hungry, as they close in on a peach tree. Jesse looks hilariously determined and serious and tells Meowth dead seriously to take the big one, and they struggle to take it... and like the dumbasses they are, they all three fall down. They see Vicious just keeps on as if nothing happened, and the three tries to run after him as James says he promises to share the soup... uhm, what soup? No idea. James is just being... well, James, as usual. LOL
Night-time with the gang (wow, that didn't come out right), and they are about to sleep, and Sam draws Pikachu and Celebi sleeping together (oh my god, that came out even worse! ), and Ash wakes up and talks to him. Sam says Ash must know more about the future than he does, and Ash being oblivious to what hurts or does not hurt states he is happy to not be stuck in the future like Sam is... wow, Ash. Very smooth. It seriously is a miracle you still have friends with statements like that. Of course, he says he doesn't mean it... and Sam forgives him.
And then they see lots of Metapods evolving into Butterfrees, and gasps about it. Yeah... fourth movie, and Ash is still shocked about witnessing pokémon evolving. So that's why he knows so little? His memory sucks. Well, that actually makes sense.
So, they then look deeply into each others' eyes, Sam and Ash, giggling, climbing up a tree, wraps one arm around the other, and looks at the dawn... uhm, Ash is straight, right? Or... isn't he? I've never figured that out yet. Because as far as I am concerned, it certainly looks like he has a major boner for Sam right now. Meh... probably unintentional, since I think Pokémon is one of those shows pretending like homosexuality doesn't exist. If it wasn't, James would have been coming out of the closet a long time ago already. If it turned out to be like that, I would SO totally let James do me. Hey, what? DON'T JUDGE ME!!! o3o; I would, uhm... do it out of pity. Yeah, that's it. Uhm... MOVING ON!

Next scene, the gang runs through the woods, and Vicious catches up to them and immediately tries to capture Celebi with his machine. And Team Rocket is behind them with... fish landing nets? LOL How can you not love their stupidity - the main bad guy has a high tech killing machine... Jesse and James uses simple nets. Anyway, Vicious eventually catches Celebi and turns him evil and makes him as powerful as he can be through his dark ball.
So, Celebi gathers twigs and branches and grass and such things from the woods to form into a huge CGI monstrous version of himself. Aaaand this is the worst CGI in the whole movie. Just felt like they where pushing it with this one, since it sticks out like a sore thumb. And Jesse is dragged into it and is stuck inside. And we also get to see Suicune appear to run towards them to help them eventually... and the first shot of him is in CGI as well. Why? Well, as said... they use a lot of CGI in this movie just for the heck of it, as it's completely useless in that scene. Though, still nice to throw in a legendary doggy - uhm, I mean legendary beast in the movie... with long purple hair and two strings of toilet paper floating out of it's asshole... yeah, this design is one of the more silly ones from the Pokémon universe.
So, Celebi is pretty much in berserker mode now, and shoots out large beams from the mouth of the huge twig monster, where Celebi happens to be inside. So, uhm... if the huge twig monster doesn't use anything like it's arms or such to fight with but only shoots a beam Celebi should be able to shoot either way; what was the point of creating it in the first place? CGI - that's why. XP

Anyway, Suicune arrives to help, and Brock takes out his Onix to fight as Vicious takes out his Godzilla-like Tyranitar. We see a pretty cool fight take place where Suicune helps while giving Ash and Sam a ride after saving them, and they eventually manage to defeat Tyranitar together. And then Ash and Sam goes into the twig monster and talks to Celebi to make him become good again. Ash and Sam gets electrified which mildly annoys them (...kay), and then eventually Celebi is his own self again. And this makes the dark ball he was in explode... uhm, how and why? I really don't know. And then the twig monster along with Vicious falls down the lake and Celebi takes Ash and Sam to safety... and Celebi is weakened and dying? Uhm... again, HOW AND WHY?! Oh, it's just so we can forcefully feel worried about Celebi dying, even though we all know he won't die. So, Suicune makes the water pure again after Vicious turned it evil (evil water... that's fascinating), but that doesn't help Celebi get cured. WHY?!!?! God damnit, movie... oh, and Ash tries to feed him some berries. Why? I really don't know. So then spontaniously, a bunch of other Celebis time-travels to that point of time to help their friend... I really should get mad and question this, but... I've done it so much already. Though, have to say it would certainly help if those guys would have shown up a bit earlier.
So, as Celebi is alive again, he flies down and... very briefly dips his hand down the water. So, they revived him with a dose of OCD? Alright then. So, then Vicious comes back up from the water to be a stubborn bastard and make a final attempt to steal Celebi, grabbing him and flying up the air... Ash luckily grabbing him as he does. Oh, and Pikachu finally does something useful in the movie and electrifies the bastard, making him fall down and... still survive, and gets tied up to most likely go to jail.

So, now Celebi wants to travel back in time again with Sam, which... apparently the old hag knows, but no one else does. Guess she understands Celebi's constant "bee, bee, bee". They take their farewell and stuff, and then return to the town we saw them in at the beginning of the movie before getting on the boat, and reports to Professor Oak. And I don't know if it's the swedish voice actor, but his response to what they tell is just hilarious. They saved the freakin' world once again, and he is just smiling calmly and is casually all like "Oh my, seems like you had a lot of fun". Oh, and Ash is silent and a bit sad there, and Oak goes all like What's wrong, Ash? You haven't said a word yet. Didn't you like your little adventure in the forest, or...? This is the third time I laughed my ass off. I mean, seriously... "little adventure"... oh my god.
So then we get the reveal that Oak was Sam, as he states to himself he remembers it like it was yesterday, and we see the picture drew of Pikachu and Celebi being asleep. Actually, a pretty clever twist - I remember I didn't see that coming the first time I saw the movie.
Then we also see Team Rocket enjoying themselves in the lake as they just relax there, and our movie then ends.

So, overall? As said, I loved this movie. It's awesome, and I am surprised I didn't like it so much before. I guess it was all about expectations, and same went for everyone else? It's a great movie to enjoy, and lots of stuff to riff on if you feel like it. Is it a good movie? Well... as popcorn entertainment, why not? Either way, it's really entertaining. And to me, a huge nostalgic trip. It's a bit of a pity Pikachu wasn't doing much in the movie, even though he wasn't completely useless... though, was cool to see Brock wasn't useless. As for Misty though? Yeah, she literally did nothing in this movie whatsoever.
I can actually recommend this movie. At the very least to pokémon fans. Remember disliking it and haven't seen it in a while? Give it a second chance. Or just not been able to see it yet but love Pokémon? I don't think you would regret watching it. Ignore the fans and critics, not to mention me myself in the past. This is actually a great movie, and I am now a proud owner of it. It has it's flaws that can bug me, but it's still a really fun ride.

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